Operating Limitations at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, 42135-42137 [05-14461]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 139 / Thursday, July 21, 2005 / Notices
available for inspection and copying in
the Commission’s Public Reference
Section, 100 F Street, NE., Washington,
DC 20549. Copies of such filing also will
be available for inspection and copying
at the principal office of OCC and on
OCC’s Web site at https://
www.optionsclearing.com.
All comments received will be posted
without change; the Commission does
not edit personal identifying
information from submissions. You
should submit only information that
you wish to make available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File
Number SR–OCC–2005–08 and should
be submitted on or before August 11,
2005.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated
authority.6
J. Lynn Taylor,
Assistant Secretary.
[FR Doc. E5–3901 Filed 7–20–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010–01–P
Notice is hereby given that any
interested person may submit written
comments on the transaction to the
Associate Administrator for Investment,
U.S. Small Business Administration,
409 Third Street, SW., Washington, DC
20416.
Dated: June 28, 2005.
Jaime Guzman-Fournier,
Associate Administrator for Investment.
[FR Doc. 05–14339 Filed 7–20–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8025–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary
[Notice of Order to Show Cause (Order
2005–7–14); Docket OST–2004–19877]
Application of GoJet Airlines, LLC for
Certificate Authority
AGENCY:
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
[License No. 09/79–0456]
HorizonVentures Fund II, L.P.; Notice
Seeking Exemption Under Section 312
of the Small Business Investment Act,
Conflicts of Interest
Notice is hereby given that Horizon
Ventures Fund II, L.P., 4 Main Street,
Suite 50, Los Altos, CA 94022, a Federal
Licensee under the Small Business
Investment Act of 1958, as amended
(‘‘the Act’’), in connection with the
financing of a small concern, has sought
an exemption under Section 312 of the
Act and Section 107.730, Financings
which Constitute Conflicts of Interest of
the Small Business Administration
(‘‘SBA’’) Rules and Regulations (13 CFR
107.730). Horizon Ventures Fund II, L.P.
proposes to provide equity/debt security
financing to Invivodata, Inc., 5615
Scott’s Valley Drive, Suite #150, Scotts
Valley, CA 95056. The financing is
contemplated for operating expenses
and for general corporate purposes.
The financing is brought within the
purview of § 107.730(a)(1) of the
Regulations because Horizon Ventures
Fund I, L.P. and Horizon Ventures
Advisors Fund I, L.P., both Associates of
Horizon Ventures Fund II, L.P., own
more than ten percent of Invivodata,
Inc. Therefore, Invivodata, Inc., is
considered an Associate of Horizon
Ventures Fund II, L.P., as defined at 13
CFR 107.50 of the SBIC Regulations.
6 17
Department of Transportation.
SUMMARY: The Department of
Transportation is directing all interested
persons to show cause why it should
not issue an order finding that GoJet
Airlines, LLC is fit, willing, and able,
and awarding it a certificate of public
convenience and necessity to engage in
interstate scheduled air transportation
of persons, property and mail.
Persons wishing to file
objections should do so no later than
August 29, 2005.
DATES:
Objections and answers to
objections should be filed in Docket
OST–2004–19877 and addressed to
Department of Transportation Dockets,
(M–30, Room PL–401), U.S. Department
of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street,
SW., Washington, DC 20590, and should
be served upon the parties listed in
Attachment A to the order.
ADDRESSES:
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
19:42 Jul 20, 2005
Jkt 205001
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary
[Notice of Order to Show Cause (Order
2005–7–15); Docket OST–05–20492]
Application of Executive Jet
Management, Inc. for Commuter
Authority
AGENCY:
Department of Transportation.
