Department of Transportation September 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is issuing this Notice of Availability to advise the public that a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) containing a DOT Section 4(f)/303(c) evaluation will be available for public review beginning September 9, 2005. The DEIS details the proposed development of a replacement airport and related facilities for the city of St. George, Utah and addresses the environmental impacts associated with its development. The DEIS presents the purpose and need for the proposed project, a comprehensive analysis of the alternatives to the proposed project, and potential environmental impacts associated with the proposed development of the proposed replacement airport. The City of St. George, operator of the existing St. George Municipal Airport, has submitted an Airport Layout Plan, as revised, for approval. The DEIS assesses the potential impacts that may result from the development of a replacement airport with a 9,3000-foot Runway 01/19 and all support facilities (i.e., taxiways and associated lighting and NAVAIDS). This DEIS also assesses the federal action regarding installation of navigational aids, airspace use, approach and departure procedures, and associated terminal and landside projects. One historic site, the Little Black Mountain Petroglyph site, would potentially be affected. This document also assesses the potential noise impact on Zion National Park, Little Black Mountain Petroglyph site, and 42 other potentially noise sensitive properties in the vicinity. Public Comment and Information Meeting/Public Hearing: The public comment period on the DEIS and associated studies will start September 9, 2005 and will end on November 8, 2005. A Public Information Meeting and Public Hearing will be held on October 19, 2005 at The Dixie Center, 1835 Convention Center Drive, St. George, UT 84790. The Public Information Meeting will begin at 3 p.m. (MST) and will last until 7 p.m. (MST). The Public Hearing will be conducted concurrently with an information workshop. The public will be afforded the opportunity to present oral testimony and/or written testimony pertinent to the subject of the hearing. Testimony from an elected official, group or agency representative will be limited to 5 minutes. All others will be given 3 minutes. Forms for providing written comments will also be available at the Public Hearing. Comments received via fax or e-mail can only be accepted with the full name and address of the individual commenting. All comments are to be submitted to Mr. David Field of the FAA, at the address shown below, and the comments must be postmarked and email/fax must be sent by no later than midnight (MST), Tuesday, November 8, 2005. The DEIS may be reviewed for comment during regular business hours until November 8, 2005 at the following locations: 1. Cedar City Library, 303 North 100 East, Cedar City, UT 84720. 2. Hurricane Valley Branch, 36 South 300 West, Hurricane, UT 84737. 3. Santa Clara Branch, 1099 North Lava flow Drive, St. George, UT 84770. 4. Springdale Branch, 898 Zion Park Blvd, Spingdale, UT 84767-0509. 5. Washington County, 50 South Main, St. George, UT 84770. A limited number of copies of the DEIS and related documents will also be available for review by appointment only at the following FAA or City of St. George offices: 1. FAA, Northwest Mountain Region Office, 1601 Lind Avenue, S.W., Suite 315, Renton, WA 98055, (425) 227-2610. 2. FAA, Denver Airports District Office, 26805 East 68th Avenue, Suite 224, Denver, CO 80249, (303) 342-1254. 3. St. George Municipal Building, 175 East 200 North, St. George, UT 84770, (435) 634-5800. 4. St. George Airport, 620 S. Airport Road, St. George, UT 84770, (435) 634-5822. An electronic copy of the DEIS is available on the project Web site and can be accessed at https://www.airportsites.net/sgu-eis.

This document responds to petitions for reconsideration requesting changes in our April 8, 2005 final rule establishing a new Federal motor vehicle safety standard (FMVSS) requiring installation in new light vehicles of a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) capable of detecting when one or more of a vehicle's tires is significantly under-inflated. The petitions for reconsideration are granted in part and denied in part, and through this document, we are amending the standard and related provisions accordingly.

PHMSA is issuing this advisory bulletin to owners and operators of gas and hazardous liquid pipelines to communicate the potential for damage to pipeline facilities caused by the passage of Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Boeing Model 757-200 and -300 series airplanes and Model 767 series airplanes. This AD requires replacing the existing operational software of the Pegasus flight management computer (FMC) system with new, improved operational software. This AD results from reports of ``old'' or expired air traffic control (ATC) clearance messages being displayed on the control display unit (CDU) of the FMC system during subsequent flights. We are issuing this AD to prevent display of ``old'' or expired ATC clearance messages on the CDU of subsequent flights, which could result in the airplane entering unauthorized airspace or following a flight path that does not provide minimum separation requirements between aircraft, and a consequent near miss or a mid-air collision.

