[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 199 (Wednesday, October 14, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65134-65136]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-22756]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
Notice of Submission Deadline for Schedule Information for
Chicago O'Hare International Airport, John F. Kennedy International
Airport, Los Angeles International Airport, Newark Liberty
International Airport, and San Francisco International Airport for the
Summer 2021 Scheduling Season
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of
Transportation.
ACTION: Notice of submission deadline.
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SUMMARY: Under this notice, the FAA announces the submission deadline
of October 15, 2020, for Summer 2021 flight schedules at Chicago O'Hare
International Airport (ORD), John F. Kennedy International Airport
(JFK), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Newark Liberty
International Airport (EWR), and San Francisco International Airport
(SFO).
DATES: Schedules should be submitted by October 15, 2020.
ADDRESSES: Schedules may be submitted to the Slot Administration Office
by email to: 7-AWA-slotadmin@faa.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Al Meilus, Manager, Slot
Administration, AJR-G, Federal Aviation Administration, 800
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone (202) 267-2822;
email Al.Meilus@faa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This document provides routine notice to
carriers serving capacity-constrained airports in the United States,
including Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), John F. Kennedy
International Airport (JFK), Los Angeles International Airport (LAX),
Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), and San Francisco
International Airport (SFO). In particular, this notice announces the
deadline for carriers to submit schedules for the Northern Summer 2021
scheduling season. The FAA generally strives to maintain consistency in
setting this deadline with the schedule submission deadline established
in the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Calendar of
Coordination Activities. However, in an effort to provide carriers with
additional time to respond to this notice, the FAA is extending the
submission deadline by one week from October 8, 2020 to October 15,
2020. The FAA intends to carry out its schedule review consistent with
all other deadlines established in the IATA Calendar of Coordination
Activities.
General Information for All Airports
The FAA has designated EWR, LAX, ORD, and SFO as IATA Level 2
airports \1\ subject to a schedule review process premised upon
voluntary cooperation. The FAA has designated JFK as an IATA Level 3
airport consistent with the Worldwide Slot Guidelines (WSG).\2\ The FAA
currently limits scheduled operations at JFK by order that expires on
October 29, 2022.\3\ The U.S. Summer 2021 scheduling season is from
March 28, 2021, through October 30, 2021, in recognition of the IATA
summer scheduling period. Notwithstanding that carriers may presently
face uncertainty about their operations in light of coronavirus disease
2019 (COVID-19), carriers should continue preparations for schedule
facilitation at Level 2 airports and Level 3 slot controls at JFK
during the Summer 2021 scheduling season, even if the effects of COVID-
19 on airport demand and operations continue and adjustments become
necessary to respond to changing conditions.\4\ As the industry adapts
to the changes precipitated by the public health emergency, FAA and the
Office of the Secretary will continue to monitor developments closely
and take these changes into consideration. Any possible relief for the
Summer 2021 scheduling season and any possible action to alter the
established rules and policies for slot management and schedule
facilitation in the United States are not within the scope of this
notice.
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\1\ These designations remain effective until the FAA announces
a change in the Federal Register.
\2\ The FAA generally applies the WSG to the extent there is no
conflict with U.S. law or regulation. The FAA is reviewing recent
substantive amendments to the WSG adopted in edition 10. The FAA
recognizes the WSG has been replaced by the Worldwide Airport Slot
Guidelines (WASG) edition 1 effective June 1, 2020. While the FAA is
considering whether to implement certain changes in the United
States, it will continue to apply WSG edition 9.
\3\ Operating Limitations at John F. Kennedy International
Airport, 73 FR 3510 (Jan. 18, 2008), as most recently extended 85 FR
58258 (Sep. 18, 2020). The slot coordination parameters for JFK are
set forth in this Order.
\4\ For additional information on COVID-19 impacts at designated
IATA Level 2 and 3 airports in the United States and actions taken
by the FAA to preserve stability through the Summer 2020 scheduling
season, see Notice of extension of limited waiver of the minimum
slot usage requirement, 85 FR 63335 (Oct. 7, 2020).
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The FAA is primarily concerned about scheduled and other regularly
conducted commercial operations during designated hours, but carriers
may submit schedule plans for the entire day. The designated hours for
the Summer 2021 scheduling season are: At EWR and JFK from 0600 to 2300
Eastern Time (1000 to 0300 UTC), at LAX and SFO from 0600 to 2300
Pacific Time (1300 to 0600 UTC), and at ORD from 0600 to 2100 Central
Time (1100 to 0200 UTC). These hours are unchanged from previous
scheduling seasons.
Carriers should submit schedule information in sufficient detail
including, at minimum, the marketing or operating carrier, flight
number, scheduled time of operation, frequency, aircraft equipment, and
effective dates. IATA standard schedule information format and data
elements for communications at Level 2 and Level 3 airports in the IATA
Standard
[[Page 65135]]
Schedules Information Manual (SSIM) Chapter 6 may be used. The WSG
provides additional information on schedule submissions at Level 2 and
Level 3 airports. Some carriers at JFK manage and track slots through
FAA-assigned Slot ID numbers corresponding to an arrival or departure
slot in a particular half-hour on a particular day of week and date.
