Proposed Rule2023-28513
Amendment of Jet Route J-211 and Revocation of VOR Federal Airway V-41; Youngstown, OH
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
December 27, 2023
Issuing agencies
Transportation DepartmentFederal Aviation Administration
Abstract
This action proposes to amend Jet Route J-211 and to revoke Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Federal Airway V-41. The FAA is proposing this action due to the planned decommissioning of the VOR portion of the Youngstown, OH (YNG), VOR/Tactical Air Navigation (VORTAC) navigational aid (NAVAID). The Youngstown VOR is being decommissioned in support of the FAA's VOR Minimum Operational Network (MON) program.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 247 (Wednesday, December 27, 2023)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 247 (Wednesday, December 27, 2023)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 89342-89344]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28513]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 71
[Docket No. FAA-2023-2513; Airspace Docket No. 23-AGL-26]
RIN 2120-AA66
Amendment of Jet Route J-211 and Revocation of VOR Federal Airway
V-41; Youngstown, OH
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This action proposes to amend Jet Route J-211 and to revoke
Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Federal Airway V-41.
The FAA is proposing this action due to the planned decommissioning of
the VOR portion of the Youngstown, OH (YNG), VOR/Tactical Air
Navigation (VORTAC) navigational aid (NAVAID). The
[[Page 89343]]
Youngstown VOR is being decommissioned in support of the FAA's VOR
Minimum Operational Network (MON) program.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before February 12, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Send comments identified by FAA Docket No. FAA-2023-2513 and
Airspace Docket No. 23-AGL-26 using any of the following methods:
* Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> and follow
the online instructions for sending your comments electronically.
* Mail: Send comments to Docket Operations, M-30; U.S. Department
of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Room W12-140, West
Building Ground Floor, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
* Hand Delivery or Courier: Take comments to Docket Operations in
Room W12-140 of the West Building Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except Federal holidays.
* Fax: Fax comments to Docket Operations at (202) 493-2251.
Docket: Background documents or comments received may be read at
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> at any time. Follow the online instructions for
accessing the docket or go to the Docket Operations in Room W12-140 of
the West Building Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE,
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except Federal holidays.
FAA Order JO 7400.11H, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points,
and subsequent amendments can be viewed online at <a href="http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/">www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/</a>. You may also contact the Rules and
Regulations Group, Office of Policy, Federal Aviation Administration,
800 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone: (202) 267-
8783.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Colby Abbott, Rules and Regulations
Group, Office of Policy, Federal Aviation Administration, 800
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone: (202) 267-
8783.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Authority for This Rulemaking
The FAA's authority to issue rules regarding aviation safety is
found in Title 49 of the United States Code. Subtitle I, Section 106
describes the authority of the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII,
Aviation Programs, describes in more detail the scope of the agency's
authority. This rulemaking is promulgated under the authority described
in Subtitle VII, Part A, Subpart I, Section 40103. Under that section,
the FAA is charged with prescribing regulations to assign the use of
the airspace necessary to ensure the safety of aircraft and the
efficient use of airspace. This regulation is within the scope of that
authority as it would modify the National Airspace System (NAS) as
necessary to preserve the safe and efficient flow of air traffic.
Comments Invited
The FAA invites interested persons to participate in this
rulemaking by submitting written comments, data, or views. Comments are
specifically invited on the overall regulatory, aeronautical, economic,
environmental, and energy-related aspects of the proposal. The most
helpful comments reference a specific portion of the proposal, explain
the reason for any recommended change, and include supporting data. To
ensure the docket does not contain duplicate comments, commenters
should submit only one time if comments are filed electronically, or
commenters should send only one copy of written comments if comments
are filed in writing.
The FAA will file in the docket all comments it receives, as well
as a report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA
personnel concerning this proposed rulemaking. Before acting on this
proposal, the FAA will consider all comments it receives on or before
the closing date for comments. The FAA will consider comments filed
after the comment period has closed if it is possible to do so without
incurring expense or delay. The FAA may change this proposal in light
of the comments it receives.
Privacy: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments
from the public to better inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts
these comments, without edit, including any personal information the
commenter provides, to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>, as described in the system
of records notice (DOT/ALL-14 FDMS), which can be reviewed at
<a href="http://www.dot.gov/privacy">www.dot.gov/privacy</a>.
Availability of Rulemaking Documents
An electronic copy of this document may be downloaded through the
internet at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>. Recently published rulemaking
documents can also be accessed through the FAA's web page at
<a href="http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/airspace_amendments/">www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/airspace_amendments/</a>.
You may review the public docket containing the proposal, any
comments received and any final disposition in person in the Dockets
Operations office (see ADDRESSES section for address, phone number, and
hours of operations). An informal docket may also be examined during
normal business hours at the office of the Operations Support Group,
Central Service Center, Federal Aviation Administration, 10101 Hillwood
Parkway, Fort Worth, TX 76177.
Incorporation by Reference
Jet Routes are published in paragraph 2004 and VOR Federal Airways
are published in paragraph 6010(a) of FAA Order JO 7400.11, Airspace
Designations and Reporting Points, which is incorporated by reference
in 14 CFR 71.1 on an annual basis. This document proposes to amend the
current version of that order, FAA Order JO 7400.11H, dated August 11,
2023, and effective September 15, 2023. These updates would be
published in the next update to FAA Order JO 7400.11. That order is
publicly available as listed in the ADDRESSES section of this document.
