[Federal Register: January 27, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 17)]
[Notices]
[Page 3972-3973]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27ja05-89]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
Notice of Opportunity To Self-Correct Annual Authorizations for
Commercial Air Tour Operators Over National Parks and Tribal Lands
Within or Abutting National Parks
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
ACTION: Notice
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SUMMARY: On October 25, 2002, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
published the final rule for Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14
CFR) part 136, National Parks Air Tour Management (67 FR 65662). The
rule became effective on January 23, 2003. In accordance with the
provisions of the National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 2000, the
final rule stated that the commercial air tour operators granted
interim operating authority (IOA) would be published in the Federal
Register for notice and the opportunity for comment. Based on
information received from multiple sources and our own review, the FAA
believes there may be some errors in the number of commercial air tours
initially reported to the FAA. Thus, the FAA believes it is in the
public interest to provide an opportunity for air tour operators to
review and self-correct their annual authorizations prior to issuing
the statutorily required notice. This notice announces the self-
correcting opportunity and procedure. Responses should be provided to
the contact person below by February 21, 2005.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gene Kirkendall, Air Transportation
Division (AFS-200W), Flight Standards Service, Federal Aviation
Administration, 800 Independence Ave., SW., Washington, DC 20591;
telephone (202) 267-8166; e-mail: Gene.Kirkendall@FAA.GOV.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 25, 2002, the FAA published a
final rule in Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 136,
National Parks Air Tour Management (67 FR 65662) to fulfill the mandate
of The National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 2000 (the Act),
enacted on April 5, 2000. This final rule (part 136) completed the
definition of ``commercial air tour operation'' by establishing the
altitude (5,000 feet above ground level) below which an operator flying
over a national park for the purpose of sightseeing would be classified
as a commercial air tour operator. The rule also codified provisions of
the Act. In accordance with 14 CFR 136.7(b), before commencing
commercial air tour operations over a unit of the national park system,
or tribal lands within or abutting a national park, a commercial air
tour operator is required to apply to the Administrator for authority
to conduct the operations over the park or tribal lands. Title 14 CFR
136.11(a) states that upon application, the Administrator shall grant
interim operating authority (IOA) to a commercial air tour operator for
commercial air tour operations over a national park or tribal land for
which the operator is an existing commercial air tour operator.
Consistent with the Act, 14 CFR 136.11(b)(3) also states that IOAs
granted under that section would be published in the Federal Register
to provide notice and opportunity for comment.
Based on information received from multiple sources and our own
review, the FAA believes there may be some errors in the number of
commercial air tours initially reported. Consequently, prior to issuing
this required notice, the FAA wants to provide an opportunity for air
tour operators to review and correct, if necessary, the FAA's current
IOA database. There are several reasons why errors could have
unintentionally occurred, such as: (1) Operators were not required to
keep records of the number of commercial air tours conducted over
national parks prior to the adoption of the Act; (2) there was a 2\1/
2\-year time lapse between the passage of the Act and the effective
date of the rule; and (3) there appears to have been confusion over how
to report information, especially for operators flying over more than
one park. With regard to the third reason, a number of operators
reported operations for more than one park by stating the number of
total flights and then listing the parks separately. This alone may
have led to over-reporting the number of commercial air tours over
national parks.
Thus, the FAA has issued individual letters to each operator in the
FAA's Air Tour database notifying them that they should confirm and
correct if necessary, their allocation numbers for each park by
February 21, 2005. If the operator notices that the number of
allocations granted over a park as shown in their operations
specifications is incorrect, they should notify the FAA by letter or e-
mail of the correct amount. Self-correcting letters may be sent to Gene
Kirkendall, Air Transportation Division, AFS-200W, Flight Standards
Service, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, SW.,
Washington, DC 20591, or e-mailed to Gene Kirkendall@faa.gov. There is
no penalty for self-correcting. Any operator not receiving an
individual letter from the FAA is hereby noticed through publication
that they should confirm their commercial air tour interim operating
authority allocations. Operators also should notify the contact person
in this notice if they did not receive an individual letter. Operators
not submitting a change will be deemed to have confirmed the number
originally reported to the FAA and issued as IOAs.
[[Page 3973]]
When confirming status and the number of flights issued for each
operator, please keep in mind the following principles:
(1) Only operators that conducted operations at any time during the
12-month period prior to April 5, 2000 (the date of enactment of the
Act), qualify as existing operators. Only operators reporting to us as
existing operators should have received IOA. In situations where an
operator has a question about its existing operator status, it should
contact its local Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) and receive
confirmation from the FSDO as to its status. The FAA has received
several questions regarding corporations that qualified as existing air
tour operators and then experienced a change in business management
during the time lapse. Whether these operators qualify as existing
operators will be decided on a case-by-case basis by the FAA.
(2) The number to be published in the Federal Register must reflect
only the number of commercial air tour flights conducted by an operator
over a particular park within either (1) the 12-month period prior to
April 5, 2000; or (2) the average number of flights per 12-month period
for the 3-year period prior to April 5, 2000, and for seasonal
operations, the number of flights so used during the season or seasons
covered by that 12-month period. The number should not include desired
increases above the allowed historical number of new entrant requests.
Operators should not have received increases or new entrant authority
through this IOA grant. Such requests will be handled through a
separate process by FAA and the National Park Service.
(3) Operators should receive an IOA that reflects the actual number
of commercial air tours that were conducted during the relevant time
period set forth in the statute and the rule. Operators needing to
self-correct should identify each park and the number of flights for
each park, including whether the flight was part of a circuit, and if
so, what parks were included in that circuit. For instance, operators
flying over more than one park between takeoff and landing should
identify those flights as circuit tours. Thus, if the operator flew
over three parks during the same flight (takoff to landing) in 100
flights, then the operator should specify this to the best of its
ability. If the operator flew 100 flights with each flight going over
one park of three different authorized parks, then the operator should
so specify.
Operators are hereby notified that after February 21, 2005, the FAA
will prepare a final listing of all existing commercial air tour
operators receiving IOAs and the number of flights per park and publish
the revised list in the Federal Register for comment, as required by
statute. If comments are received in response to that publication that
provide substantive information that an operator does not qualify under
the law as an existing operator or has erroneously reported the number
of flights flown over a park, the FAA may investigate and take
corrective action, if necessary, to bring the operator into compliance
with the law.
As operator reexamine their records for confirmation in response to
this letter, they are encouraged to keep supporting information in
their files in case questions subsequently arise that merit
investigation. Operators may voluntarily provide such supporting
information at this time to FAA but are not required to do so.
The IOA information provided to the FAA will be used solely to
determine and confirm the appropriate allocation for IOAs and will not
be used to determine noise impacts to national park resources.
Dated: Issued in Washington, DC on January 19, 2005.
John M. Allen,
Acting Director, Flight Standards Service.
[FR Doc. 05-1471 Filed 1-26-05; 8:45 am]
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