The FAA has recently initiated a similar voluntary process for tracking
schedules at EWR with Reference IDs, and certain carriers are managing
their schedules accordingly. These are primarily U.S. and Canadian
carriers that have the highest frequencies and considerable schedule
changes throughout the season and can benefit from a simplified
exchange of information not dependent on full flight details. Carriers
are encouraged to submit schedule requests at those airports using Slot
or Reference IDs.
As stated in the WSG, schedule facilitation at a Level 2 airport is
based on the following: (1) Schedule adjustments are mutually agreed
upon between the airlines and the facilitator; (2) the intent is to
avoid exceeding the airport's coordination parameters; (3) the concepts
of historic precedence and series of slots do not apply at Level 2
airports; although WSG recommends giving priority to approved services
that plan to operate unchanged from the previous equivalent season at
Level 2 airports, and (4) the facilitator should adjust the smallest
number of flights by the least amount of time necessary to avoid
exceeding the airport's coordination parameters. Consistent with the
WSG, the success of Level 2 in the United States depends on the
voluntary cooperation of all carriers.
The FAA considers several factors and priorities as it reviews
schedule and slot requests at Level 2 and Level 3 airports, which are
consistent with the WSG, including--historic slots or services from the
previous equivalent season over new demand for the same timings,
services that are unchanged over services that plan to change time or
other capacity relevant parameters, introduction of year-round
services, effective period of operation, regularly planned operations
over ad hoc operations, and other operational factors that may limit a
carrier's timing flexibility. In addition to applying these priorities
from the WSG, the U.S. Government has adopted a number of measures and
procedures to promote competition and new entry at U.S. slot-controlled
and schedule-facilitated airports.
At Level 2 airports, the FAA seeks to maintain close communications
with carriers and terminal schedule facilitators on potential runway
schedule issues or terminal and gate issues that may affect the runway
times. As explained in prior notices, the FAA also seeks to reduce the
time that carriers consider proposed offers on schedules. To allow the
FAA to make informed decisions at airports where operations in some
hours are at or near the desired scheduling limits, the FAA expects it
will substantially complete the review process on initial submissions
each scheduling season within 30 days of the end of the Slot
Conference. After this time, the agency confirms the acceptance of
proposed offers or informs carriers of available alternative times, as
applicable.
Slot management in the United States differs in some respect from
procedures in other countries. In the United States, the FAA is
responsible for facilitation and coordination of runway access for
takeoffs and landings at Level 2 and Level 3 airports; however, the
airport authority or its designee is responsible for facilitation and
coordination of terminal/gate/airport facility access. The process with
the individual airports for terminal access and other airport services
is separate from, and in addition to, the FAA schedule review based on
runway capacity.
Generally, the FAA uses average hourly runway capacity throughput
for airports and performance metrics in conducting its schedule review
at Level 2 airports and determining the scheduling limits at Level 3
airports included in FAA rules or orders.\5\ The FAA also considers
other factors that can affect operations, such as capacity changes due
to runway, taxiway, or other airport construction, air traffic control
procedural changes, airport surface operations, and historical or
projected flight delays and congestion.
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\5\ The FAA typically determines an airport's average adjusted
runway capacity or typical throughput for Level 2 airports by
reviewing hourly data on the arrival and departure rates that air
traffic control indicates could be accepted for that hour, commonly
known as ``called'' rates. The FAA also reviews the actual number of
arrivals and departures that operated in the same hour. Generally,
the FAA uses the higher of the two numbers, called or actual, for
identifying trends and schedule review purposes. Some dates are
excluded from analysis, such as during periods when extended airport
closures or construction could affect capacity.
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Finally, the FAA notes that the schedule information submitted by
carriers to the FAA may be subject to disclosure under the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA). The WSG also provides for release of
information at certain stages of slot coordination and schedule
facilitation. In general, once it acts on a schedule submission or slot
request, the FAA may release information on slot allocation or similar
slot transactions or schedule information reviewed as part of the
schedule facilitation process. The FAA does not expect that practice to
change and most slot and schedule information would not be exempt from
release under FOIA. The FAA recognizes that some carriers may submit
information on schedule plans that is both customarily and actually
treated as private. Carriers that submit such confidential schedule
information should clearly mark the information, or any relevant
portions thereof, as proprietary information (``PROPIN''). The FAA will
take the necessary steps to protect properly designated information to
the extent allowable by law.
Airport-Specific Updates
EWR General Update
As stated in prior notices, the FAA regularly monitors operations
and performance metrics at EWR to identify ways to improve operational
efficiency and achieve delay reductions in a Level 2 environment.
Access to EWR and the New York City area generally remains coveted.
