Alaskan Region Airports Division - Construction On Or Near Airports
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Notification for New Airport or Runway Construction
(14 Part 157)

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Purpose of Filing a Notice

Federal Regulation 49 CFR Part 157 establishes standards and notification requirements for anyone proposing to construct, alter, or deactivate a civil or joint-use (civil/military) airport. This regulation also addresses proposal to alter the status or use of such an airport.

This notification serves as the basis for evaluating the effects of the proposed action on the safe and efficient use of airspace by aircraft and the safety of persons and property on the ground. These effects include but are not limited to:

  • Evaluating the effects the proposed action would have on existing or proposed traffic patterns of neighboring airports,
  • The effect the proposed action would have on the existing airspace structure and projected programs of the FAA
  • the effects that existing or proposed objects (on file with the FAA) within the affected area would have on the airport proposal

Notification allows the FAA to identify potential aeronautical hazards in advance thus preventing or minimizing the adverse impacts to the safe and efficient use of navigable airspace.

Who Must File?

§ 157.3 - Each person who intends to accomplish any of the following actions must notify the FAA.

  • Construct or otherwise establish a new airport or activate an airport
  • Construct, realign, alter, or activate any runway or other aircraft landing or takeoff area of an airport
  • Deactivate, discontinue using, or abandon an airport or any landing or takeoff area of an airport for a period of one year or more.
  • Construct, realign, alter, activate, deactivate or discontinue using a taxiway associated with a landing or takeoff area on a public-use airport
  • Change the status of an airport from private use or from public use to another status
  • Change any traffic pattern or traffic pattern altitude or direction
  • Change status from Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) to Visual Flight Rules (VFR) or vice versa

Form of Notification

§ 157.5 - Notice must be submitted on FAA Form 7480-1 (PDF) . In completing this form, please pay particular attention to the following:

  • Describe the proposed landing area by geodetic coordinates (NAD 83) as well as length and width;
  • List visual flight rule (VFR) airports with 20 nautical miles;
  • For heliports, list all VFR airports and heliports within 3 nautical miles and all IFR airports within 10 nautical miles:
  • List all obstructions within 3 nautical miles of a VFR airport or a seaplane base, within 5 nautical miles of an IFR airport; or within 5,000 feet of a heliport;
  • List schools, churches and residential communities within a 2 nautical mile radius for airports and within one nautical mile for heliports;
  • List all waste disposal sites within a 5 nautical mile radius of the proposed landin g area.

Information Required for Airport Submittals

In addition to the standard form 7480-1, submittals affecting an airport must include the following:

  1. Landing Area Sketch (MS Word) : Provide a detailed drawing of the proposed landing area depicting latitude, longitude, length and width, and ALL obstructions (examples of obstructions are: buildings, high line wires, roads, railroads, towers, etc.) within the vicinity of the runway and its approaches as depicted above. Also, you should identify the section, township, and range your landing area is to be located in on the enclosed Landing Area Sketch.
  2. 7.5 minute USGS Quadrangle Map : Provide a photo copied portion of the quadrangle map, detailing the exact location of the subject landing area coordinates by latitude and longitude. Plot locations of the facility to the nearest second, runway alignments, associated taxiways or seaplane alignments. Also plot on the quadrangle map, any obstructions within: 3 nautical miles of a Visual Flight Rule (VFR) airport or a seaplane base; 5 nautical miles of an Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) airport; or 5,000 feet of a heliport. Please be sure to clearly identify which Quadrangle map is being used.

    To obtain a USGS Quadrangle map, proponents may consult the "Published Products" page of the USGS website for the nearest commercial dealer.

Information Required for Heliport Submittals

In addition to the standard form 7480-1, submittals affecting a heliport must include the following:

  1. City Map: Provide a city map identifying the exact location of the heliport in red.
  2. Heliport Layout Plan: Provide a heliport layout plan, or in the case of a hospital heliport, a hospital layout plan, depicting the landing pad in relation to buildings and other obstacles/structures in the vicinity of the landing area. Be sure to describe the size of the landing pad and the height of each structure and their distance from the landing pad.
  3. Landing Area Sketch or U.S. Quadrangle Map as described above for airport submittals

Notification: Timing and Submittal

Pursuant to § 157.5, notification shall be submitted 90 days prior to construction or implementation of modification. Notification for proposals within FAA Alaskan Region (Alaska) should be sent to the following address:

FAA Airports Division
Attn: Gayle Wagner
222 W. 7th Ave. #14
Anchorage, AK 99513

For improvements at airports located outside of the FAA Alaskan Region, we request that you please contact the FAA Regional Office responsible for your airport.

Resources

Advisory Circulars

Forms

Policy

  • 14 CFR Part 157 - Notice of Construction, Alteration, Activation and Deactivation of Airports.

Updated: 12:18 pm ET April 3, 2007