Department of Transportation November 21, 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This decision accepts for consideration the application by CSX Transportation, Inc. to continue to lease approximately 137.33 miles of rail line of the Western and Atlantic Railroad from the State of Georgia. The Board determines that this is a minor transaction as defined by the Board's regulations and adopts a procedural schedule.

This notice contains a summary of a petition seeking relief from specified requirements of Federal Aviation Regulations. The purpose of this notice is to improve the public's awareness of, and participation in, the FAA's exemption process. Neither publication of this notice nor the inclusion or omission of information in the summary is intended to affect the legal status of the petition or its final disposition.

These special conditions are issued for the Textron Aviation (Textron) Model 560XL, formerly known as, prior to July 29, 2015, the Cessna Model 560XL. This airplane, as modified by Garmin International (Garmin), will have a novel or unusual design feature when compared to the state of technology envisioned in the airworthiness standards for transport category airplanes. This design feature is Garmin G5000 avionics that allow external connection to previously isolated data networks, which are connected to systems that perform functions required for the safe operation of the airplane. This feature creates a potential for unauthorized persons to access the aircraft- control domain and airline information-services domain, and presents security vulnerabilities related to the introduction of computer viruses and worms, user errors, and intentional sabotage of airplane electronic assets (networks, systems, and databases). 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.

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 Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following collection of information was published on July 31, 2018. The collection involves FAA review of Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) Certification Training Program (CTP) submittals to determine that the program complies with the applicable requirements. It also involves FAA review of an institution of higher education's application for the authority to certify its graduates meet the minimum regulatory requirements.

This action amends Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface in Mountain City, TN, to accommodate new area navigation (RNAV) global positioning system (GPS) standard instrument approach procedures serving Johnson County Airport. In addition, Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface is established in Elizabethton, TN, to accommodate area navigation (RNAV) global positioning system (GPS) standard instrument approach procedures at Elizabethton Municipal Airport. Controlled airspace is necessary for the safety and management of instrument flight rules (IFR) operations at these airports.

This final rule amends FRA's passenger equipment safety standards using a performance-based approach to adopt new and modified requirements governing the construction of conventional- and high-speed passenger rail equipment. This final rule adds a new tier of passenger equipment safety standards (Tier III) to facilitate the safe implementation of nation-wide, interoperable high-speed passenger rail service at speeds up to 220 mph. While Tier III trainsets must operate in an exclusive right-of-way without grade crossings at speeds above 125 mph, these trainsets can share the right-of-way with freight trains and other tiers of passenger equipment at speeds not exceeding 125 mph. This final rule also establishes crashworthiness and occupant protection performance requirements in the alternative to those currently specified for Tier I passenger trainsets. Together, the Tier III requirements and Tier I alternative crashworthiness and occupant protection requirements remove regulatory barriers and enable use of new technological designs, allowing a more open U.S. rail market. Additionally, the final rule increases from 150 mph to 160 mph the maximum speed for passenger equipment that complies with FRA's Tier II requirements.