The Department of Transportation proposes to amend its rules implementing the Air Carrier Access Act of 1986, 14 CFR part 382, to provide greater accommodations in air travel for persons with respiratory disabilities. This notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) applies to U.S. air carriers and foreign air carriers operating flights in, to and from the U.S. The proposed rule establishes procedures within applicable U.S. and foreign safety rules for the carriage and use of portable respiration-related assistive devices and medical oxygen devices aboard commercial flights by passengers with disabilities.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Dassault Model Falcon 2000EX airplanes. This AD requires revising the airplane flight manual (AFM) to extend runway length limits for takeoff and landing. This AD also provides for an optional terminating action for the AFM revision. This AD results from an event in which braking efficiency was temporarily lost during landing, but was recovered after the flightcrew fully released and then reapplied the brakes. We are issuing this AD to prevent a runway overrun in the event of loss of braking function, which could result in injury to passengers or flightcrew and damage to the airplane.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Boeing Model 747-100, 747-100B, 747-200B, 747-200C, 747- 200F, 747-400F, 747SR, and 747SP series airplanes, without a stretched upper deck or stretched upper deck modification. This proposed AD would require detailed and high-frequency eddy current inspections for cracks at the outboard ends of each affected tension tie and of the surrounding structure, and related investigative and corrective actions if necessary. This proposed AD results from a report of a crack in the tension tie at the body station 820 frame connection, and cracks found on the Boeing 747SR fatigue-test airplane in both the tension ties and frames at the tension tie to frame connections at body stations 800, 820, and 840. We are proposing this AD to find and fix cracks in the tension ties, which could lead to cracks in the skin and body frame and result in rapid in-flight depressurization of the airplane.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) the FAA invites public comment on five currently approved public information collections which will be submitted to OMB for renewal.

This document confirms the effective date of the direct final rule which revises Class E airspace at Washington, MO.

This document confirms the effective date of the direct final rule which revises Class E airspace at Meade Municipal Airport, KS

This amendment adopts a new airworthiness directive (AD), applicable to certain Bombardier Model CL-600-2B19 (Regional Jet Series 100& 440) airplanes, that requires performing an inspection of the electrical harnesses of the spoiler and the brake pressure sensor unit on both sides of the wing root to detect any chafing or wire damage, and repairing or replacing any damaged or chafed harness or wire with a new harness, as applicable. This action also provides/requires a terminating modification for the one-time inspection. The actions specified by this AD are intended to detect and correct chafing of the electrical cables of the spoiler and brake pressure sensor unit on both sides of the wing root, which could result in loss of the flight control system and consequent reduced controllability of the airplane. This action is intended to address the identified unsafe condition.

The FHWA is issuing this notice to advise the public that an Environmental Impact Statement will be prepared for a proposed highway project in Colfax and Dodge Counties, Nebraska.

FMCSA announces its decision to exempt four individuals from its rule prohibiting persons with insulin-treated diabetes mellitus (ITDM) from operating commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate commerce. The exemptions will enable these individuals to qualify as drivers of CMVs in interstate commerce.

This interim final rule amends the agency's National Driver Register (NDR) regulations to implement an amendment to the National Driver Register Act of 1982. The amendment authorizes a Federal department or agency that investigates an individual for the purpose of determining the individual's eligibility to access national security information to request and receive information from the National Driver Register, upon request and consent of the individual. This interim final rule establishes the procedures for individuals to request and for the Federal department or agency to receive NDR information.0

The FAA is superseding an existing airworthiness directive (AD), which applies to certain McDonnell Douglas transport category airplanes. That AD currently requires repetitive inspections for cracking of the lower cargo doorjamb corners, and corrective action if necessary. That AD provides for optional terminating action for certain repetitive inspections for certain airplanes. For certain other airplanes, that AD requires modification of the lower cargo doorjamb corners. This new AD adds airplanes to the applicability. The existing AD was prompted by reports of fatigue cracks in the fuselage skin in the lower cargo doorjamb corners; this AD is prompted by the inadvertent omission of certain airplanes from the existing applicability. We are issuing this AD to ensure that the unsafe condition will be addressed on all affected airplanes so that cracking in the lower cargo doorjamb corners is detected and corrected before it can result in rapid decompression of the fuselage and consequent reduced structural integrity of the airplane.

