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How low do most planes and heli's fly

Mavic626

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Hi, I live in a populated area and whenever I hear a plane or helicopter I think it is a lot closer than it actually is. I checked and saw that the FAA has a min safe altitude rule below. How far from airports in populated areas do planes usually have to get to be above 400 feet? By the coastline I see planes fly much lower are they usually still 400 feet up as well? I know they are not any clear set rules for heli's but are they usually cursing under 400 feet in a neighborhood setting like near parks? It is just hard to tell how high they are. I am usually not over 100 feet with my drone but when I hear anything I bring it down immediately as it is hard to tell how high the bigger crafts are.

Sec. 91.119

Minimum safe altitudes: General.

Except when necessary for takeoff or landing, no person may operate an aircraft below the following altitudes:
(a) Anywhere. An altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface.
(b) Over congested areas. 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.
(c) Over other than congested areas. An altitude of 500 feet above the surface, except over open water or sparsely populated areas. In those cases, the aircraft may not be operated closer than 500 feet to any person, vessel, vehicle, or structure.
(d) Helicopters. Helicopters may be operated at less than the minimums prescribed in paragraph (b) or (c) of this section if the operation is conducted without hazard to persons or property on the surface. In addition, each person operating a helicopter shall comply with any routes or altitudes specifically prescribed for helicopters by the Administrator.
 
I live near a major freeway and we get low-flying helicopters passing by on a daily basis. My guesstimate is they are generally in the 300' - 500' range. This is in a densely populated urban area, roughly 5 miles from John Wayne airport.
 
I don’t have any airports nearby, but I get nervous when I hear planes (small non-commercial) and choppers flying by. [emoji574]️
(As I type, there’s one flying above my house now)
I drop the drone down as low as I can go too [emoji15].
 
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I hear you, even when my spotter says the plane is no where near me and I am wearing my googles I totally freak out when I hear a plane. They sound a lot closer than they actually are. I was curious what the lowest alt most heli pilots are operating at. I think if they were low they would be too noisey for residents.
 
I had the same question in the past, and used Flightradar24.com - Live flight tracker! to determine their height. O

Cheers
Paul
I just got that app, it is soo cool! I do have a question, I only have the free version. On the free version it says "Calibrated altitude" and will show a number, but the gps altitude is locked out unless I pay for it. Is the Calibrated altitude the same as my mavic would show?
 
6ACDF9B9-CB25-4A50-AAE4-7C6B7CD723E1.jpeg To dam low sometimes and not running transponder. Power company was flying crews in about 12 trips a day 75-100 feet right over my place
 
View attachment 31707 To dam low sometimes and not running transponder. Power company was flying crews in about 12 trips a day 75-100 feet right over my place

Yep that's exactly why we have to always keep our head on a swivel and our ears open.

I had the same question in the past, and used Flightradar24.com - Live flight tracker! to determine their height. O

Cheers
Paul


Keep in mind that that only shows aircraft that are "On Radar".... depending on where you live (how large the airport is and how much traffic is around) this may or may not be inclusive of all aircraft.
 
It’s the fighter jets that give the least amount of warning and not on radar. But almost always above 500AGL
 
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Not any lower then the tree tops. I live on a Helo flight path to a hospital a few blocks away and have seen it come in pretty low, 200-300 feet or so.
 
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