SUMMARY: The Department of
Transportation is directing all interested
persons to show cause why it should
not issue an order finding that Executive
Jet Management, Inc. is fit, willing, and
able under 49 U.S.C. 41738 to provide
scheduled passenger service as a
commuter air carrier and issue to it a
Commuter Air Carrier Authorization
DATES: Persons wishing to file
objections should do so no later than
August 29, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Objections and answers to
objections should be filed in Docket
OST–05–20492 and addressed to the
Department of Transportation Dockets
(M–30, Room PL–401), U.S. Department
of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street,
SW., Washington, DC 20590, and should
be served upon the parties listed in
Attachment A to the order.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
Trace Atkinson, Air Carrier Fitness
Division (X–56, Room 6401), U.S.
Department of Transportation, 400
Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC
20590, (202) 366–3176.
Dated: July 15, 2005.
Karan K. Bhatia,
Assistant Secretary for Aviation and
International Affairs.
[FR Doc. 05–14379 Filed 7–20–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–62–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
[Docket No. FAA–2004–16944]
Ms.
Lauralyn Remo, Air Carrier Fitness
Division (X–56, Room 6401), U.S.
Department of Transportation, 400
Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC
20590, (202) 366–9721.
Operating Limitations at Chicago
O’Hare International Airport
Dated: July 15, 2005.
Karan K. Bhatia,
Assistant Secretary for Aviation and
International Affairs.
[FR Doc. 05–14378 Filed 7–20–05; 8:45 am]
SUMMARY: The FAA has issued an order
to show cause, which solicits the views
of interested persons on the FAA’s
tentative determination to extend
through April 1, 2006, an August 18,
2004, order limiting the number of
scheduled aircraft arrivals at O’Hare
International Airport during peak
operating hours. The text of the order to
show cause is set forth in this notice.
BILLING CODE 4910–62–P
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
VerDate jul<14>2003
42135
PO 00000
Frm 00112
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Notice of order to show cause
and request for information.
ACTION:
E:\FR\FM\21JYN1.SGM
21JYN1
42136
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 139 / Thursday, July 21, 2005 / Notices
Any written information that
responds to the FAA’s order to show
cause must be submitted by August 1,
2005.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written
information, identified by docket
number FAA–2004–16944, by any of the
following methods:
• Web site; https://dms.dot.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting
information on the DOT electronic
docket site.
• Fax: 1–202–493–2251.
• Mail: Docket Management System,
U.S. Department of Transportation, 400
Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building,
Room PL–401, Washington, DC 20590–
0001. If sent by mail, information is to
be submitted in two copies. Persons
wishing to receive confirmation of
receipt of their written submission
should include a self-addressed
stamped postcard.
• Hand Delivery: Docket Management
System, Room PL–401, on the plaza
level of the Nassif Building, 400
Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC,
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday
through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Instructions: You must include the
agency name and docket number FAA–
2004–16944 for this notice at the
beginning of the information that you
submit. Note that the information
received will be posted without change
to https://dms.dot.gov, including any
personal information provided.
Submissions to the docket that include
trade secrets, confidential, commercial,
or financial information, or sensitive
security information will not be posted
in the public docket. Such information
will be placed in a separate file to which
the public does not have access, and a
note will be placed in the public docket
to state that the agency has received
such materials from the submitter.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Gerry Shakley, System Operations, Air
Traffic Organization: telephone (202)
267–9424; facsimile (202) 267–7277; email gerry.shakley@faa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
DATES:
Order To Show Cause
The Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) has tentatively determined that it
will extend through April 1, 2006, the
FAA’s August 18, 2004, order limiting
scheduled operations at O’Hare
International Airport (O’Hare). In the
absence of an extension, the August
2004 order would expire on October 29,
2005. This order to show cause invites
air carriers and other interested persons
to submit comments in Docket No.
FAA–2004–16944 on this proposal to
extend the duration of the August 2004
order.
