3 Maps, 0 Clues

Ziz ONE · Feb 27, 2019

So the title is a bit misleading, I have somewhat of a clue to what i am looking at, but would really appreciate some guidance. I had three phone Apps, with somewhat sinilar yet different displays for my area. I know in general what is where in my area, like the international airport, the airforce base, the secret lab, national parks etc... but what confuses me is the rules applying to each. Hopefully someone could educate me on what each varying degree means on an app they may be familiar with. Or which App people use more reliably. The three Apps are FAA, Airmap and Kittyhawk.

Mossiback · Feb 27, 2019

I don't use your programs but I think you can set some of what you are seeing in the program, which would account for the different displays. No doubt someone will jump in with your answer.

kadras · Feb 27, 2019

Map 3 on the right, with the colored grids is based on the FAA UAS Facility Map. Below is the actual FAA map for the area. The area around Travis is gray on your map, red on the FAA map because the airport isn't part of the LAANC system. All of the green airports on the FAA map are in the LAANC system for getting authorization to fly.

Your map is colored coded to match the UAS ceilings in each grid, from 0 foot ceiling (red) to 400 foot ceiling (green). Here is a zoom showing the actual ceilings for the grids. The shaded red areas, like Travis, and the area on the bay at Concord are national security no fly areas.The link to this FAA UAS Facility Map is ArcGIS Web Application

DanMan32 · Feb 27, 2019

For hobby, the rules are in flux as the new law passed in October has repealed 336 for hobbyists. The new law requires that you get authorization in controlled airspace rather than notify airports within 5 miles. The problem is that FAA hasn't yet determined how a hobbyist is to get authorization. LAANC was set up for 107 and not available (yet) for hobbyists, nor do all airports subscribe to LAANC. I would think FAA would have to open up LAANC to hobbyists, and airports or a designated proxy (region ATC for example) be required to participate with LAANC.

Airmap used to have the 5 mile circles, but they removed them to adhere to the new law. They acknowledge there's no provision yet for hobbyists to get authorization.

kadras · Feb 27, 2019

The middle map shows the airspace. At the scale shown details are left out. The orange circles are airports, the green ones are heliports. The light blue line around SFO is the San Francisco Class B airspace, the pink circle around Oakland is the Oakland Class C airspace. The thinner blue lines are Class D airspace around airports. The red shaded areas are advisory areas meaning there are conditions for flying there, but not necessarily FAA rules (like parks). The blue shaded areas, like around Travis and Concord, are FAA Special Use Airspace. So what does all that mean? Reading the rules, and deciding whether you're flying recreational/hobby or Part 107, to determine how you can fly within those areas. Zooming in should help clarify the boundaries.

The first map is a simplification of the other two, showing the symbols for airports and heliports and some of the airspace. Again, zooming in will show more detail of the airspace boundaries and clicking on the symbols will provide the details for the particular facility.

As the previous post points out, this is all starting to change now that the FAA seems to be slowly phasing in the new rules that replace the old 336 rules.