This action corrects errors in certain amendments to the required IFR (instrument flight rules) altitudes and changeover points for certain Federal airways, jet routes, or direct routes for which a minimum or maximum en route authorized IFR altitude is prescribed listed in a final rule published in the Federal Register on August 2, 2005 (70 FR 44278).

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Saab Model SAAB 2000 airplanes. This proposed AD would require modifying the manual feather-and-unfeather system for the propellers to make the design of the system more robust. This proposed AD results from reports of in-flight engine shutdown caused by uncommanded operation of the feather pump of the propeller. We are proposing this AD to prevent uncommanded feathering of the propeller, which could result in the shutdown of an engine during flight and consequent reduced controllability of the airplane.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain McDonnell Douglas transport category airplanes. This proposed AD would require an inspection to determine the part number of the upper and lower stop pad support fittings of all the lower cargo doors, repetitive inspections of all early configuration stop pad support fittings, and corrective action if necessary. This proposed AD would also provide an optional terminating action for the repetitive inspections. This proposed AD is prompted by a report of cracks found in the area of the upper and lower stop pad support fittings of the cargo door pan on numerous airplanes. We are proposing this AD to prevent cracks in the cargo door pan, which could result in the inability to fully pressurize an airplane and possible rapid decompression of the airplane.

The National Park Service (NPS) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), as required by the National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 2000, established the National Parks Overflights Advisory Group (NPOAG) in March 2001. The NPOAG was formed to provide continuing advice and counsel with respect to commercial air tour operations over and near national parks. On October 10, 2003, the Administrator signed Order No. 1110-138 establishing the NPOAG as an aviation rulemaking committee (ARC). This notice informs the public of a vacancy on the NPOAG ARC, for a member representing air Indian tribal interests, and invites interested persons to apply to fill the vacancy.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is considering a proposal to change a portion of the airport from aeronautical use to non-aeronautical use and to authorize the lease of the airport property. The proposal consists of two (2) parcels of land totaling approximately 68 acres. Current use and present condition is vacant grassland with intermittent wetland areas. The land is currently zoned residential. Parcel 15A was acquired under FAA Project No. 8-26-0051-02. Parcel 62 was not acquired with federal funds. There are no impacts to the airport by allowing the airport to lease the property.The airport desires to enter into a long- term lease to provide a long-term revenue source. Approval does not constitute a commitment by the FAA to financially assist in the disposal of the subject airport property nor a determination of eligibility for grant-in-aid funding from the FAA. The disposition of proceeds from the lease of the airport property will be in accordance FAA's Policy and Procedures Concerning the Use of Airport Revenue, published in the Federal Register on February 16, 1999. In accordance with section 47107(h) of title 49, United States Code, this notice is required to be published in the Federal Register 30 days before modifying the land-use assurance that requires the property to be used for an aeronautical purpose.

The FAA is superseding an existing airworthiness directive (AD), which applies to all Bombardier Model CL-600-2B19 series airplanes. That AD currently requires revising the airplane flight manual (AFM) to provide the flightcrew with operating limitations and procedures to enable them to maintain controllability of the airplane in the event that aileron control stiffness is encountered during flight. This new AD requires revising the Airworthiness Limitations section of the Instructions of Continued Airworthiness to incorporate certain repetitive tasks for the aileron control system and requires a briefing to advise flightcrews that certain aileron control checks are no longer required. After accomplishing the applicable initial tasks, the existing AFM revisions for the aileron control check may be removed from the AFM. This AD results from the development of terminating actions for the AFM revisions. We are issuing this AD to prevent aileron control stiffness during flight, which could result in reduced or possible loss of controllability of the airplane.