Department of Transportation August 17, 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document requests comments on data about passenger motor vehicle thefts that occurred in calendar year (CY) 2008 including theft rates for existing passenger motor vehicle lines manufactured in model year (MY) 2008. The preliminary theft data indicate that the vehicle theft rate for CY/MY 2008 vehicles (1.69 thefts per thousand vehicles) decreased by 8.65 percent from the theft rate for CY/MY 2007 vehicles (1.85 thefts per thousand vehicles).

FMCSA announces its decision to renew the exemptions from the vision requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations for 18 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.

FMCSA announces its decision to exempt twenty 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 operate CMVs in interstate commerce.

These special conditions are issued for the Erickson Air-Crane Incorporated (Erickson Air-Crane) model S-64E and S-64F rotorcraft. These rotorcraft have novel or unusual design features associated with being transport category rotorcraft designed only for use in heavy external-load operations. At the time of original type certification, a special condition was issued for each model helicopter because the applicable airworthiness regulations did not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for turbine-engine rotorcraft or for rotorcraft with a maximum gross weight over 20,000 pounds that were designed solely to perform external load-operations. At the request of Erickson Air-Crane, the current type certificate (TC) holder for these helicopter models, the following will resolve reported difficulty in applying the existing special conditions and eliminate any confusion that has occurred in Erickson's dealings with a foreign authority. Specifically, we are consolidating the separate special conditions for each model helicopter into one special condition to clarify and more specifically reference certain special condition requirements to the regulatory requirements, to add an inadvertently omitted fire protection requirement, to recognize that occupants may be permitted in the two observer seats and the rear-facing operator seat during other than external-load operations, and to clarify the requirements relating to operations within 5 minutes of a suitable landing area. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These special conditions contain the additional safety standards that the Administrator considers necessary to establish a level of safety equivalent to that established by the existing airworthiness standards.