[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 210 (Wednesday, November 1, 2017)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 50594-50596]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-23244]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Docket No. FAA-2017-0856; Airspace Docket No. 17-AWP-10]


Proposed Amendment of Class E Airspace; Hanford, CA

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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[[Page 50595]]

SUMMARY: This action proposes to amend Class E airspace extending 
upward from 700 feet above the surface at Hanford Municipal Airport, 
Hanford, CA, by enlarging the airspace to accommodate area navigation 
(RNAV) procedures at the airport, removing the Visalia VHF 
omnidirectional range/distance measuring equipment (VOR/DME) from the 
airspace description, and amending the geographic coordinates of the 
airport. This action also would remove Blair Airport from the airport 
description as the airport no longer exists. This action is necessary 
for the safety and management of instrument flight rules (IFR) 
operations at the airport.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 18, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Send comments on this proposal to the U.S. Department of 
Transportation, Docket Operations, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West 
Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590; telephone: 
1(800) 647-5527, or (202) 366-9826. You must identify FAA Docket No. 
FAA-2017-0856; Airspace Docket No. 17-AWP-10, at the beginning of your 
comments. You may also submit comments through the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov.
    FAA Order 7400.11B, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, and 
subsequent amendments can be viewed online at http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/. For further information, you can contact the 
Airspace Policy Group, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 
Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20591; telephone: (202) 267-
8783. The Order is also available for inspection at the National 
Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the 
availability of FAA Order 7400.11B at NARA, call (202) 741-6030, or go 
to https://www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html.
    FAA Order 7400.11, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, is 
published yearly and effective on September 15.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom Clark, Federal Aviation 
Administration, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center, 1601 
Lind Avenue SW., Renton, WA 98057; telephone (425) 203-4511.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Authority for This Rulemaking

    The FAA's authority to issue rules regarding aviation safety is 
found in Title 49 of the United States Code. Subtitle I, Section 106 
describes the authority of the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII, 
Aviation Programs, describes in more detail the scope of the agency's 
authority. This rulemaking is promulgated under the authority described 
in Subtitle VII, Part A, Subpart I, Section 40103. Under that section, 
the FAA is charged with prescribing regulations to assign the use of 
airspace necessary to ensure the safety of aircraft and the efficient 
use of airspace. This regulation is within the scope of that authority 
as it would amend Class E airspace at Hanford Municipal Airport, 
Hanford, CA, in support of IFR operations at the airport.

Comments Invited

    Interested parties are invited to participate in this proposed 
rulemaking by submitting such written data, views, or arguments, as 
they may desire. Comments that provide the factual basis supporting the 
views and suggestions presented are particularly helpful in developing 
reasoned regulatory decisions on the proposal. Comments are 
specifically invited on the overall regulatory, aeronautical, economic, 
environmental, and energy-related aspects of the proposal.
    Communications should identify both docket numbers (Docket No. FAA-
2017-0856; Airspace Docket No. 17-AWP-10) and be submitted in 
triplicate to DOT Docket Operations (see ADDRESSES section for address 
and phone number).
    Persons wishing the FAA to acknowledge receipt of their comments on 
this notice must submit with those comments a self-addressed, stamped 
postcard on which the following statement is made: ``Comments to Docket 
No. FAA-2017-0856/Airspace Docket No. 17-AWP-10.'' The postcard will be 
date/time stamped and returned to the commenter.
    All communications received on or before the specified closing date 
for comments will be considered before taking action on the proposed 
rule. The proposal contained in this notice may be changed in light of 
the comments received. A report summarizing each substantive public 
contact with FAA personnel concerned with this rulemaking will be filed 
in the docket.

Availability of NPRMs

    An electronic copy of this document may be downloaded through the 
Internet at http://www.regulations.gov. Recently published rulemaking 
documents can also be accessed through the FAA's Web page at http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/airspace_amendments/.
    You may review the public docket containing the proposal, any 
comments received, and any final disposition in person in the Dockets 
Office (see the ADDRESSES section for the address and phone number) 
between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal 
holidays. An informal docket may also be examined between 8:00 a.m. and 
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal holidays, at the 
Northwest Mountain Regional Office of the Federal Aviation 
Administration, Air Traffic Organization, Western Service Center, 
Operations Support Group, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, WA 98057.

