[XWARN] FW: [Swodxa] New FAA regulations requires marking towers under 200 feet

Sat Jul 27 11:35:22 CDT 2019

Just a “heads-up” of what is probably coming to FCC Rules.

73, Fred W8LLY

From: SWODXA [mailto:swodxa-bounces at swodxa.org] On Behalf Of Peter Meyer via
SWODXA
Sent: Saturday, July 27, 2019 12:16 PM
To: swodxa at swodxa.org
Subject: [Swodxa] New FAA regulations requires marking towers under 200 feet

All -

I read this in one of my several aviation magazines.  It seems that the FAA
has revised its regulations and now requires ANYONE with a tower taller than
50 feet and not connected to your house, garage or within your immediate
yard must either paint it, install a beacon, and/or register it with the
FAA.

This ostensibly would include anyone with a tower located in, or proximate
to a field.

Since this seems to be one that slipped by the ARRL, you may want to contact
your representative to have them explain and understand how this one slipped
past the goalie.

73/DX - Pete N0FW

New FAA regulations require towers under 200′ to be marked

JULY 8, 2019 BY  <https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%
3A%2F%2Fgeneralaviationnews.com%2Fauthor%2Fganstaff%2F&data=02%7C01%7C%7C3b8
f9d2f799f4becd44708d7058183cb%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C6
36983926122890495&sdata=21ipqj%2FMXTIc6TcOLdMW%2BPqK7hlJ6f4ewPl9shbTx20%3D&r
eserved=0> GENERAL AVIATION NEWS STAFF  <https://nam04.safelinks.protection.
outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fgeneralaviationnews.com%2F2019%2F07%2F08%2Fne
w-faa-regulations-require-towers-under-200-to-be-marked%2F%23comments&data=0
2%7C01%7C%7C3b8f9d2f799f4becd44708d7058183cb%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaa
aaa%7C1%7C0%7C636983926122900506&sdata=xSItViBpczvGNeyq4ycO4rSs6P00jTTA1t1WR
iXHXIk%3D&reserved=0> 5 COMMENTS

New
<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.faa.go
v%2F&data=02%7C01%7C%7C3b8f9d2f799f4becd44708d7058183cb%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb4
35aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636983926122910511&sdata=yA%2BbHM0%2FZ9pq%2FqswPoOK
jS39k5LYWaBLfeZ1MWdF5uM%3D&reserved=0> FAA regulations require landowners to
mark any towers between 50′ and 200′ on their property, as well as include
the towers in a new database the FAA is developing.

Previously, towers under 200′ were not subject to any federal marking
requirements, according to officials with the
<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fagaviation
.org%2F&data=02%7C01%7C%7C3b8f9d2f799f4becd44708d7058183cb%7C84df9e7fe9f640a
fb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636983926122920522&sdata=myUAjBLRrKo02e%2BGAwRU%
2BO2mfQDr6NdNjdiKxKWnu8E%3D&reserved=0> National Agricultural Aviation
Association.

The new requirements are due to provisions in the FAA Extension, Safety and
Security Act of 2016 and the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018.

Under the provisions in these laws, meteorological evaluation towers (METs)
meeting the requirements stipulated in the bills must be both marked and
logged in to the FAA database. Communication towers of the same size have
the option to be either be marked or logged in the FAA database.

The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 requires this database to be functional
by October 2019. The FAA is also finalizing the marking requirements for
these towers, but they are expected to be similar to the standards found in
<https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.faa.g
ov%2Fregulations_policies%2Fadvisory_circulars%2Findex.cfm%2Fgo%2Fdocument.c
urrent%2FdocumentNumber%2F70_7460-1&data=02%7C01%7C%7C3b8f9d2f799f4becd44708
d7058183cb%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C636983926122930527&s
data=a1GJsuhxO3InD%2FG19p4wxxz1aHXyyXh17JANYZULnqk%3D&reserved=0> FAA
Advisory Circular 70/7460-1L.

Officials with the National Agricultural Aviation Association encourage
landowners to preemptively mark their towers and voluntarily log towers on
their property into the
<https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/flight_info/aeronav/digital_products/dof/>
FAA’s Daily Digital Obstacle File (Daily DOF). The Daily DOF is an obstacle
database that contains mostly obstructions above 200′, with obstructions
below 200′ submitted on a voluntary basis. The Daily DOF gives an
obstruction’s location, height, and type of marking (if any). Information
on the tower’s owner or property owner is not asked for or publicly given.

