Proposed Revocation of the Sacramento McClellan Air Force Base (AFB) Class C Airspace Area, Establishment of the Sacramento McClellan AFB Class E Surface Area; and Modification of the Sacramento International Airport Class C Airspace Area; CA

[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 231 (Thursday, December 2, 1999)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 67525-67528]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-31283]


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Proposed Rules
                                                Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________

This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.

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Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 231 / Thursday, December 2, 1999 / 
Proposed Rules

[[Page 67525]]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Airspace Docket No. 99-AWA-3]
RIN: 2120-AA66


Proposed Revocation of the Sacramento McClellan Air Force Base 
(AFB) Class C Airspace Area, Establishment of the Sacramento McClellan 
AFB Class E Surface Area; and Modification of the Sacramento 
International Airport Class C Airspace Area; CA

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).

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SUMMARY: This action proposes to revoke the Sacramento McClellan AFB, 
CA, Class C airspace area, establish a Class E surface area at 
Sacramento McClellan AFB, and modify the Sacramento International 
Airport, CA, Class C airspace area. Specifically, the FAA is proposing 
to revoke the Sacramento McClellan AFB Class C airspace area due to a 
reduction in the number of air traffic operations at McClellan AFB. The 
FAA also proposes to establish a Class E surface area that would 
replace the existing Class C airspace and provide controlled airspace 
for the protection of instrument approach operations to McClellan AFB. 
In addition, this notice proposes to modify the Sacramento 
International Airport Class C airspace area to provide additional 
airspace for the management of aircraft operations to and from the 
Sacramento International Airport. The FAA is proposing these changes to 
enhance safety, reduce the risk of midair collision, and improve the 
management of air traffic operations in the Sacramento terminal 
airspace area.

DATEs: Comments must be received on or before January 17, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Send comments on the proposal in triplicate to the FAA, 
Office of Chief Counsel, Attention: Rules Docket, AGC-200, Airspace 
Docket No. 99-AWA-3, 800 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 915, 
Washington, DC 20591. The official docket may be examined in the Rules 
Docket, Office of the Chief Counsel, Room 915, weekdays, except Federal 
holidays, between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m.
    An informal docket may also be examined during normal business 
hours at the FAA Western-Pacific Regional Office, AWP-500, 1500 
Aviation Boulevard, Lawndale, CA 90261.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ken McElroy, Airspace and Rules 
Division, ATA-400, Office of Air Traffic Airspace Management, FAA, 800 
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591; telephone: (202) 267-
8783.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

    Interested parties are invited to participate in this proposed 
rulemaking by submitting such written data, views, or arguments, as 
they may desire. Comments that provide the factual basis supporting the 
views and suggestions presented are particularly helpful in developing 
reasoned regulatory decisions on the proposal. Comments are 
specifically invited on the overall regulatory, aeronautical, economic, 
environmental, and on the overall regulatory, aeronautical, economic, 
environmental, and energy-related aspects of the proposal. 
Communications should identify the airspace docket number and be 
submitted in triplicate to the address listed above. Commenters wishing 
the FAA to acknowledge receipt of their comments on this notice must 
submit with those comments a self-addressed, stamped postcard on which 
the following statement is made: ``Comments to Airspace Docket 99-AWA-
3.'' The postcard will be date/time stamped and returned to the 
commenter. All communications received on or before the specified 
closing date for comments will be considered before taking action on 
the proposed rule. The proposal contained in this notice may be changed 
in light of comments received. All comments submitted will be available 
for examination in the Rules Docket both before and after the closing 
date for comments. A report summarizing each substantive public contact 
with FAA personnel concerned with this rulemaking will be filed in the 
docket.

Availability of NPRM's

    Any person may obtain a copy of this NPRM by submitting a request 
to the FAA, Office of Air Traffic Airspace Management, Attention: 
Airspace and Rules Division, ATA-400, 800 Independence Avenue, SW., 
Washington, DC 20591, or by calling (202) 267-8783. Communications must 
identify the notice number of this NPRM. Persons interested in being 
placed on a mailing list for future NPRM's should contact the FAA, 
Office of Rulemaking, (202) 267-9677, to request a copy of Advisory 
Circular No. 11-2A, which describes the application procedure.

Related Rulemaking

    On December 17, 1991, the FAA published the Airspace 
Reclassification Final Rule (56 FR 65638). This rule, in part, 
discontinued the use of the term ``Airport Radar Service Area (ARSA)'' 
and replaced it with the designation ``Class C airspace area.'' This 
change in terminology is reflected in the remainder of this NPRM.

