Department of Transportation November 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This action proposes special conditions for the Embraer S.A. Model EMB-550 airplane. This airplane will have a novel or unusual design feature(s) associated with the design roll maneuver for electronic flight controls, specifically an electronic flight control system that provides control of the aircraft through pilot inputs to the flight computer. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These proposed 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.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Eurocopter France (Eurocopter) Model SA.315B Alouette III, SE.3160 Alouette III, SA.316B Alouette III, SA.316C Alouette III, SA.319B Alouette III, SA 3180-ALOUETTE ASTAZOU, SA 318B-ALOUETTE ASTAZOU, and SA 318 C-ALOUETTE ASTAZOU helicopters. This AD requires inspecting the cage of the free-wheel assembly for the correct alignment of the roller drive pocket recesses and replacing the free-wheel cage with an airworthy free-wheel cage if a defect exists. This AD was prompted by incorrect positioning of the roller drive pocket recesses on the tail rotor drive shaft free-wheel cage, which caused a pilot to experience a heavy jerk in the yaw control during in-flight autorotation training. The requirements of this AD are intended to prevent a loss of tail rotor drive and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain The Boeing Company Model 777 airplanes. This AD was prompted by reports of failure of wire support clamps in the forward section of the aft pressure bulkhead. This AD requires a detailed inspection of the clamps on the power feeder cable of the auxiliary power unit (APU) to determine if certain clamps are installed, and related investigative and corrective actions if necessary. We are issuing this AD to prevent failure of the clamp, which could result in wire chafing and potential arcing and consequent fire in section 48 (a flammable fluid leakage zone) or heat damage to the APU power feeder cable, insulation blankets, or pressure bulkhead.

The FHWA invites public comments about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval for a new information collection, which is summarized below under Supplementary Information. We are required to publish this notice in the Federal Register by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

This notice corrects an error in the FHWA notice published on October 10, 2012, at 77 FR 61654. That notice provided an incorrect reference to a statute of limitations timeframe, and an incorrect date.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces that the Information Collection Requirements (ICRs) abstracted below have been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment. The ICRs describe the nature of the information collections and their expected burdens. The Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following collections of information was published on September 20, 2012.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below is being forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comments. A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following information collection was published on June 12, 2012 (77 FR 35110). No comments were received.

FRA is issuing this Notice to advise the public that a Draft Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement (Tier 1 EIS) has been prepared for the Chicago to Omaha Regional Passenger Rail System Planning Study (Study). The Tier 1 EIS was prepared pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA); FRA's Procedures for Considering Environmental Impacts (Environmental Procedures); and guidelines published by the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) on implementing NEPA. The Study includes both a Tier 1 EIS and a Service Development Plan. FRA is the lead federal agency and the Iowa Department of Transportation (Iowa DOT) is the joint-lead state agency for the environmental review process. For passenger rail projects, this Tier 1 EIS focuses on broad corridor and service level issues, while subsequent Tier 2 analyses will focus on the details of a specific project or action. Iowa DOT proposes to establish high-speed passenger rail service between Chicago, Illinois, through Iowa, to Omaha, Nebraska. The proposed project would provide an alternative to automobile, bus, and air travel by decreasing travel times, increasing frequency of service, improving reliability (particularly in inclement weather), providing an efficient transportation option, and providing amenities to improve passenger ride quality and comfort. The project would also promote environmental benefits, including reduced air pollutant emissions, improved land use options, and fewer adverse impacts to the surrounding habitat and water resources. The Tier 1 EIS presents the proposed project's purpose and need, identifies reasonable alternatives, describes the affected environment, and analyzes the potential environmental impacts of the alternatives considered, including the no-build alternative.

The FAA is issuing this notice to advise the public of a meeting of the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee.

This notice is to advise interested persons that PHMSA will conduct a public meeting in preparation for the 42nd session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods (UNSCOE TDG) to be held December 3 to 11, 2012, in Geneva, Switzerland. During this meeting, PHMSA is also soliciting comments relative to potential new work items which may be considered for inclusion in its international agenda. Information Regarding The UNSCOE TDG Public Meeting:

This notice is a request for comments and information to be used for an assessment to improve the collection, analysis, reporting, and use of data related to accidents and incidents involving the transportation of hazardous materials. This notice is being conducted in support of the ``Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century'' (MAP-21) Act.