VerDate jul<14>2003
19:42 Jul 20, 2005
Jkt 205001
If the FAA were to allow the August
2004 order to expire as presently
scheduled, the FAA anticipates a return
of the congestion-related delays that
precipitated the voluntary schedule
reductions and adjustments reflected in
the August 2004 order. The FAA has
adopted a rule limiting unscheduled
flights at O’Hare,1 but it has applied no
limits on scheduled flights at O’Hare,
other than the August 2004 order. In a
separate docket, the FAA solicited
public comment on a proposed rule that
would limit the number of scheduled
operations at O’Hare.2 The comment
period for the proposed rule ended on
May 24, and the FAA and the Office of
the Secretary of Transportation are
evaluating the comments filed in that
proceeding. Given the currently
scheduled expiration of the August 2004
order, however, it is not possible for the
FAA to complete its evaluation of the
comments and to publish a final rule, if
the FAA elects to do so, in time to afford
air carriers their customary 90- to 120day lead time to establish their
operating schedules. The FAA expects
that the extension of the August 2004
order will permit the order’s expiration
to coincide with the effective date of
any final rule, if a rule is adopted.
The FAA’s authority to extend the
August 2004 order is the same as the
authority cited in that order. The FAA
proposes to extend the August 2004
order under the agency’s broad
authority in 49 U.S.C. 40103(b) to
regulate the use of the navigable
airspace of the United States. This
provision authorizes the FAA to
develop plans and policy for the use of
navigable airspace and, by order or rule,
to regulate the use of the airspace as
necessary to ensure its efficient use.
Background: On August 18, 2004, the
FAA issued an order limiting the
number of scheduled arrivals that air
carriers conduct at O’Hare during peak
hours. The August 2004 order followed
a period during which O’Hare operated
without any regulatory constraint on the
number of aircraft operations, and
O’Hare experienced significant
congestion-related delay. According to
the Bureau of Transportation Statistics,
in November 2003, O’Hare ranked last
among the nation’s thirty-one major
airports for on-time arrival performance,
with on-time arrivals 57.26% of the
time. O’Hare also ranked last in on-time
departures in November 2003, yielding
on-time departures 66.94% of the time.
The data for December 2003 reflected a
similar performance by O’Hare—ranking
last with 60.06% of arrivals on time and
PO 00000
1 70
2 70
FR 39,610 (July 8, 2005).
FR 15,520 (Mar. 25, 2005).
Frm 00113
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
67.23% of departures on time. Despite
the high proportion of delayed flights,
when the air carriers published their
January and February 2004 schedules in
the Official Airline Guide, the schedules
revealed that the air carriers intended to
add still more flight operations to
O’Hare’s schedule.
In January 2004, the two air carriers
conducting most of the scheduled
operations at O’Hare—together
accounting for about 88% of O’Hare’s
scheduled flights—agreed to a
temporary 5% reduction of their
proposed peak-hour schedules at the
airport. When the voluntarily reduced
schedules failed to reduce sufficiently
O’Hare’s congestion-related flight
delays, the two air carriers agreed to a
further 2.5% reduction of their
scheduled peak-hour operations at
O’Hare. The FAA captured the
voluntary schedule reductions in FAA
orders, and the orders were effective
through October 30, 2004.
By the summer of 2004, it was
apparent that the schedule reductions
agreed to in the first half of the year,
which were made by only two of the
many air carriers conducting scheduled
operations at O’Hare, were unlikely to
be renewed after the orders expired on
October 30, 2004. In the absence of a
voluntary constraint, the industry’s
proposed schedules for November, as
reported in the preliminary Official
Airline Guide in July 2004, indicated
that the number of scheduled arrivals
during several hours would approach or
exceed O’Hare highest possible arrival
capacity. During one hour, the number
of scheduled arrivals would have
exceeded by 32% O’Hare’s capacity
under ideal conditions.
Therefore, the FAA invited all
scheduled air carriers to an August 2004
scheduling reduction meeting to discuss
overscheduling at O’Hare, voluntary
schedule reductions, and retiming
flights to less congested periods. The
August 2004 meeting and subsequent
negotiations led the FAA to issue the
August 2004 order, which limited the
number of scheduled arrivals conducted
at U.S. and Canadian air carriers at
O’Hare during peak operating hours.
The order also defined opportunities for
new entry and for growth by limited
incumbent air carriers at O’Hare. The
order took effect November 1, 2004, was
previously extended on March 21, 2005,
and in the absence of a further
extension, it will expire on October 29,
2005.
