Federal Aviation Administration January 2021 – 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 collection involves the gathering of information necessary for the FAA to ensure proposed outdoor laser operations will not interfere with air traffic operations. The information to be collected will be used to and/or is necessary because the FAA must evaluate proposed outdoor laser operations requiring a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) variance from a laser light show, display, or device.

This rule establishes, amends, suspends, or removes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPS) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure procedures (ODPs) for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.

This amendment adopts miscellaneous amendments to the required IFR (instrument flight rules) altitudes and changeover points for certain Federal airways, jet routes, or direct routes for which a minimum or maximum en route authorized IFR altitude is prescribed. This regulatory action is needed because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System. These changes are designed to provide for the safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace under instrument conditions in the affected areas.

This action removes the Class D airspace, establishes a Class E surface area, modifies the Class E airspace as an extension to the surface area and modifies the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet AGL at Northeast Wyoming Regional Airport, Gillette, WY. In addition, this action removes the VOR/DME from the legal description and replaces the outdated term Airport Facility/Directory with the term Chart Supplement. It also makes two minor administrative corrections noted in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM); the airport name is updated and the Class E surface area is identified as new airspace rather than amended airspace. After being informed that the Airport Traffic Control Tower at Northeast Wyoming Regional Airport is closed permanently, the FAA found it necessary to create new airspace and amend the existing airspace for the safety and management of Instrument Flight Rule (IFR) operations at this airport.

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.

The FAA proposes to supersede Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2017-14-13, which applies to certain The Boeing Company Model 737-600, -700, -700C, -800, -900, and -900ER series airplanes. AD 2017-14-13 requires a torque check of the screws in the cover assembly of the heel rest for both the captain's and the first officer's rudder pedals, and corrective action if necessary. Since the FAA issued AD 2017-14-13, operators have continued to find loose rudder pedal cover fasteners on previously inspected airplanes and airplanes outside the applicability of AD 2017-14-13. This proposed AD would require modifying the rudder pedal cover and shroud, and apply to all The Boeing Company Model 737- 600, -700, -700C, -800, -900, and -900ER series airplanes and Model 737-8 and 737-9 airplanes. The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the FAA invites public comments about our intention to request 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 June 19, 2020. The collection involves FAA regulations that prescribe certification standards for aircraft, aircraft engines, propellers, appliances, and parts. The information collected is used to determine compliance and applicant eligibility. The respondents are aircraft parts designers, manufacturers, and aircraft owners.

This action amends the Class D and Class E airspace at Marshall AAF, Fort Riley, KS, and Manhattan Regional Airport, Manhattan, KS, and establishes Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at Marshall AAF and Freeman Field, Junction City, KS. This action is the result of airspace reviews due to the decommissioning of the Calvary and McDowell Creek non-directional beacons (NDBs). The names and geographic coordinates of the airports and navigational aids are also being updated to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database.

This action proposes to establish Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface at Hughes Airport, Hughes, AK, to accommodate new area navigation (RNAV) procedures. This action would ensure the safety and management of instrument flight rules (IFR) operations within the National Airspace System.

This action proposes to amend 11 VOR Federal airways, remove 10 VOR Federal airways; amend four low altitude RNAV routes (T-routes), establish seven T-routes; amend one high altitude RNAV route (Q-route), and establish one Q-route. This action would support the Northeast Corridor Atlantic Coast Route Project and the VOR Minimum Operational Network (VOR MON) Program to improve the efficiency of the National Airspace System (NAS) and reduce dependency on ground-based navigational systems.

The FAA proposes to adopt a new airworthiness directive (AD) for Airbus Helicopters Deutschland GmbH Model EC135P1, EC135P2, EC135P2+, EC135P3, EC135T1, EC135T2, EC135T2+, and EC135T3 helicopters. This proposed AD was prompted by a reassessment of the flight control system. This proposed AD would require modification of the cyclic stick, as specified in a European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is proposed for incorporation by reference (IBR). The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for all Airbus SAS Model A330-200, -200 Freighter, -300, -800, and -900 series airplanes; Model A340-200 and -300 series airplanes; and Model A340-541 and A340-642 airplanes. This AD was prompted by a report that an erroneous torque value for the attachment nuts to install a pitot probe was included in the affected Aircraft Maintenance Manual (AMM) task. This AD requires re-torqueing the attachment nuts of each affected part. In addition, this AD prohibits the use of the affected AMM task, as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is incorporated by reference. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The FAA is releasing a summary to the public of the research programs it sponsors on civil aircraft noise that could potentially inform future aircraft noise policy. The FAA invites public comment on the scope and applicability of these research initiatives to address aircraft noise. The FAA will not make any determinations based on the findings of these research programs for the FAA's noise policies, including any potential revised use of the Day-Night Average Sound Level (DNL) noise metric, until it has carefully considered public and other stakeholder input along with any additional research needed to improve the understanding of the effects of aircraft noise exposure on communities.

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 to be collected includes data required for performing launch site location analysis. The launch site license is valid for a period of 5 years. Respondents are licensees authorized to operate sites.

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 will determine if applicant proposals for conducting commercial space launches can be accomplished according to regulations issued by the Office of the Associate Administrator for Commercial Space Transportation.

The FAA is adopting a new airworthiness directive (AD) for certain International Aero Engines AG (IAE) V2500-A1, V2522-A5, V2524- A5, V2525-D5, V2527-A5, V2527E-A5, V2527M-A5, V2528-D5, V2530-A5, V2531-E5, and V2533-A5 model turbofan engines. This AD was prompted by a root cause analysis of an event involving an uncontained failure of a high-pressure turbine (HPT) 1st-stage disk that resulted in high-energy debris penetrating the engine cowling. This AD requires removing certain HPT 1st-stage and HPT 2nd-stage disks from service. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This rule establishes, amends, suspends, or removes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPS) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure procedures (ODPs) for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.