Establishment of Class D Airspace: Fort Worth, TX

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 71

[Airspace Docket No. 93-ASW-43]

Establishment of Class D Airspace: Fort Worth, TX

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This action establishes Class D airspace at Spinks Airport in

Fort Worth, TX. Airspace reclassification, effective September 26,

1993, discontinued the use of the term ``airport traffic area,''

replacing it with the designation ``Class D Airspace.'' While Spinks

Airport has an operating control tower, it did not have a control zone.

As a result of airspace reclassification, the requirement for two-way

radio communication with the control tower at Fort Worth Spinks Airport

lapsed. The intended effect of this action is to provide adequate Class

D airspace to contain instrument flight rules (IFR) operations and

required two-way radio communications at Spinks Airport in Fort Worth,

TX.

EFFECTIVE DATE: 0901 U.T.C., April 28, 1994.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Alvin DeVane, System Management Branch, Air Traffic Division, Southwest

Region, Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration,

Fort Worth, TX 76193-0530, telephone (817) 222-5595.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

History

On December 7, 1993, a proposal to amend part 71 of the Federal

Aviation Regulations (14 CFR part 71) to establish Class D airspace at

Spinks Airport, Fort Worth, TX, was published in the Federal Register

(58 FR 64387).

Interested persons were invited to participate in this rulemaking

proceeding by submitting written comments on the proposal to the FAA.

Two comments were received. The first commenter objected to the

existence of the airport traffic control tower (ATCT) at Spinks

Airport. The ATCT at Spinks Airport is a non-federal facility operated

by private contract for the city of Fort Worth. The proposed action was

to establish Class D airspace at Spinks Airport. The question of

whether or not ATCT should be operated at Spinks Airport is beyond the

scope of this action. The second commenter objected to the imposition

of the additional operating requirements of Class D airspace on those

operators at Luck Field, Rafter J, Branson Farm, and Sycamore Strip

airports. The commenter stated that a large community of antique and

experimental aircraft without electrical systems operated in the south

Fort Worth area. The FAA concurs that, to the extent possible,

satellite airports should be excluded from the Class D surface area at

Spinks Airport. Therefore, in this final rule, the proposed Class D

airspace is revised to exclude Branson Farm, Sycamore and the Flying L

airports from the Spinks Class D surface area. It is not feasible to

exclude Luck and Rafter J airports from the Class D airspace surface

area due to their close proximity to the Spinks Airport. However,

operators at those airports may contact the Spinks Airport Traffic

Control Tower (ATCT) at 817-447-1837 to negotiate a letter of agreement

between the Spinks ATCT and the operator. This agreement would allow

the operators of aircraft without electrical systems to continue to

operate in the Class D airspace. Additionally, the coordinates for the

Spinks Airport were updated and some descriptive information in the

narrative portion of the rule for the Class D airspace at Fort Worth

Spinks Airport was added to indicate that the tower is operated part-

time. Except for these changes, this amendment is the same as that

proposed in the notice. The coordinates for this airspace docket are

based on North American Datum 83. Class D airspace designations are

published in paragraph 5000 of FAA Order 7400.9A dated June 17, 1993,

and effective September 16, 1993, which is incorporated by reference in

14 CFR 71.1 (58 FR 36298; July 6, 1993). The Class D airspace

designation listed in this document will be published subsequently in

the Order.

The Rule

This amendment to part 71 of the Federal Aviation Regulations

establishes Class D airspace at Spinks Airport in Fort Worth, TX.

The FAA has determined that this regulation only involves an

established body of technical regulations that need frequent and

routine amendments 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 rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial

number of small entities under the criteria of the Regulatory

Flexibility Act.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 71

Aviation safety, Incorporation by reference, Navigation (air).

Adoption of the Amendment

In consideration of the foregoing, the Federal Aviation

Administration amends 14 CFR part 71 as follows:

PART 71--[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for 14 CFR part 71 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 49 U.S.C. app. 1348(a), 1354(a), 1510; E.O. 10854, 24

FR 9565, 3 CFR, 1959-1963 Comp., p. 389; 49 U.S.C. 106(g); 14 CFR

11.69.

Sec. 71.1 [Amended]

2. The incorporation by reference in 14 CFR 71.1 of the Federal

Aviation Administration Order 7400.9A, Airspace Designations and

Reporting Points, dated June 17, 1993, and effective September 16,

1993, is amended as follows:

Paragraph 5000: General

* * * * *

ASW TX D Fort Worth Spinks, TX [New]

Forth Worth Spinks Airport, TX

(lat. 32 deg.33'55'' N., long. 97 deg.18'30'' W.)

Forth Worth, Sycamore Strip, TX

(lat. 32 deg.37'43'' N., long. 97 deg.21'13'' W.)

Branson Farm Airport

(lat. 32 deg.31'00'' N., long. 97 deg.22'01'' W.)

Flying L Airpark

(lat. 32 deg.32'15'' N., long. 97 deg.07'51'' W.)

That airspace extending upward from the surface to but not

including 2500 feet MSL within a 4.1-mile radius of Forth Worth

Spinks Airport excluding that airspace within a 1-mile radius of

Sycamore Strip; excluding that airspace within a 1-mile radius of

Branson Farm Airport; excluding that airspace within a 1-mile radius

of the Flying L Airpark. This Class D airspace area is effective

during the specific dates and times established in advance by a

Notice to Airmen. The effective date and time will thereafter be

continuously published in the Airport/Facility Directory.

* * * * *

Issued in Fort Worth, TX, on February 25, 1994.

Larry D. Gray,

Acting Manager, Air Traffic Division, Southwest Region.

[FR Doc. 94-5414 Filed 3-8-94; 8:45 am]

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