Availability and Summary of Documents Proposed for Incorporation by 
Reference

    This document proposes to amend FAA Order 7400.11B, Airspace 
Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2017, and effective 
September 15, 2017. FAA Order 7400.11B is publicly available as listed 
in the ADDRESSES section of this document. FAA Order 7400.11B lists 
Class A, B, C, D, and E airspace areas, air traffic service routes, and 
reporting points.

The Proposal

    The FAA is proposing an amendment to Title 14 Code of Federal 
Regulations (14 CFR) part 71 by enlarging the Class E airspace area 
extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at Hanford Municipal 
Airport, Hanford, CA to accommodate area navigation (RNAV) procedures 
at the airport. The Class E airspace area would be modified to within 
1.8 miles southwest and 3.2 miles northeast of the 332[deg] bearing 
from the airport extending to 6.2 miles northwest of the airport (from 
within a 2.6-mile radius), and within 1.8 miles southwest and 3.2 miles 
northeast (from within 1.5 miles each side) of the 152[deg] bearing 
from the airport extending to 6.2 miles southeast of the airport (from 
5 miles southeast), and within 1.3 miles each side of the 067[deg] 
bearing from the airport (from 1.8 miles north and 2.3 miles south of 
the Visalia VOR/DME) extending to 7.7 miles northeast of the airport.
    Also, this action would remove the reference to the Visalia VOR/DME 
in the legal description as the FAA transitions from ground-based to 
satellite-based navigation; and would remove Blair Airport from the 
legal description as the airport no longer exists.
    Class E airspace designations are published in paragraph 6005, of 
FAA Order 7400.11B, dated August 3, 2017 and effective September 15, 
2017, which

[[Page 50596]]

is incorporated by reference in 14 CFR 71.1. The Class E airspace 
designation listed in this document will be published subsequently in 
the Order.

Regulatory Notices and Analyses

    The FAA has determined that this proposed regulation only involves 
an established body of technical regulations for which frequent and 
routine amendments are necessary to keep them operationally current, is 
non-controversial and unlikely to result in adverse or negative 
comments. It, therefore: (1) Is not a ``significant regulatory action'' 
under Executive Order 12866; (2) is not a ``significant rule'' under 
DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures (44 FR 11034; February 26, 
1979); and (3) does not warrant preparation of a regulatory evaluation 
as the anticipated impact is so minimal. Since this is a routine matter 
that will only affect air traffic procedures and air navigation, it is 
certified that this proposed rule, when promulgated, would not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities 
under the criteria of the Regulatory Flexibility Act.

Environmental Review

    This proposal will be subject to an environmental analysis in 
accordance with FAA Order 1050.1F, ``Environmental Impacts: Policies 
and Procedures'' prior to any FAA final regulatory action.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71

    Airspace, Incorporation by reference, Navigation (air).

The Proposed Amendment

    Accordingly, pursuant to the authority delegated to me, the Federal 
Aviation Administration proposes to amend 14 CFR part 71 as follows:

PART 71--DESIGNATION OF CLASS A, B, C, D, AND E AIRSPACE AREAS; AIR 
TRAFFIC SERVICE ROUTES; AND REPORTING POINTS

0
1. The authority citation for 14 CFR part 71 continues to read as 
follows:

     Authority:  49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g); 40103, 40113, 40120; E.O. 
10854, 24 FR 9565, 3 CFR, 1959-1963 Comp., p. 389.


Sec.  71.1   [Amended]

0
2. The incorporation by reference in 14 CFR 71.1 of FAA Order 7400.11B, 
Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 3, 2017, and 
effective September 15, 2017, is amended as follows:

Paragraph 6005 Class E Airspace Areas Extending Upward From 700 
Feet or More Above the Surface of the Earth.

* * * * *

AWP CA E5 Hanford, CA [Amended]

Hanford Municipal Airport, CA
    (Lat. 36[deg]19'00'' N., long. 119[deg]37'40'' W.)

    That airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface 
within 1.8 miles southwest and 3.2 miles northeast of a 332[deg] 
bearing from the Hanford Municipal Airport extending to 6.2 miles 
northwest of the airport, and within 1.8 miles southwest and 3.2 
miles northeast of a 152[deg] bearing from the airport extending to 
6.2 miles southeast of the airport, and within 1.3 miles each side 
of a 067[deg] bearing from the airport extending to 7.7 miles 
northeast of the airport.

    Issued in Seattle, Washington, on October 18, 2017.
B.G. Chew,
Acting Group Manager, Operations Support Group, Western Service Center.
[FR Doc. 2017-23244 Filed 10-31-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-13-P