History

    On April 22, l982, the National Airspace Review (NAR) plan was 
published in the Federal Register (47 FR 17448). The plan encompassed a 
review of airspace use and procedural aspects of the Air Traffic 
Control (ATC) system. Among the main objectives of the NAR was the 
improvement of the ATC system by increasing efficiency and reducing 
complexity. In its review of terminal airspace, NAR Task Group 1-2 
concluded that Terminal Radar Service Areas (TRSA's) should be 
replaced. Four types of airspace configurations were considered as 
replacement candidates, and Model B, the ARSA configuration, was 
recommended by a consensus of the task group.
    The FAA published NAR Recommendation 1-2.2.1, ``Replace Terminal 
Radar Service Areas with Model B Airspace and Service'' in Notice 83-9 
(48 FR 34286; July 28, 1983) proposing the establishment of ARSA's at 
the Robert Mueller Municipal Airport, Austin, TX, and the Port of 
Columbus International Airport, Columbus, OH. ARSA's were designated at 
these airports on a temporary basis by

[[Page 67526]]

SFAR No. 45 (48 FR 50038; October 28, 1983) to provide an operational 
confirmation of the ARSA concept for potential application on a 
national basis.
    Following a confirmation period of more than a year, the FAA 
adopted the NAR recommendation and, on March 6, 1985, the FAA published 
a final rule in the Federal Register (50 FR 9252) that defines Class C 
airspace, and prescribes operating rules for aircraft, ultralight 
vehicles, and parachute jump operations in Class C airspace areas. The 
final rule provides, in part, that all aircraft arriving at any airport 
in Class C airspace or flying through Class C airspace must: (1) Prior 
to entering the Class C airspace, establish two-way radio 
communications with the ATC facility having jurisdiction over the area; 
and (2) While in Class C airspace, maintain two-way radio 
communications with that ATC facility. For aircraft departing from the 
primary airport within Class C airspace, or a satellite airport with an 
operating control tower, two-way radio communications must be 
established and maintained with the control tower and thereafter as 
instructed by ATC while operating in Class C airspace. For aircraft 
departing a satellite airport without an operating control tower and 
within Class C airspace, two-way radio communications must be 
established with the ATC facility having jurisdiction over the area as 
soon as practicable after takeoff and thereafter maintained while 
operating within the Class C airspace area.
    Concurrently, on March 6, 1985, by separate rulemaking action, 
ARSA's were permanently established at the Austin, TX, Columbus, OH, 
and the Baltimore/Washington International Airports (50 FR 9250). The 
FAA stated that future notices would propose ARSA's for other airports 
at which TRSA procedures were in effect.
    Additionally, the NAR Task Group recommended that the FAA develop 
quantitative criteria for proposing to establish ARSA's at locations 
other than those which were included in the TRSA replacement program. 
The task group recommended that these criteria include, among other 
things, traffic mix, flow and density, airport configuration, 
geographical features, collision risk assessment, and ATC capabilities 
to provide service to users. These criteria have been developed and are 
being published via the directives system (Order 7400.2, Procedures for 
Handling Airspace Matters.
    The NAR Task Group also recommended that each ARSA be of the same 
airspace configuration insofar as is practicable. The FAA adopted this 
recommendation. The standard ARSA consists of airspace within 5 
nautical miles (NM) of the primary airport, extending from the surface 
to an altitude of 4,000 feet above airport elevation (AAE), and that 
airspace between 5 and 10 NM from the primary airport from 1,200 feet 
above ground level to an altitude of 4,000 feet AEE. Proposed 
deviations from this standard have been necessary at some airports 
because of adjacent regulatory airspace, international boundaries, 
topography, or unusual operational requirements.

Pre-NPRM Public Input

    As announced in the Federal Register on October 13, 1998 (63 FR 
54637) a pre-NPRM meeting was held on November 17, 1998, at Sacramento 
McClellan AFB, CA. The purpose of this meeting was to provide airspace 
users with an opportunity to present input on the FAA's planned 
modification to the Sacramento, CA, terminal airspace area. Those 
attending the meeting expressed general support for the planned 
modification. In the ensuing comment period, which closed on December 
31, 1998, the FAA received no comments, either verbal or written, that 
objected to or opposed the proposed action.

