Charts and Airspace

• Longitude and latitude
• Airspace
  • Class A - Altitude
  • Class B - Big
  • Class C - Crowed
  • Class D - Dialogue
  • Class E - Elsewhere
  • Class G - Go for it
  • Special Use Airspace
    • Prohibited Areas
    • Restricted Areas
    • Warning Areas
    • Military Operation Areas (MOAs)
    • Alert Areas
    • Controlled Firing Areas (CFAs)
    • Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFR)

Longitude and latitude

• Longitude: east and west of the prime meridian
• Latitude: north and south of equator

Airspace

Class A - Altitude

• All airspace above 18,000 MSL
• Must be equipped and rated for instrument flying (“IFR”)
• Set altimeter to 29.92 in Hg

Class B - Big

• Surrounds busiest airports
• Must have clearance to enter Bravo airspace
• Must have private pilot licence or a student pilot license with logbook endorsement
• Aircraft needs Mode C transponder within 30 nautical miles (“Mode C veil”)

Class C - Crowed

• Surrounds big airports with some commercial service
• Must establish 2-way radio communication before entering
• Operable Mode C transponder (4095) and encoding altitude
• Usually 10 nautial mile radius

Class D - Dialogue

• Surrounds airport with control towers
• Must establish 2-way radio communication before entering
• Usually 4 nautical mile radius

Class E - Elsewhere

• Other controlled airspace
• No need to communicate or obtain permission

Class G - Go for it

• Uncontrolled airspace

Special Use Airspace

Prohibited Areas

• Flight of aircraft is prohibited.
• Charted as a “P” followed by a number (e.g., P-40).

Restricted Areas

• If the hazardous activities are not active, ATC may allow aircraft in
• Restricted areas are charted with an “R” followed by a number (e.g., R-4401)

Warning Areas

• Airspace extending from 3 NM outward from the coast of the United States
• May be located over domestic or international waters or both.
• The airspace is designated with a “W” followed by a number

Military Operation Areas (MOAs)

• A VFR pilot can fly through an active MOA without talking to anyone but not recommended
• Nonparticipating IFR traffic may be cleared through a MOA if IFR separation can be provided by ATC

Alert Areas

• Areas that may contain a high volume of pilot training or an unusual type of aerial activity.
• Depicted on aeronautical charts with an “A” followed by a number

Controlled Firing Areas (CFAs)

• CFAs contain activities that, if not conducted in a controlled environment, could be hazardous to nonparticipating aircraft.
• Not charted because all activity stops when the user spots an aircraft.

Temporary Flight Restrictions (TFR)

• Protecting public figures like the POTUS