Requests for flights at EWR have exceeded the desired scheduling limits
in multiple hours. The FAA has regularly indicated that schedule
adjustments are advised for requests for new or retimed operations into
periods when demand is at or above scheduling limits and worked with
carriers to identify alternative times that were available. In some
cases, carriers have been able to swap with other carriers for their
preferred times if the FAA is unable to offer the requested time.
Carriers may continue to seek swaps in order to operate within periods
in which operations are at the scheduling limits. However, swaps should
be reported to the FAA, as carriers are expected to operate consistent
with the runway times on record with the FAA.
For the Summer 2021 season, the desired hourly scheduling limit
remains at 79 operations and 43 operations per half-hour.\6\ Based on
historical demand and an increase in operations in ``shoulder'' periods
adjacent to the busiest hours before the COVID-19 public health
emergency, most hours are now at the desired scheduling limits. To help
with a balance between arrivals and departures, the desired maximum
number of scheduled arrivals or departures, respectively, is 43 in an
hour and 24 in a half-hour. This would allow some higher levels of
operations in certain periods (not to exceed the
[[Page 65136]]
hourly limits) and some recovery from lower demand in adjacent periods.
Consistent with past practice at EWR, the FAA will accept flights above
the limits if the flights were operated, or treated as operated, by the
same carrier on a regular basis in the previous corresponding season
(i.e., Summer 2020).
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\6\ 83 FR 21335 (May 1, 2018).
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Consistent with the WSG, carriers are asked for their voluntary
cooperation to adjust schedules to meet the scheduling limits in order
to minimize potential congestion and delay. New operations will be
offered alternative times unless the period is below the FAA's desired
scheduling limits.\7\ Consistent with this approach, the FAA intends to
offer alternative times in response to any new flights for the Summer
2021 scheduling season if operations are at or above the applicable
scheduling limits. However, the FAA notes that there may be
availability for ad hoc passenger and cargo operations due to temporary
COVID-19-related service changes.
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\7\ See e.g., Notice of Submission Deadline for the Winter 2019/
2020 Scheduling Season, 84 FR 18630 at 18632 (May 1, 2019); Notice
of Submission Deadline for the Summer 2019 Scheduling Season, 83 FR
49155at 49156-49157 (Sep. 28, 2018); Notice of Submission Deadline
for the Winter 2018/2019 Scheduling Season, 83 FR 21335 at 21337-
21338 (May 9, 2018); Notices of Submission Deadline for Newark
Liberty International Airport for the Summer 2020 Scheduling Season,
84 FR 52580 at 52581-52582 (Oct. 2, 2019); Notice of Submission
Deadline for the Winter 2020/2021 Scheduling Season, 85 FR 30001 at
30003 (May 19, 2020).
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EWR Assessment Status
As indicated in the EWR schedule submission notice for the Summer
2020 scheduling season, the FAA is assessing the impacts on performance
of peak period reductions and other schedule changes, such as Southwest
Airlines' cessation of operations at EWR, as well as the impacts on
competition, in close coordination with the Office of the Secretary of
Transportation.\8\ This assessment is ongoing; the FAA intends to
publish additional information on the outcome of this assessment in the
future. The sudden, drastic disruption caused by COVID-19 \9\ affects
the analysis and the relevant long-term effects of operational,
performance, and demand-related changes at EWR. Pending further study,
the FAA does not at this time invite replacing or ``backfilling'' the
peak morning and afternoon/evening operations that Southwest Airlines
conducted during Winter 2018/2019 and Summer 2019, to the extent the
new operations would exceed the current desired scheduling limits.
There may be availability for ad hoc passenger and cargo operations due
to temporary COVID-19-related service changes.
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\8\ See Notice of Submission Deadline for Newark Liberty
International Airport for the Summer 2020 Scheduling Season, 84 FR
at 52582.
\9\ For example, the FAA's Operational Network (OPSNET) data
shows total operations for April to September 2020 were 73.7% lower
than the same period in 2019.
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Construction Updates
The FAA is aware of preliminary plans by the Port Authority of New
York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) to reconstruct Runway 4R/22L at EWR. The
FAA is closely monitoring the scope and timing of this project
currently expected to start in Spring 2021 along with the impacts of
other ongoing terminal and taxiway construction. The FAA plans to work
with the PANYNJ and carriers to assess operational impacts and
potential changes in delays and to develop mitigation strategies, as
appropriate. In addition, construction projects are upcoming or
underway at JFK, LAX, and ORD. For additional information, see https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/ato/service_units/systemops/perf_analysis/sys_cap_eval/.
The construction plans for each of the airports is subject to
change. The airport operators regularly meet with the FAA, airlines,
and other stakeholders to review construction plans, identify
operational or other issues, and develop mitigation strategies.
Carriers interested in additional information on construction plans
should contact the airport operator to obtain further details or
information on stakeholder discussions.
Issued in Washington, DC, on October 8, 2020.
Virginia T. Boyle,
Acting Vice President, System Operations Services.
[FR Doc. 2020-22756 Filed 10-9-20; 11:15 am]
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