[Federal Register: February 12, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 28)]
[Notices]               
[Page 7092]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr12fe09-82]                         

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

 
Civil Supersonic Aircraft Panel Discussion

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of meeting participation.

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SUMMARY: This notice advises interested persons that the FAA is 
participating in a panel session on civil supersonic aircraft research. 
The session will include presentations on current research programs and 
a question and answer session for attendees. The FAA is seeking to 
raise public awareness of the continuing technological advances in 
supersonic aircraft technology aimed at reducing the intensity of sonic 
boom.

DATES: The public session will take place on Sunday, March 1, 2009. The 
panel discussion is from 10 a.m. to 12 noon in Palm Springs, CA.

ADDRESSES: The symposium is sponsored by the University of California 
Davis Air Quality Research Center and it will be held at the Hilton 
Palm Springs Hotel, 400 East Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm Springs, CA. 
Attendance is open to all interested parties, and there are no fees to 
attend this session.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laurette Fisher, Office of Environment 
and Energy (AEE-100), Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence 
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591; facsimile (202) 267-5594, telephone 
(202) 267-3561.
    Background: Since March 1973, supersonic flight over land by civil 
aircraft has been prohibited in the United States. The Concorde was the 
only civil supersonic airplane that offered service to the United 
States, but that airplane is no longer in service.
    The interest in supersonic aircraft technology has not disappeared. 
Current research is dedicated toward reducing the impact of sonic booms 
as they reach the ground, in an effort to make overland flight 
acceptable. Recent research has produced promising results for low boom 
intensity, and has renewed interest in developing supersonic civil 
aircraft that could be considered environmentally acceptable for 
supersonic flight over land.
    The FAA led its first panel discussion entitled, ``State of the Art 
of Supersonics Aircraft Technology--What has progressed in science 
since 1973,'' in Chicago, IL on Friday, October 24, 2008, as part of 
the O'Hare Noise Compatibility Commission Symposium.
    The FAA's second presentation and panel discussion will take place 
on Sunday, March 1, 2009, as part of the Annual University of 
California Symposium on Aviation Noise and Air Quality. It will be held 
at the Hilton Palm Springs Hotel, 400 East Tahquitz Canyon Way, Palm 
Springs, California.
    The purpose of this panel session is to raise public awareness on 
advances in supersonic technology, and for the FAA, the National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and industry to get 
feedback from interested persons.
    Public involvement is essential in any future definition of an 
acceptable new standard that would allow supersonic flights over land. 
We anticipate that this will be the second of many meetings informing 
the public on developments in the research of shaped sonic booms and 
other technical and environmental challenges that need to be addressed 
in developing a new supersonic airplane.
    More information about the University of California Symposium can 
be found at: http://www.cevs.ucdavis.edu/Cofred/Public/Aca/
ConfHome.cfm?confid=392.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on February 6, 2009.
Carl E. Burleson,
Director of Environment and Energy.
 [FR Doc. E9-2997 Filed 2-11-09; 8:45 am]

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