Association officials note that since 2008 there have been 22 tower-related
agricultural aircraft accidents resulting in nine fatalities. The number of
accidents and fatalities is even higher when other low-level operations,
such as EMS-Medevac operations, are included.

An NAAA analysis of accidents from 2008 to 2018 across all sectors of
general aviation found there were 40 tower-related accidents and incidents
resulting in 36 fatalities. The data also shows many of those general
aviation aviators did not collide with the main body of the obstruction
itself, but the extremely difficult to see guy wires supporting the
structure, illustrating the importance of installing high-visibility guy
wire sleeves or spherical ball markers, officials said.

<https://3ukr694671p02fhcme3a1bsaiek-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uplo
ads/2019/07/MeterologicalTowers-1200x766.jpg> Unmarked meteorological
evaluation towers must now be marked under new federal requirements. The
arrow points out the almost invisible guy wires that pose such a risk to
general aviation pilots.

North Dakota farmer and aerial applicator Brian Rau has a 96′ RTK tower on
his property. Short for “real time kinematic,” RTK towers supplement the
GPS systems of automated ground-based farm equipment.

As an aerial applicator, Rau knows the importance of having such towers both
marked and logged into appropriate FAA databases, regardless of legal
requirements. He added florescent ball markers within the structure’s
skeleton soon after it was converted from a communications tower to an RTK
tower. This year Rau took the additional step of providing the coordinates
of his tower to the FAA’s Obstacle Data Team for inclusion in the Daily
DOF.

“Seeing the growth of communication towers in North Dakota and across the
county, I knew it was important to both mark and properly log the tower,”
Rau said. “Submitting the tower to be included in the FAA’s Daily Digital
Obstacle File only took minutes and was well worth a few moments of my
time.”

>From a safety perspective, being transparent about the existence of
low-level obstacles is vital to agricultural pilots and other aircraft
flying in the airspace between zero and 400′, such as police and first
responder aircraft, aerial firefighters and pipeline patrol pilots, NAAA
officials said.

The FAA’s Digital Obstacle File (DOF) provides information about potential
obstacles in pilots’ flight path before they take off. Once pilots download
the FAA’s Digital Obstacle File or Daily DOF, they can import it into
Geographic Information Systems applications, such as agricultural aviation
applications.

FAA Advisory Circular 70/7460-1L on obstruction marking and lighting details
the ways different types of obstructions may be marked. The document
provides specifications on lighting systems, colors and light intensities.
As an alternative to lighting, the document also explains tools for the
“unlighted marking” of obstructions. This includes paint colors and
patterns, as well as specifications for guy wire sleeves and high-visibility
spherical markers.

Rau chose the latter option for marking his RTK tower.

“The ball markers seemed the easiest for an existing galvanized tower, and
they really improved the visibility of the tower,” he said.

“Aerial applicators have been at the forefront of ensuring a safe airspace
for low-flying pilots for years,” said NAAA Executive Director Andrew
Moore. “We encourage farmers, landowners and tower companies to familiarize
themselves with the dangers of unmarked, low-level towers. Towers in and
around productive farmland may prevent a crop from being treated by air if
it is too difficult or unsafe for an ag pilot to treat. As such, due
consideration must be given to locating any type of tower on ag land. If a
tower’s construction is imminent or already exists, it is highly encouraged
that preemptive compliance with the forthcoming FAA regulations required by
Congress occur.”

In addition to the human cost, a precedent has been established increasing
the likelihood that landowners and tower manufacturers could be held
financially liable for tower-related accidents, officials said.

In 2014, a  <https://www.agaviation.org/steveallensettlement> milestone
court settlement was reached when a group of defendants representing tower
manufacturing, wind energy, land-owning and farming interests agreed to pay
$6.7 million to the family of agricultural aviator Steve Allen to settle a
wrongful death action brought against the tower entities for failing to mark
a 197′ meteorological evaluation tower or make Allen aware of its location
prior to his fatal collision with the tower in 2011. From eyewitness
accounts, it was clear Allen never saw the unmarked tower before he struck
it.

Landowners and farmers can submit an obstruction to the FAA’s Daily Digital
Obstacle File by emailing the tower’s height and coordinates to
<mailto:9-AJV-532-OBSTData-REQ at faa.gov> 9-AJV-532-OBSTData-REQ at faa.gov.

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