Law

Remember the Cessna 182 that blundered into the prohibited airspace around Washington DC recently -- the one that meandered within four miles of the White House -- he didn't mean any harm, right? Well I've got a hot flash for you...

Our national airspace system sure isn't getting any less complicated, but any long-awaited rescue through increasingly available and ostensibly more accurate means of navigation seems instead to have come at the expense of positional awareness: i.e., we're losing it!

Last time, we looked at prohibited and restricted airspace. This time we're going to discuss the other four types in detail (plus an additional thing or two). As you may recall, these remaining types comprise what is known as non-regulatory Special Use Airspace, or SUA.

Wouldn't it be nice to have the privileges of an instrument pilot but retain the VFR freedoms of choosing your own path in the clear blue? Well, for those of you who have earned an instrument ticket, there are a few strategies at our disposal that might be worth reviewing. There's nothing underhanded about them either; these options aren't ploys or smooth moves. They're well defined ATC procedures. The only "trick" is knowing the few strings that are attached. Here's how to use the system without abusing it...