The Proposal

    The FAA is proposing to amend part 71 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (14 CFR part 71) to revoke the Sacramento McClellan AFB 
Class C airspace area and establish a Class E surface area at 
Sacramento McClellan AFB. The FAA is proposing this action because the 
number of air traffic operations at McClellan AFB have decreased 
significantly as a result of the permanent closure of the airport 
traffic control tower (ATCT). The United States Air Force closed 
McClellan AFB tower on October 1, 1998 as part of its Base Realignment 
and Closing process. McClellan AFB is scheduled to be completely closed 
July 2001. Recent air traffic statistics clearly show that air traffic 
operations into McClellan AFB do not justify retention of the Class C 
airspace designation. These remaining operations are expected to 
further decline with the complete closure of McClellan. Thus, the FAA 
is proposing to replace the Sacramento McClellan AFB Class C airspace 
area with a Class E surface area to provide controlled airspace for the 
protection of instrument approach operations to McClellan AFB.
    This notice also proposes to modify the current Sacramento 
International Airport Class C airspace area by expanding its eastern 
boundary. This proposed modification would ensure that the airspace 
overlying the Rio Linda airport, located in the revoked McClellan AFB 
Class C airspace area, retains Class C airspace protection. This is 
necessary to maintain the safety level previously afforded by part of 
the McClellan Class C airspace area.
    The coordinates for this airspace docket are based on North 
American Datum 83. Class C and Class E airspace designations are 
published, respectively, in paragraphs 4000 and 6002 of FAA Order 
7400.9G, dated September 1, 1999, and effective September 16, 1999, 
which is incorporated by reference in 14 CFR 71.1. The Class C and E 
airspace designations listed in this document would be published 
subsequently in the Order.

Regulatory Evaluation Summary

    Changes to Federal Regulations must undergo several economic 
analyses. First, Executive Order 12866 directs that each Federal agency 
shall propose or adopt a regulation only upon a reasoned determination 
that the benefits of the intended regulation justify its costs. Second, 
the Regulatory Flexibility Act requires agencies to analyze the 
economic effect of regulatory changes on small businesses and other 
small entities. Third, the Office of Management and Budget directs 
agencies to assess the effect of regulatory changes on international 
trade. In conducting these analyses, the FAA has determined that this 
proposed rule: (1) Would generate benefits that justify its minimal 
costs and is not a ``significant regulatory action'' as defined in the 
Executive Order; (2) Is not significant as defined in the Department of 
Transportation's Regulatory Policies and Procedures; (3) Would not have 
a significant impact on a substantial number of small entities; (4) 
Would not constitute a barrier to international trade; and (5) Would 
not contain any Federal intergovernmental or private sector mandate. 
These analyses are summarized here in the preamble, and the full 
Regulatory Evaluation is in the docket.
    The proposed rule would revoke the Class C airspace area at 
Sacramento McClellan AFB, establish a Class E surface area at McClellan 
AFB, and modify the existing Class C airspace area at Sacramento 
International Airport. The Sacramento International Airport Class C 
airspace area would be modified by expanding its boundary to the east. 
This modification is necessary to retain Class C airspace protection 
overlying the Rio Linda airport located in the revoked McClellan AFB 
Class C airspace area.

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    The FAA has determined that the modification of the Sacramento 
terminal area would result in negligible costs to the agency and no 
additional costs to airspace users. The proposed rule would impose a 
one-time cost of approximately $200 on the agency in order to inform 
pilots of the airspace changes. Changes to sectional charts would occur 
during the chart cycle and would cause no additional costs beyond the 
normal update of the charts. Any additional FAA administrative demands 
(personnel, equipment, and facilities) generated by this action would 
be absorbed by existing resources. Aircraft owners and operators would 
not incur costs for additional equipment because they are already 
operating in Class C airspace area at Sacramento International Airport 
and at McClellan AFB.
    The modification of the Sacramento terminal area would enhance 
operational efficiency while maintaining aviation safety. The 
revocation of the McClellan Class C airspace area would allow visual 
flight rule users additional airspace in which to transition to and 
from satellite airports and around the proposed Sacramento Class C 
airspace area. The FAA contends that the proposed rule would reduce 
circumnavigation cost for some general aviation (GA) operators and 
improve the flow of air traffic operations into, out of, and through 
the Sacramento terminal area. As a result of the negligible costs and 
safety and efficiency benefits, the FAA has determined that the 
proposed rule would be cost-beneficial.

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Determination

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (the ACT) establishes ``as a 
principle of regulatory issuance that agencies shall endeavor, 
consistent with the objective of the rule and of applicable statutes, 
to fit regulatory and informational requirements to the scale of the 
business, organizations, and governmental jurisdictions subject to 
regulation.'' To achieve that principal, the Act requires agencies to 
solicit and consider flexible regulatory proposals and to explain the 
rational for their actions. The Act covers a wide-range of small 
entities, including small businesses, not-for-profit organizations and 
small governmental jurisdictions.
    Agencies must perform a review to determine whether a proposed or 
final rule will have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities. If the determination is that it will, the 
agency must prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis (RFA) as 
described in the Act.
    However, if an agency determines that a proposed or final rule is 
not expected to have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities, section 605(b) of the 1980 act provides that 
the head of the agency may so certify and an RFA is not required. The 
certification must include a statement providing the factual basis for 
this determination, and the reasoning should be clear.
    This proposed rule is not expected to have a significant impact on 
commercial and GA operators who presently use the Sacramento 
International Airport and are already equipped to operate within the 
proposed Sacramento Class C airspace area. As for aircraft that 
regularly fly through the existing McClellan AFB terminal area, the 
revocation of the Class C airspace area and establishment of a Class E 
surface area would not impose any additional equipment or navigational 
costs on these operators. Therefore, there would be no additional cost 
to these entities.
    Accordingly, pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 
605(b), the FAA certifies that this rule would not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The FAA 
solicits comments from affected entities with respect to this finding 
and determination.