The flight limits implemented by the
August 2004 order have been effective.
Delays have decreased, and customers
have seen improved on-time arrival
performance as a result of the depeaked
E:\FR\FM\21JYN1.SGM
21JYN1
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 139 / Thursday, July 21, 2005 / Notices
flight schedules. For the period from
November 2004 through June 2005, the
average minutes of arrival delay
decreased by approximately 27% when
compared to the same period last year.
This level of delay reduction is
somewhat better than the 20%
reduction in delays that the FAA’s
computer modeling anticipated. We
attribute this primarily to weather
conditions that were more favorable
than average and to certain peak hours
in which the arrivals actually scheduled
have been below the hourly limit
adopted in the August 2004 order.
Additionally, the longest arrival
delays—those lasting more than one
hour—have decreased by approximately
31%. Preliminary on-time arrival
performance while the August 2004
order has been in effect indicates in
improvement of over eight percentage
points. As a result, O’Hare is now
performing near the average for the rest
of the National Airspace System, which
is a dramatic improvement over the
airport’s bottom-tier performance during
much of 2004.
Order to Show Cause: The FAA has
issued a notice of proposed rulemaking
to address appropriate limitations on
scheduled operations at O’Hare. The
comment period for the proposed rule
closed on May 24, and the FAA and the
Office of the Secretary of Transportation
are evaluating the comments filed in the
rulemaking docket and intend to make
a final decision as soon as reasonably
possible. The FAA cannot complete the
rulemaking process sufficiently in
advance of the August 2004 order’s
current expiration date, however, given
the 90- to 120-day lead time the air
carriers need to finalize plans for their
winter scheduling season, as well as the
complexity of the issues presented in
the rulemaking.
To prevent a recurrence of
overscheduling at O’Hare during the
interim between the expiration of the
August 2004 order on October 29, 2005,
and the effective date of a rule, if a rule
is adopted, the FAA tentatively intends
to extend the August 2004 order. The
limits on arrivals and the allocation of
arrival authority embodied in the
August 2004 order reflect the FAA’s
agreements with U.S. and Canadian air
carriers. As a result, maintaining the
order through the winter scheduling
season constitutes a reasonable
approach to preventing unacceptable
congestion and delays at O’Hare. The
August 2004 order, as extended, would
expire on April 1, 2006.
Accordingly, the FAA directs all
interested persons to show cause why
the FAA should not make final its
tentative findings and tentative decision
VerDate jul<14>2003
19:42 Jul 20, 2005
Jkt 205001
to extend the August 2004 order through
April 2, 2006, by filing their written
views in Docket No. FAA–2004–16944
on or before August 1, 2005. The FAA
is not soliciting views on the issues
separately under consideration in the
proposed rulemaking. Therefore, any
submissions to the current docket
should be limited to the issue of
extending the August 2004 order.
Dated: Issued in Washington, DC, on July
18, 2005.
Rebecca MacPherson,
Assistant Chief Counsel for Regulation.
[FR Doc. 05–14461 Filed 7–18–05; 4:35 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910–13–M
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
Noise Exposure Map Notice; Receipt of
Noise Compatibility Program and
Request for Review for Albany
International Airport
Federal Aviation
Administration, DOT.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) announces its
determination that the noise exposure
maps submitted by Albany County
Airport Authority for Albany
International Airport under provisions
of Title I of the Aviation Safety and
Noise Abatement Act of 1979 (Pub. L.
96–193) and 14 CFR part 150 are in
compliance with applicable
requirements. The FAA also announces
that it is reviewing a proposed noise
compatibility program that was
submitted for Albany International
Airport under Part 150 in conjunction
with the noise exposure maps, and that
this program will be approved or
disapproved on or before January 4,
2006.
