Establishment of Restricted Area R-2502A; Fort Irwin, CA

This action establishes a restricted area (R-2502A) at Fort Irwin, CA, as part of a Department of the Army initiative at the National Training Center (NTC). The NTC is being expanded to meet the critical need of the Army for additional training land and airspace suitable for maneuvering large numbers of military personnel and equipment. Additionally, the Silver military operation area (MOA) in the vicinity of the NTC Complex has been modified as part of this initiative. Unlike restricted areas, which are designated under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 73, MOAs are not rulemaking airspace actions. However, since the R-2502A will infringe on the Silver MOA, the FAA is including a description of the Silver MOA change in this rule. The MOA change described here was published in the National Flight Data Digest (NFDD). The Army requested these airspace changes to provide the additional special use airspace (SUA) above the expanded ground maneuver area to facilitate realistic combat training at the NTC.