How high do you have to fly above obstacles?


How high do you have to fly above obstacles? Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons, an altitude of 1,000 feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of 2,000 feet of the aircraft.


What is the lowest legal flying altitude?

(c) Over other than congested areas – An altitude of 500 feet above the surface except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In that case, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure.


When can you fly below 500ft?

The Federal Aviation Regulation (FAR) Part 91.119 indicates that, except when necessary for departure or landing, the minimum altitude over urban areas is 1,000 feet above ground level (AGL) and 500 feet AGL over rural areas.


What is the minimum obstacle clearance altitude?

MINIMUM OBSTRUCTION CLEARANCE ALTITUDE (MOCA)- The lowest published altitude in effect between radio fixes on VOR airways, off-airway routes, or route segments which meets obstacle clearance requirements for the entire route segment and which assures acceptable navigational signal coverage only within 25 statute (22 ...


What is the standard obstacle clearance?

The required obstacle clearance is 1000 feet in non-mountainous terrain and 2000 feet in designated mountainous areas. The extra clearance over mountains is because of the Bernoulli effect as air flows over the mountains.


Can you fly below sea level?

Flying below sea level is obviously a pretty rare occurrence for a plane in good working order, so it's perhaps unsurprising that the navigation systems stopped working. The lowest airfield in North America, for the record, is Furnace Creek Airport, Death Valley at minus 210 feet below sea level.


Can you fly VFR at 3000 feet?

The VFR Cruising Altitude rule does not apply below 3,000 feet AGL. There are some altitudes, however, that pilots seem to choose for level flight. Close to sea level they are 1000, 1500, 2000 and 2500. They are easy to read and remember on an altimeter.


How do I report aircraft flying too low?

Do your part, report such flying to the FAA. For more information, you can write to the Federal Aviation Administration, General Aviation and Commercial Division, Operations Branch, AFS-820, 800 Independence Ave., SW, Washington DC 20591. The telephone number is 202-267-8212.


Why do planes fly so low over my house?

Aircraft must fly over residential areas because of the small distances between some airports and neighborhoods. Therefore, it is sometimes necessary for aircraft to fly over these residential areas in order for aircraft to safely reach the airports.