On the 7th day of Christmas, my lawyer gave to me… 7 classes of airspace. Do you remember all of them, from Alpha to Golf, with all of their properties ? If not, let’s have brief review:

• A: All operations must be conducted under Instrument Flight Rules or Special visual flight rules (SVFR) and are subject to ATC clearance. All flights are separated from each other by ATC.
• B: Operations may be conducted under IFR, SVFR, or VFR. All aircraft are subject to ATC clearance. All flights are separated from each other by ATC.
• C: Operations may be conducted under IFR, SVFR, or VFR. All flights are subject to ATC clearance. Aircraft operating under IFR and SVFR are separated from each other and from flights operating under VFR. Flights operating under VFR are given traffic information in respect of other VFR flights.
• D: Operations may be conducted under IFR, SVFR, or VFR. All flights are subject to ATC clearance. Aircraft operating under IFR and SVFR are separated from each other, and are given traffic information in respect of VFR flights. Flights operating under VFR are given traffic information in respect of all other flights.
• E: Operations may be conducted under IFR, SVFR, or VFR. Aircraft operating under IFR and SVFR are separated from each other, and are subject to ATC clearance. Flights under VFR are not subject to ATC clearance. As far as is practical, traffic information is given to all flights in respect of VFR flights.
• F: Operations may be conducted under IFR or VFR. ATC separation will be provided, so far as practical, to aircraft operating under IFR. Traffic Information may be given as far as is practical in respect of other flights.
• G: Operations may be conducted under IFR or VFR. ATC separation is not provided. Traffic Information may be given as far as is practical in respect of other flights.

Some classes may sound new to you, like class F if you fly in the USA, A & B in Switzerland, and so on. Each country make its own use of some of the classes, so before starting operations in a new place, make sure you know all about the airspace classes in use. And don’t forget, it’s not only about separation, but also about minimal visibility and distance to clouds when flying VFR…

Read other Advent Calendar Posts – but no cheating !

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