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Commercial pilot · ACS CA.I.E · lesson pack

National Airspace System (Commercial)

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Why this one matters

Airspace violations are a common way for a commercial pilot to lose time, income and sometimes a certificate, and they also put airplanes into conflict. A commercial pilot knows the airspace along every route, checks TFRs every time, and treats special VFR as a tool with limits, not a way around the weather.

1 · Know these cold

  • •VFR minimums (91.155(a)): Class B, 3 SM and clear of clouds. Class C, D and E below 10,000 MSL: 3 SM, 500 below, 1,000 above, 2,000 horizontal. Class E at or above 10,000 MSL: 5 SM, 1,000 below, 1,000 above, 1 SM horizontal. Class A: no VFR.(14 CFR 91.155(a))
  • •Class G: at or below 1,200 AGL, day 1 SM clear of clouds, night 3 SM and 500/1,000/2,000. Above 1,200 AGL and below 10,000 MSL, day 1 SM and night 3 SM, both 500/1,000/2,000. Above 1,200 AGL and at or above 10,000 MSL: 5 SM, 1,000/1,000/1 SM.(14 CFR 91.155(a))
  • •Entry: Class B needs an explicit clearance ("cleared into the Class Bravo"). Class C and D need two-way communication, which exists once the controller answers using your call sign.(14 CFR 91.129-91.131; AIM 3-2-3 to 3-2-5)
  • •Equipment: two-way radio for B, C and D; Mode C and ADS-B Out in A, B and C, within the 30 nm Mode C veil (surface to 10,000 MSL), above the lateral limits of B and C, and in Class E at and above 10,000 MSL except at or below 2,500 AGL.(14 CFR 91.215, 91.225)
  • •Special VFR: requested by the pilot, cleared by ATC, below 10,000 MSL, inside a B, C, D or E surface area, clear of clouds with 1 SM flight visibility (1 SM ground visibility to take off or land). At night the pilot must be instrument rated and current and the airplane equipped for IFR. Not for airplanes at the airports in Part 91 Appendix D, Section 3.(14 CFR 91.157)
  • •Check TFRs and NOTAMs before every flight. Flying into a TFR can bring certificate action and interception.(14 CFR 91.137-91.145; 14 CFR 99.7)
  • •Within 60 nm of the DCA VOR/DME, VFR pilots need the special awareness training; flying inside the DC SFRA also takes its Part 93 procedures.(14 CFR 91.161; 14 CFR Part 93, Subpart V)