These final rules govern land-use-exemption permits for solid waste rail transfer facilities. The Clean Railroads Act of 2008 amended the U.S. Code to restrict the jurisdiction of the Surface Transportation Board over solid waste rail transfer facilities. The Act also added three new statutory provisions that address the Board's regulation of such facilities, which is now limited to issuance of ``land-use-exemption permits'' in certain circumstances. In 2009, as required by the Act, the Board issued interim rules. In 2011, based on the comments received and further evaluation, the Board revised the 2009 Rules and sought comments on the changes. After further evaluation and review of the comments received on the 2011 Rules, the Board now adopts the 2011 Rules as final rules with minor modification.

We are superseding an existing airworthiness directive (AD) for certain The Boeing Company Model 737-100 and -200 series airplanes. The existing AD currently requires various inspections for cracks in the outboard chord of the frame at body station (BS) 727 and in the outboard chord of stringer (S) 18A, and repair or replacement of cracked parts. This new AD adds airplanes to the applicability statement in the existing AD and adds inspections for cracks in the BS 727 frame outboard chords and the radius of the auxiliary chord, for certain airplanes. This new AD also removes the inspections of the outboard chord of S-18A required by the existing AD. This AD was prompted by several reports of fatigue cracking in the frame outboard chord at BS 727 and in the radius of the auxiliary chord on airplanes that were not affected by the existing AD. We are issuing this AD to detect and correct fatigue cracking of the outboard and auxiliary chords, which could result in reduced structural integrity of the outboard chord and consequent rapid decompression of the airplane.

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain The Boeing Company Model 767-200 and -300 series airplanes. This AD was prompted by reports of cracks in the inner chords at both left-side and right-side stations 859.5, 883.5, and 903.5. This AD requires repetitive inspections of the frame inner chord transition radius for cracks, and related investigative and corrective actions if necessary. We are issuing this AD to prevent large cracks in the frames and adjacent structure that can adversely affect the structural integrity of the airplane.

This action proposes special conditions for the Embraer S.A. Model EMB-550 airplane. This airplane will have a novel or unusual design feature, specifically an electronic flight control system which contains fly-by-wire control laws, including envelope protections, for the overspeed protection and roll limiting function. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These proposed 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.

This action proposes special conditions for the Embraer S.A. Model EMB-550 airplane. This airplane will have a novel or unusual design feature(s) associated with an electronic flight control system with respect to lateral-directional and longitudinal stability and low energy awareness. The applicable airworthiness regulations do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this design feature. These proposed 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.

NHTSA seeks comments on the economic impact of its regulations on small entities. As required by Section 610 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, we are attempting to identify rules that may have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. We also request comments on ways to make these regulations easier to read and understand. The focus of this notice is rules that specifically relate to passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, buses, trailers, motorcycles, and motor vehicle equipment.

The Department is publishing the following notice on new policies affecting the review and approval of public charter filings under 14 CFR Part 380 and related changes in the Department's enforcement policies.

This document announces receipt by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of a petition for a decision that nonconforming 2007 Chevrolet Corvette passenger cars that were not originally manufactured to comply with all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), are eligible for importation into the United States because they are substantially similar to vehicles that were originally manufactured for sale in the United States and that were certified by their manufacturer as complying with the safety standards (the U.S.-certified version of the 2007 Chevrolet Corvette passenger cars) and they are capable of being readily altered to conform to the standards.

We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain Airbus Model A310-204, -222, -304, -322, and -324 airplanes. This proposed AD was prompted by the manufacturer re-classifying slat extension eccentric bolts as principle structural elements (PSE) with replacement due at or before newly calculated fatigue life limits. This proposed AD would require replacing slat extension eccentric bolts, and associated washers with new slat extension eccentric bolts and washers. We are proposing this AD to prevent fatigue cracking, which could result in the loss of structural integrity of the airplane.

On October 18, 2012, FRA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on National Highway-Rail Crossing Inventory Reporting Requirements. In the NPRM, FRA announced that it would schedule a technical symposium to give interested parties the opportunity to discuss issues associated with the electronic submission of data to the U.S. DOT National Highway-Rail Crossing Inventory (Crossing Inventory). This notice announces the scheduling of the technical symposium. This notice also extends the NPRM comment period to allow time for interested parties to submit comments after the technical symposium.