Department of Transportation March 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This notice contains a summary of a petition seeking relief from specified requirements of 14 CFR. The purpose of this notice is to improve the public's awareness of, and participation in, this aspect of FAA's regulatory activities. Neither publication of this notice nor the inclusion or omission of information in the summary is intended to affect the legal status of the petition or its final disposition.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced today that it is seeking to identify additional qualified industry consultants to assist 14 Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 91; 121, 125, 129, 135 operators as they pursue approval to conduct Required Navigation Performance (RNP) Special Aircraft and Aircrew Authorization Required (SAAAR) approaches. Provisions for gaining those approvals are contained within FAA Advisory Circular (AC) 90-101, Approval Guidance for RNP Procedures with SAAAR. Applicants who meet certain qualifications will be permitted to enter into an agreement with the FAA to be listed as RNP SAAAR Approval Consultants.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Model DHC-8-100 and DHC-8-200 series airplanes, and DHC-8-301, -311, and -315 airplanes. This AD requires implementing a corrosion prevention and control program (CPCP) either by accomplishing specific tasks or by revising the maintenance inspection program to include a CPCP. This AD results from the determination that, as airplanes age, they are more likely to exhibit indications of corrosion. We are issuing this AD to prevent structural failure of the airplane due to corrosion.

Section 6005 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) established the Surface Transportation Project Delivery Pilot Program, codified at 23 U.S.C. 327. To ensure compliance by each State participating in the Pilot Program, 23 U.S.C. 327(g) mandates semiannual audits during each of the first 2 years of State participation. This final report presents the findings from the fourth FHWA audit of the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) under the pilot program.

This notice contains a summary of a petition seeking relief from specified requirements of 14 CFR. The purpose of this notice is to improve the public's awareness of, and participation in, this aspect of FAA's regulatory activities. Neither publication of this notice nor the inclusion or omission of information in the summary is intended to affect the legal status of the petition or its final disposition.

This safety advisory is issued to remind all persons who manufacture or use composite cargo tank motor vehicles authorized under DOT special permits of the requirement to conduct testing to ensure that the material to be transported in the cargo tank is compatible with the materials used in the construction of the cargo tank.

In Vol. 68, No. 210/Thursday, October 30, 2003/Notices, FHWA issued a Notice of Intent to advise the public that an Environmental Impact Statement would be prepared for the proposed SH 35 roadway between Bellfort Road and FM 1462 in Harris and Brazoria Counties, Texas. The use of Federal funding for this project is no longer proposed and a State Environmental Impact Statement will be prepared.

In accordance with the procedures governing the application for, and the processing of, special permits from the Department of Transportation's Hazardous Material Regulations (49 CFR Part 107, Subpart B), notice is hereby given that the Office of Hazardous Materials Safety has received the application described herein. Each mode of transportation for which a particular special permit is requested is indicated by a number in the ``Nature of Application'' portion of the table below as follows: 1Motor vehicle, 2Rail freight, 3Cargo vessel, 4 Cargo aircraft only, 5Passenger- carrying aircraft.

This action amends the operating rules to require U.S. operators flying outside the United States to carry aircraft noise certification information on board the aircraft. This rule is intended to ensure that affected U.S. operators have the appropriate noise certification information on board when they fly outside the United States as required by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and to ensure compliance between domestic U.S. regulations and ICAO Annex 16, Amendment 8.

FMCSA announces that it will hold a fifth public listening session (in addition to the four sessions held in January 2010) to solicit comments and information on potential hours-of-service (HOS) regulations. Specifically, the Agency wants to know what factors, issues, and data it should be aware of as it prepares to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on HOS requirements for property-carrying commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers. This session will be held in the Louisville, Kentucky area in conjunction with the Mid-America Trucking Show. The listening session will allow interested persons to present comments, views, and relevant research on revisions FMCSA should consider in its forthcoming rulemaking. All comments will be transcribed and placed in the rulemaking docket for the FMCSA's consideration.

FMCSA announces receipt of applications from 19 individuals for exemption from the vision requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations. If granted, the exemptions would enable these individuals to qualify as drivers of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate commerce without meeting the Federal vision standard.

FMCSA announces its decision to exempt 24 individuals from the vision requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). The exemptions will enable these individuals to operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate commerce without meeting the prescribed vision standard. The Agency has concluded that granting these exemptions will provide a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety maintained without the exemptions for these CMV drivers.

FMCSA previously announced its decision to renew the exemptions from the vision requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for 13 individuals. FMCSA has statutory authority to exempt individuals from the vision requirement if the exemptions granted will not compromise safety. The Agency has concluded that granting these exemptions will provide a level of safety that will be equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety maintained without the exemptions for these commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers.

FMCSA announces its decision to renew the 19 individuals. FMCSA has statutory authority to exempt individuals from the vision requirement if the exemptions granted will not compromise safety. The Agency has concluded that granting these exemption renewals will provide a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety maintained without the exemptions for these commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers.

The FAA proposes to supersede an existing airworthiness directive (AD) that applies to all Model 737-100, -200, -200C, -300, - 400, and -500 series airplanes. The existing AD currently requires repetitive inspections to find cracks, fractures, or corrosion of each carriage spindle of the left and right outboard mid-flaps, and corrective action if necessary. The existing AD also currently requires repetitive gap checks of the inboard and outboard carriage of the outboard mid-flaps to detect fractured carriage spindles, and corrective actions if necessary. This proposed AD would require any new or serviceable carriage spindle installed per the requirements of the existing AD to meet minimum allowable diameter measurements taken at three locations. This proposed AD also would require new repetitive inspections, measurements, and overhaul of the carriage spindles, and applicable corrective actions. In addition, this proposed AD would require replacing any carriage spindle when it has reached its maximum life limit. This proposed AD results from reports of fractures that resulted from stress corrosion and pitting along the length of the spindle and spindle diameter, and additional reports of corrosion on the outboard flap carriage spindles. We are proposing this AD to detect and correct cracked, corroded, or fractured carriage spindles, and to prevent severe flap asymmetry, which could result in reduced control or loss of controllability of the airplane.

This rule establishes, amends, suspends, or revokes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPs) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure Procedures for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.