The effective date of the FAA’s
determination on the noise exposure
maps and of the start of its review of the
associated noise compatibility program
is July 8, 2005. The public comment
period ends September 6, 2005.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Maria Stanco, New York Airports
District Office, 600 Old Country Road,
Suite 440, Garden City, New York
11530. Comments on the proposed noise
compatibility programs should also be
submitted to the above office.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice announces that the FAA finds
that the noise exposure maps submitted
for the Albany International Airport are
in compliance with applicable
DATES:
PO 00000
Frm 00114
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
42137
requirements of part 150, effective July
8, 2005. Further, FAA is reviewing a
proposed noise compatibility program
for that airport which will be approved
or disapproved on or before January 4,
2006. This notice also announces the
availability of this program for public
review and comment.
Under section 103 of the Title I of the
Aviation Safety and Noise Abatement
Act of 1979 (hereinafter referred to as
‘‘the Act’’), an airport operator may
submit to the FAA noise exposure maps
which meet applicable regulations and
which depict non-compatible land uses
of the date of submission of such maps,
a description of projected aircraft
operations, and the ways in which such
operations will affect such maps. The
Act requires such maps to be developed
in consultation with interested and
affected parties in the local community,
government agencies and persons using
the airport.
As an airport operator who has
submitted noise exposure maps that are
found by the FAA to be in compliance
with the requirements of Federal
Aviation Regulations (FAR) part 150,
promulgated pursuant to Title I of the
Act, may submit a noise compatibility
program for FAA approval which sets
forth the measures the operator has
taken or proposes for the reduction of
existing non-compatible uses and for the
prevention of the introduction of
additional non-compatible uses.
The Albany County Airport Authority
submitted to the FAA on April 9, 2003,
and supplemented with additional
information, dated November 18, 2004,
noise exposure maps, descriptions and
other documentation. It was requested
that the FAA review this material as the
noise exposure maps, as described in
section 103(a)(1) of the Act, and that the
noise mitigation measures, to be
implemented jointly by the airport and
surrounding communities, be approved
as a noise compatibility program under
section 10(b) of the Act.
The FAA has completed its review of
the noise exposure maps and related
description submitted by the Albany
County Airport Authority. The specific
maps under consideration are the 2003
Noise Exposure Map (NEM–1) and the
2008 Noise Exposure Map (NEM–2),
Flight Tracks (Exhibits D–3, 3a, 4, 4a),
Monitoring sites (Exhibit C–1), and
Noise Sensitive Sites (Exhibit 2–2).
Additional description is contained in
Chapter 3 (numbers of residents within
noise contours) and Appendices C and
D, including Fleet Mix (Table D–2), and
Runway Use (Table D–3). The FAA has
determined that these maps, tables and
accompanying narrative for Albany
International Airport are in compliance
E:\FR\FM\21JYN1.SGM
21JYN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 139 (Thursday, July 21, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42135-42137]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-14461]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
[Docket No. FAA-2004-16944]
Operating Limitations at Chicago O'Hare International Airport
ACTION: Notice of order to show cause and request for information.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The FAA has issued an order to show cause, which solicits the
views of interested persons on the FAA's tentative determination to
extend through April 1, 2006, an August 18, 2004, order limiting the
number of scheduled aircraft arrivals at O'Hare International Airport
during peak operating hours. The text of the order to show cause is set
forth in this notice.
[[Page 42136]]
DATES: Any written information that responds to the FAA's order to show
cause must be submitted by August 1, 2005.
ADDRESSES: You may submit written information, identified by docket
number FAA-2004-16944, by any of the following methods:
Web site; https://dms.dot.gov. Follow the instructions for
submitting information on the DOT electronic docket site.
Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
Mail: Docket Management System, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Nassif Building, Room PL-401,
Washington, DC 20590-0001. If sent by mail, information is to be
submitted in two copies. Persons wishing to receive confirmation of
receipt of their written submission should include a self-addressed
stamped postcard.
Hand Delivery: Docket Management System, Room PL-401, on
the plaza level of the Nassif Building, 400 Seventh Street, SW.,
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays.
