Federal Aviation Administration June 14, 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposes to rule and invites public comment on the application for a land-use change for approximately 31.1 acres of airport property at Sacramento International Airport (SMF), Sacramento. The land use change will allow airport land to be released from the aeronautical use provisions of the Grant Assurances that require it to serve an airport purposes since the land is not needed for aeronautical uses. The reuse of the land for solar energy generating arrays represents a compatible land use that will not interfere with the airport or its operations. The solar generated electricity will benefit the airport by producing a market return on the land while reducing electrical costs. Cost savings will equal or exceed the fair market rental value of the land occupied by the solar farms. These benefits will serve the interest of civil aviation and contribute to the self-sustainability of the airport.

This final rule replaces the existing process by which the Federal Aviation Administration (Agency or FAA) approves portable oxygen concentrators (POC) for use on board aircraft in air carrier operations, commercial operations, and certain other operations using large aircraft. The FAA currently assesses each POC make and model on a case-by-case basis and if the FAA determines that a particular POC is safe for use on board an aircraft, the FAA conducts rulemaking to identify the specific POC model in an FAA regulation. This final rule replaces the current process and allows passengers to use a POC on board an aircraft if the POC satisfies certain acceptance criteria and bears a label indicating conformance with the acceptance criteria. The labeling requirement only affects POCs intended for use on board aircraft that were not previously approved for use on aircraft by the FAA. Additionally, this rulemaking will eliminate redundant operational requirements and paperwork requirements related to the physician's statement. As a result, this rulemaking will reduce burdens for POC manufacturers, passengers who use POCs while traveling, and affected aircraft operators. This final rule also makes conforming amendments to the Department of Transportation's (Department or DOT) rule implementing the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) to require carriers to accept all POC models that meet FAA acceptance criteria as detailed in this rule.

We are superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2016-09-07 for all Airbus Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes. AD 2016- 09-07 required replacing certain pitot probes on the captain, first officer, and standby sides. This new AD retains those requirements, but with a revised compliance time. Since we issued AD 2016-09-07, we received additional reports of airspeed indication discrepancies during flight at high altitudes in inclement weather. We are issuing this AD to prevent airspeed indication discrepancies caused by accumulation of ice crystals during inclement weather, which, depending on the prevailing altitude, could lead to reduced controllability of the airplane.