Department of Transportation February 2017 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We are adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all The Boeing Company Model 737-100, -200, -200C, -300, -400, and -500 series airplanes. This AD was prompted by reports of skin cracking found at the corners of the aft entry and aft galley doorways. This AD requires repetitive inspections for cracking of the fuselage skin assembly and the bear strap at the corners of the aft entry and aft galley doorways, and repair if necessary, which terminates the repetitive inspections of the repaired areas. We are issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

We are superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2007-11-13 for all The Boeing Company Model 717-200 airplanes. AD 2007-11-13 required revising the Airworthiness Limitations Section (ALS) of the Instructions for Continued Airworthiness to incorporate new removal limits for certain components of the flap system and to reduce the inspection intervals for fatigue cracking of principal structural elements (PSE). This new AD requires revising the maintenance or inspection program, as applicable, to incorporate reduced intervals for the inspections for three PSEs and add nondestructive inspections (NDIs). This AD was prompted by a new Airworthiness Limitations Instruction (ALI) revision that incorporates NDI techniques and reduced repetitive inspection intervals for three PSEs. We are issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

By decision served on January 31, 2017, the Board granted an exemption under 49 U.S.C. 10502 from the prior approval requirements of 49 U.S.C. 10901 for Jersey Marine Rail, LLC (JMR) to operate as a Class III rail carrier over approximately 5,000 feet of track within the City of Linden, N.J. JMR states that it intends to rehabilitate and restore rail service over the tracks, which include a three-track holding yard and three former industrial spur tracks. JMR states that all six tracks were previously served by a common carrier and have been out of service for up to 30 years. According to JMR, it leases the existing tracks and land upon which it proposes to restore service and operate for a term, with extensions, totaling 50 years. This transaction is exempt from environmental reporting requirements under 49 CFR 1105.6(c) because the operational changes would not exceed any of the thresholds established in 49 CFR 1105.7(e)(4) or (5).

In accordance with the Presidential directive as expressed in the memorandum of January 20, 2017, from the Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff, entitled ``Regulatory Freeze Pending Review,'' this action temporarily delays until March 21, 2017, the effective date of the final rule titled ``Minimum Training Requirements for Entry-Level Commercial Motor Vehicle Operators,'' initially effective February 6, 2017, is delayed.