Instructions: You must include the agency name and docket number
FAA-2004-16944 for this notice at the beginning of the information that
you submit. Note that the information received will be posted without
change to https://dms.dot.gov, including any personal information
provided. Submissions to the docket that include trade secrets,
confidential, commercial, or financial information, or sensitive
security information will not be posted in the public docket. Such
information will be placed in a separate file to which the public does
not have access, and a note will be placed in the public docket to
state that the agency has received such materials from the submitter.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gerry Shakley, System Operations, Air
Traffic Organization: telephone (202) 267-9424; facsimile (202) 267-
7277; e-mail gerry.shakley@faa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Order To Show Cause
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has tentatively
determined that it will extend through April 1, 2006, the FAA's August
18, 2004, order limiting scheduled operations at O'Hare International
Airport (O'Hare). In the absence of an extension, the August 2004 order
would expire on October 29, 2005. This order to show cause invites air
carriers and other interested persons to submit comments in Docket No.
FAA-2004-16944 on this proposal to extend the duration of the August
2004 order.
If the FAA were to allow the August 2004 order to expire as
presently scheduled, the FAA anticipates a return of the congestion-
related delays that precipitated the voluntary schedule reductions and
adjustments reflected in the August 2004 order. The FAA has adopted a
rule limiting unscheduled flights at O'Hare,\1\ but it has applied no
limits on scheduled flights at O'Hare, other than the August 2004
order. In a separate docket, the FAA solicited public comment on a
proposed rule that would limit the number of scheduled operations at
O'Hare.\2\ The comment period for the proposed rule ended on May 24,
and the FAA and the Office of the Secretary of Transportation are
evaluating the comments filed in that proceeding. Given the currently
scheduled expiration of the August 2004 order, however, it is not
possible for the FAA to complete its evaluation of the comments and to
publish a final rule, if the FAA elects to do so, in time to afford air
carriers their customary 90- to 120-day lead time to establish their
operating schedules. The FAA expects that the extension of the August
2004 order will permit the order's expiration to coincide with the
effective date of any final rule, if a rule is adopted.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 70 FR 39,610 (July 8, 2005).
\2\ 70 FR 15,520 (Mar. 25, 2005).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The FAA's authority to extend the August 2004 order is the same as
the authority cited in that order. The FAA proposes to extend the
August 2004 order under the agency's broad authority in 49 U.S.C.
40103(b) to regulate the use of the navigable airspace of the United
States. This provision authorizes the FAA to develop plans and policy
for the use of navigable airspace and, by order or rule, to regulate
the use of the airspace as necessary to ensure its efficient use.
Background: On August 18, 2004, the FAA issued an order limiting
the number of scheduled arrivals that air carriers conduct at O'Hare
during peak hours. The August 2004 order followed a period during which
O'Hare operated without any regulatory constraint on the number of
aircraft operations, and O'Hare experienced significant congestion-
related delay. According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, in
November 2003, O'Hare ranked last among the nation's thirty-one major
airports for on-time arrival performance, with on-time arrivals 57.26%
of the time. O'Hare also ranked last in on-time departures in November
2003, yielding on-time departures 66.94% of the time. The data for
December 2003 reflected a similar performance by O'Hare--ranking last
with 60.06% of arrivals on time and 67.23% of departures on time.
Despite the high proportion of delayed flights, when the air carriers
published their January and February 2004 schedules in the Official
Airline Guide, the schedules revealed that the air carriers intended to
add still more flight operations to O'Hare's schedule.
In January 2004, the two air carriers conducting most of the
scheduled operations at O'Hare--together accounting for about 88% of
O'Hare's scheduled flights--agreed to a temporary 5% reduction of their
proposed peak-hour schedules at the airport. When the voluntarily
reduced schedules failed to reduce sufficiently O'Hare's congestion-
related flight delays, the two air carriers agreed to a further 2.5%
reduction of their scheduled peak-hour operations at O'Hare. The FAA
captured the voluntary schedule reductions in FAA orders, and the
orders were effective through October 30, 2004.