FAA Order JO 7400.11H lists Class A, B, C, D, and E airspace areas,
air traffic service routes, and reporting points.
Background
The FAA is planning to decommission the Youngstown, OH, VOR in
October 2024. The Youngstown VOR was one of the candidate VORs
identified for discontinuance by the FAA's VOR MON program and listed
in the final policy statement notice, ``Provision of Navigation
Services for the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen)
Transition to Performance-Based Navigation (PBN) (Plan for Establishing
a VOR Minimum Operational Network),'' published in the Federal Register
on July 26, 2016 (81 FR 48694), Docket No. FAA-2011-1082.
Although the VOR portion of the Youngstown VORTAC is planned for
decommissioning, the co-located Tactical Air Navigation (TACAN) portion
of the NAVAID is being retained. The TACAN would continue to provide
navigational service for military operations and distance measuring
equipment (DME) service supporting current and future NextGen PBN
flight procedure requirements.
The Air Traffic Service (ATS) routes affected by the Youngstown VOR
decommissioning are J-211 and V-41. With the planned decommissioning of
the Youngstown VOR, the remaining ground-based NAVAID coverage in the
area is insufficient to enable the continuity of the affected ATS
routes. As such, proposed modifications to J-211 would result in the
route being shortened and to V-41 would result in the airway being
revoked.
[[Page 89344]]
To address the proposed modifications to the affected ATS routes,
instrument flight rules (IFR) pilots flying in the high-altitude
enroute structure may circumnavigate the affected area by using
adjacent Jet Routes J-60, J-61, J-64, and J-162 or request air traffic
control (ATC) radar vectors through the affected area. Additionally,
IFR pilots operating aircraft equipped with area navigation (RNAV)
capabilities in the high-altitude enroute structure could use RNAV
route Q-178 or navigate point-to-point using the existing Fixes and
waypoints (WP) that will remain in place to support continued
operations though the affected area. IFR pilots operating aircraft
equipped with RNAV capabilities in the low altitude enroute structure
could also navigate point-to-point using the existing Fixes and WPs
that will remain in place to support continued operations though the
affected area. Visual flight rules pilots who elect to navigate via the
affected VOR Federal Airway may also take advantage of the ATC services
listed previously.
The Proposal
The FAA is proposing to amend 14 CFR part 71 by amending Jet Route
J-211 and revoking VOR Federal Airway V-41. The FAA is proposing this
action due to the planned decommissioning of the VOR portion of the
Youngstown, OH, VORTAC. The proposed ATS route actions are described
below.
J-211: J-211 currently extends between the Youngstown, OH, VORTAC
and the Westminster, MD, VORTAC. The FAA proposes to remove the airway
segment between the Youngstown VORTAC and the Johnstown, PA, VOR/DME.
Additionally, the route description is being reversed to reflect a
south to north orientation consistent with odd numbered route
description requirements. As amended, the route would be changed to
extend between the Westminster VORTAC and the Johnstown VOR/DME.
V-41: V-41 currently extends between the intersection of the
Briggs, OH, VOR/DME 077[deg] and Youngstown, OH, VORTAC 177[deg]
radials (CUTTA Fix) and the Youngstown VORTAC. The FAA proposes to
remove the airway in its entirety.
The NAVAID radials listed in the Jet Route J-211 description in the
proposed regulatory text of this NPRM are unchanged and stated in
degrees True north.
Regulatory Notices and Analyses
The FAA has determined that this proposed regulation only involves
an established body of technical regulations for which frequent and
routine amendments are necessary to keep them operationally current.
It, therefore: (1) is not a ``significant regulatory action'' under
Executive Order 12866; (2) is not a ``significant rule'' under DOT
Regulatory Policies and Procedures (44 FR 11034; February 26, 1979);
and (3) does not warrant preparation of a regulatory evaluation as the
anticipated impact is so minimal. Since this is a routine matter that
will only affect air traffic procedures and air navigation, it is
certified that this proposed rule, when promulgated, will not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities
under the criteria of the Regulatory Flexibility Act.
Environmental Review
This proposal will be subject to an environmental analysis in
accordance with FAA Order 1050.1F, ``Environmental Impacts: Policies
and Procedures'' prior to any FAA final regulatory action.
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, B, C, D, AND E AIRSPACE AREAS; AIR
TRAFFIC SERVICE ROUTES; AND REPORTING POINTS
0
1. The authority citation for 14 CFR part 71 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(f), 106(g); 40103, 40113, 40120; E.O.
10854, 24 FR 9565, 3 CFR, 1959-1963 Comp., p. 389.
Sec. 71.1 [Amended]
0
2. The incorporation by reference in 14 CFR 71.1 of FAA Order JO
7400.11H, Airspace Designations and Reporting Points, dated August 11,
2023, and effective September 15, 2023, is amended as follows:
Paragraph 2004 Jet Routes.
* * * * *
J-211 [Amended]
From Westminster, MD; INT Westminster 292[deg] and Johnstown,
PA, 130[deg] radials; to Johnstown.
* * * * *
Paragraph 6010(a) Domestic VOR Federal Airways.
* * * * *
V-41 [Removed]
* * * * *
Issued in Washington, DC, on December 20, 2023.
Frank Lias,
Manager, Rules and Regulations Group.
[FR Doc. 2023-28513 Filed 12-26-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P
</pre></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on December 27, 2023.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.