Department of Transportation August 22, 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FAA invites public comments about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval to renew an information collection. The information collected is used to evaluate the qualifications of applicants for a variety of positions within the FAA.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposes to rule and invites public comment on the application for a release of approximately 1.10 acres of airport property at the Redding Municipal Airport (RDD), Redding, California from all conditions contained in the Surplus Property Deed and Grant Assurances because the parcel of land is not needed for airport purposes. The land requested to be released is separated from the airport by Airport Road and located outside the airport fence at the southwest corner of the airport property. The release will allow the City of Redding to sell the property at its fair market value, thereby benefiting the Airport and serving the interest of civil aviation. The proposed use will be compatible with the airport and will not interfere with the airport or its operation.

These special conditions are issued for the Bombardier Inc. (Bombardier) Model BD-700-2A12 and BD-700-2A13 airplanes. These airplanes will have novel or unusual design features, specifically, digital systems architecture composed of several connected data networks that will have the capability to allow connectivity of the passenger-service computer systems to the airplane critical systems and data networks. 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.

As required by section 5404 of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, FMCSA proposes a pilot program to allow a limited number of individuals between the ages of 18 and 21 to operate commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) in interstate commerce if they have received specified heavy-vehicle driver training while in military service and are sponsored by a participating motor carrier. During the 3-year pilot program, the safety records of these younger drivers (the study group) would be compared to the records of a control group of comparable size, comprised of drivers who are 21 years of age or older and who have comparable training and experience in driving vehicles requiring a commercial driver's license (CDL). The control group would consist of volunteer drivers who meet specified criteria and are employed by a participating carrier. The comparison of the two groups' performance would help to determine whether age is a critical safety factor. FMCSA also proposes criteria for a working group to consult with the Agency in conducting, monitoring, and evaluating the pilot program. Further, the Agency outlines procedural steps and a data collection plan, and requests comments on these elements.

The FAA is issuing this notice to advise the public of a meeting of EUROCAE WG-96/RTCA SC-236 Joint Plenary #1 Standards for Wireless Avionics Intra-Communication System (WAIC) within 4200-4400 MHz. Please inform adrian.cioranu@eurocae.net of your intention to attend the meeting. Please inform also peter.anders@airbus.com, the host of the meeting. Find information direction & maps: https://goo.gl/maps/ rkHxCEfN1sL2.

We propose to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all The Boeing Company Model 737-100, -200, -200C, -300, -400, and -500 series airplanes. This proposed AD was prompted by reports of skin cracking found at the corners of the aft entry and aft galley doorways. This proposed AD would require repetitive inspections for cracking of the corners of the aft entry and aft galley doorways; and repair if necessary, which would terminate the repetitive inspections of the repaired areas. We are proposing this AD to detect and correct cracking of the corners of the aft entry and aft galley doorways, which could result in rapid decompression and consequent reduced structural integrity of the airplane.

On June 22, 2016, FRA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would implement a pilot program for competitive selection of eligible petitioners in lieu of Amtrak to operate not more than three long-distance routes operated by Amtrak. FRA is announcing a public hearing to provide interested persons an opportunity to provide oral comments on the proposal. FRA is also announcing an extension of the comment period for this proceeding to allow time for interested parties to submit written comments in response to views or information provided at the public hearing.