By the summer of 2004, it was apparent that the schedule reductions
agreed to in the first half of the year, which were made by only two of
the many air carriers conducting scheduled operations at O'Hare, were
unlikely to be renewed after the orders expired on October 30, 2004. In
the absence of a voluntary constraint, the industry's proposed
schedules for November, as reported in the preliminary Official Airline
Guide in July 2004, indicated that the number of scheduled arrivals
during several hours would approach or exceed O'Hare highest possible
arrival capacity. During one hour, the number of scheduled arrivals
would have exceeded by 32% O'Hare's capacity under ideal conditions.
Therefore, the FAA invited all scheduled air carriers to an August
2004 scheduling reduction meeting to discuss overscheduling at O'Hare,
voluntary schedule reductions, and retiming flights to less congested
periods. The August 2004 meeting and subsequent negotiations led the
FAA to issue the August 2004 order, which limited the number of
scheduled arrivals conducted at U.S. and Canadian air carriers at
O'Hare during peak operating hours. The order also defined
opportunities for new entry and for growth by limited incumbent air
carriers at O'Hare. The order took effect November 1, 2004, was
previously extended on March 21, 2005, and in the absence of a further
extension, it will expire on October 29, 2005.
The flight limits implemented by the August 2004 order have been
effective. Delays have decreased, and customers have seen improved on-
time arrival performance as a result of the depeaked
[[Page 42137]]
flight schedules. For the period from November 2004 through June 2005,
the average minutes of arrival delay decreased by approximately 27%
when compared to the same period last year. This level of delay
reduction is somewhat better than the 20% reduction in delays that the
FAA's computer modeling anticipated. We attribute this primarily to
weather conditions that were more favorable than average and to certain
peak hours in which the arrivals actually scheduled have been below the
hourly limit adopted in the August 2004 order.
Additionally, the longest arrival delays--those lasting more than
one hour--have decreased by approximately 31%. Preliminary on-time
arrival performance while the August 2004 order has been in effect
indicates in improvement of over eight percentage points. As a result,
O'Hare is now performing near the average for the rest of the National
Airspace System, which is a dramatic improvement over the airport's
bottom-tier performance during much of 2004.
Order to Show Cause: The FAA has issued a notice of proposed
rulemaking to address appropriate limitations on scheduled operations
at O'Hare. The comment period for the proposed rule closed on May 24,
and the FAA and the Office of the Secretary of Transportation are
evaluating the comments filed in the rulemaking docket and intend to
make a final decision as soon as reasonably possible. The FAA cannot
complete the rulemaking process sufficiently in advance of the August
2004 order's current expiration date, however, given the 90- to 120-day
lead time the air carriers need to finalize plans for their winter
scheduling season, as well as the complexity of the issues presented in
the rulemaking.
To prevent a recurrence of overscheduling at O'Hare during the
interim between the expiration of the August 2004 order on October 29,
2005, and the effective date of a rule, if a rule is adopted, the FAA
tentatively intends to extend the August 2004 order. The limits on
arrivals and the allocation of arrival authority embodied in the August
2004 order reflect the FAA's agreements with U.S. and Canadian air
carriers. As a result, maintaining the order through the winter
scheduling season constitutes a reasonable approach to preventing
unacceptable congestion and delays at O'Hare. The August 2004 order, as
extended, would expire on April 1, 2006.
Accordingly, the FAA directs all interested persons to show cause
why the FAA should not make final its tentative findings and tentative
decision to extend the August 2004 order through April 2, 2006, by
filing their written views in Docket No. FAA-2004-16944 on or before
August 1, 2005. The FAA is not soliciting views on the issues
separately under consideration in the proposed rulemaking. Therefore,
any submissions to the current docket should be limited to the issue of
extending the August 2004 order.
Dated: Issued in Washington, DC, on July 18, 2005.
Rebecca MacPherson,
Assistant Chief Counsel for Regulation.
[FR Doc. 05-14461 Filed 7-18-05; 4:35 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-M