International Trade Impact Assessment

    The proposed rule would not constitute a barrier to international 
trade, including the export of U.S. goods and services to foreign 
countries or the import of foreign goods and services into the United 
States.

Unfunded Mandates Assessment

    Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (the Act), 
enacted as Pub. L. 104-4 on March 22, 1995, requires each Federal 
agency, to the extent permitted by law, to prepare a written assessment 
of the effects of any Federal mandate in a proposed or final agency 
rule that may result in the expenditure of $100 million or more (when 
adjusted annually for inflation) in any one year by State, local, and 
tribal governments in the aggregate, or by the private sector. Section 
204(a) of the Act, 2 U.S.C. 1534(a), requires the Federal agency to 
develop an effective process to permit timely input by elected officers 
(or their designees) of State, local, and tribal governments on a 
proposed ``significant intergovernmental mandate.'' A ``significant 
intergovernmental mandate'' under the Act is any provision in a Federal 
agency regulation that would impose an enforceable duty upon State, 
local, and tribal governments in the aggregate of $100 million 
(adjusted annually for inflation) in any one year. Section 203 of the 
Act, 2 U.S.C. 1533, which supplements section 204(a), provides that, 
before establishing any regulatory requirements that might 
significantly or uniquely affect small governments, the agency shall 
have developed a plan, which, among other things, must provide for 
notice to potentially affected small governments, if any, and for a 
meaningful and timely opportunity for these small governments to 
provide input in the development of regulatory proposals.
    This proposed rule does not contain any Federal intergovernmental 
or private sector mandates. Therefore, the requirements of Title II of 
the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 do not apply.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71

    Airspace, Incorporation by reference, Navigation (air).

The Proposed Amendment

    In consideration of the foregoing, the Federal Aviation 
Administration proposes to amend 14 CFR part 71 as follows:

PART 71--DESIGNATION OF CLASS A, CLASS B, CLASS C, CLASS D, AND 
CLASS E AIRSPACE AREAS; AIRWAYS; ROUTES; AND REPORTING POINTS

    1. The authority citation for part 71 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40103, 40113, 40120; E.O. 10854, 24 
FR 9565, 3 CFR, 1959-1963 Comp., p. 389.


Sec. 71.1  [Amended]

    2. The incorporation by reference in 14 CFR 71.1 of the Federal 
Aviation Administration Order 7400.9G, Airspace Designations and 
Reporting Points, dated September 1, 1999, and effective September 16, 
1999, is amended as follows:

Paragraph 4000-Subpart C--Class C Airspace.

* * * * *

AWP CA C Sacramento, McClellan AFB, CA [Removed]

* * * * *

AWP CA C Sacramento International Airport, CA [Revised]

Sacramento International Airport, CA
    (Lat. 38 deg.41'44'' N., long. 121 deg.35'27'' W.)
Riego Flight Strip
    (Lat. 38 deg.45'15'' N., long. 121 deg.33'47'' W.)
Natomas Field

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    (Lat. 38 deg.38'18'' N., long. 121 deg.30'55'' W.)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface to and including 
4,100 feet MSL within a 5-mile radius of the Sacramento 
International Airport, excluding that airspace within a 2-mile 
radius of Riego Flight Strip, and that airspace within a 2-mile 
radius of Natomas Field, and that airspace east of the 002( bearing 
from Natomas Field; and that airspace extending upward from 1,600 
feet MSL to 4,100 feet MSL within a 10-mile radius of Sacramento 
International Airport.
* * * * *

Paragraph 6002--Class E Airspace Designated as Surface Areas.

* * * * *

AWP CA E2 Sacramento, McClellan AFB, CA [New]

Sacramento, McClellan AFB, CA
    (Lat. 38 deg.40'04'' N., long. 121 deg.24'02'' W.)

    That airspace extending upward from the surface within a 4.5-
mile radius of McClellan AFB excluding that airspace within the 
Sacramento International Airport Class C surface area.
* * * * *
    Issued in Washington, DC on November 23, 1999.
Reginald C. Matthews,
Manager, Airspace and Rules Division.
[FR Doc. 99-31283 Filed 12-1-99; 8:45 am]
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