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Ah, so the actual issue is that the approach path is inexplicably not controlled airspace? That seems like a different version of bad :-/

• buildsjets 2y ago
  The Class C airspace is sized to contain the approach paths, including a buffer above and to the sides, as controlled airspace. But underneath the approach path and Class C airspace is generally uncontrolled airspace, untill you are very close, within a few miles, of the airport. (Technically it is called Class E or Class G airpspace depending on the area and altitude) Think of the controlled airspace as shaped like an upside-down wedding cake. Oh look, the FAA has a graphic for that: https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/atpubs/aim_html/chap3_section_2.html https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/publications/atpubs/aim_html...
  • ryandrake 2y ago
    Also, don’t forget that Class E airspace is controlled airspace, as IFR aircraft must operate with an ATC clearance. Airliners operate in Class E all the time. 1. ATC must vector them around VFR aircraft, and 2. VFR aircraft must see and avoid.
    • buildsjets 2y ago
      Yes, I intentionally did not include that fact, as it it is confusing for a layperson, than an airspace is called "controlled" even though it is only controlled for participating IFR aircraft. For the understanding of a layperson, Class E and G airspace do not require radio communication, radar contact, or permission to enter for little Cessna drivers in nice weather. Heck, you do not even need to have a radio installed, or even an electrical system, if you do not want one. Respectfully, you are incorrect, and if you are a pilot, this is a dangerous misunderstanding. ATC does NOT provide radar separation services between VFR and IFR aircraft in Class E airspace. Reference the AIM, section 3-2-6-(f). Only separation between IFR aircraft is provided, and you may or may not get advisories and vectors for VFR traffic. How could it be otherwise, technically? The VFR aircraft may not even be equipped with a transponder, one is not required if you are more than 30 miles away from one of the 30 major Class-B airports in the country, and it might be made of bamboo and cloth with negligible radar cross section, so ATC may not even be aware of it's existence. Separation between IFR and VFR aircraft in Class E airspace requires see-and-avoid by both the IFR aircraft and the VFR aircraft, and it is the responsibility of both pilots in command to ensure this happens. That's why we have the visibility and speed limitations that we have in Class E airspace, to provide enough time and distance for see-and-avoid to occur. But it requires at least one person in each flight deck to have their eyes out the window, not face down looking at the fishfinder. There has grown a culture of complacency at the major airlines when it comes to integrating with parts of national airspace system that are outside of being directed by a controller - witness the recent Southwest debacle where they took off from a closed runway with personnel working because they did not understand, did not know, or ignored the standard dispatch procedures for operating before a control tower opens.
      • ryandrake 2y ago
        You are absolutely right about separation between VFR and IFR aircraft. I stand corrected.