2 · The lesson

Classes, dimensions and requirements
  • Class A: 18,000 MSL to FL600. IFR only, with Mode C and ADS-B Out.(AIM, Chapter 3 (airspace); 14 CFR 91.135)
  • Class B: from the surface to usually 10,000 MSL, in tailored layers around the busiest airports. ATC clearance to enter; two-way radio; Mode C and ADS-B Out.(AIM, Chapter 3 (airspace); 14 CFR 91.131)
  • Class B pilots: at least a private certificate, or a student, sport or recreational pilot with the training and endorsements of 61.94, 61.95, 61.101 or 61.325. At the airports in Part 91 Appendix D, Section 4, you need at least a private certificate to take off or land.(14 CFR 91.131(b); Part 91 Appendix D, Section 4)
  • Class C: a 5 nm surface area up to 4,000 feet above the airport, and a 10 nm shelf from 1,200 to 4,000 feet above it (with a 20 nm outer area where approach control offers service). Two-way communication before entering; Mode C and ADS-B Out within and above it to 10,000 MSL.(AIM, Chapter 3 (airspace); 14 CFR 91.130)
  • Class D: from the surface to usually 2,500 feet above the airport, shaped to its procedures. Two-way communication with the tower before entering. When the tower closes, it becomes Class E or G.(AIM, Chapter 3 (airspace); 14 CFR 91.129)
  • Communication is established when the controller answers with your call sign, even if only to say "standby". "Aircraft calling, standby" is not.(AIM 3-2-4, 3-2-5)
  • Class E: controlled airspace with no VFR communication requirement. Its floor is the surface (surface areas and extensions), 700 AGL, 1,200 AGL (including Victor airways, 4 nm each side), or 14,500 MSL elsewhere, up to but not including 18,000 MSL; it is also above FL600.(AIM, Chapter 3 (airspace))
  • Class G: whatever isn’t A, B, C, D or E; usually from the surface to 700 or 1,200 AGL.(AIM, Chapter 3 (airspace))
  • The full VFR weather table, by class and altitude, is in 91.155(a). Two exceptions: in Class G at night, inside a traffic pattern within ½ mile of the runway, 1 SM and clear of clouds; and in a surface area, no VFR below a ceiling under 1,000 feet, and 3 SM ground visibility to take off, land or enter the pattern, unless under special VFR.(14 CFR 91.155(b)-(d))
  • Speed limits: 250 knots below 10,000 MSL; 200 knots at or below 2,500 AGL within 4 nm of a Class C or D primary airport, and under a Class B shelf or in a VFR corridor through it.(14 CFR 91.117)
Chart symbols
  • Solid blue: Class B. Solid magenta: Class C. Dashed blue: Class D. Dashed magenta: Class E to the surface. Faded magenta: Class E from 700 AGL; faded blue: Class E from 1,200 AGL. Numbers like 100/40 give the ceiling and floor in hundreds of feet MSL.(Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA-H-8083-25C), Airspace)
  • Check the sectional legend and the Chart Supplement for airport details, part-time airspace, hours and frequencies.(Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA-H-8083-25C), Airspace)
Special use and other airspace
  • Prohibited area: no flight without the using agency’s permission. Restricted area: no entry when active without the controlling agency’s authorization (ATC routes IFR traffic around or through). Warning area: hazardous activity over international waters beyond 3 nm. MOA: VFR may enter, with caution; ask the controlling agency. Alert area: heavy training traffic; be extra vigilant. Controlled firing area: not charted, activity stops when an aircraft approaches. National security area: avoid voluntarily; it can be temporarily prohibited by NOTAM.(AIM 3-4-1 to 3-4-8; 14 CFR 91.133)
  • Other airspace areas: military training routes (IR and VR; four-digit numbers at or below 1,500 AGL, three-digit above); terminal radar service areas (TRSA, participation voluntary); ADIZs (flight plan, transponder, two-way radio, position reports); parachute jump areas; and Class E surface areas and extensions.(AIM 3-5-1 to 3-5-7)
  • TFRs come and go (VIP movement, fires, disasters, airshows). One is standing: within 3 nm and 3,000 AGL of qualifying stadium events, from 1 hour before to 1 hour after. Check NOTAMs for every flight.(14 CFR 91.137-91.145; 14 CFR 99.7)
  • Washington, DC: the special awareness training is required for VFR within 60 nm of the DCA VOR/DME, not just inside the SFRA; the SFRA adds Part 93 procedures (a flight plan or filing, an assigned transponder code, communications).(14 CFR 91.161; 14 CFR Part 93, Subpart V)
Special VFR
  • Special VFR lets you operate in the surface area of controlled airspace below basic VFR minimums. Every condition: you request it (ATC won’t offer it); an ATC clearance; below 10,000 MSL; within the lateral boundaries of a B, C, D or E surface area; clear of clouds; at least 1 SM flight visibility; to take off or land, 1 SM ground visibility (or flight visibility if none is reported).(14 CFR 91.157(a)-(c); AIM 4-4-6)
  • Night (sunset to sunrise): the pilot must be instrument rated and instrument current, and the airplane equipped for IFR under 91.205(d).(14 CFR 91.157(b)(4); 91.205(d))
  • Fixed-wing special VFR is not allowed at the airports listed in Part 91 Appendix D, Section 3; that list controls, not the airspace class.(14 CFR 91.157; Part 91 Appendix D, Section 3)
  • The clearance covers only the surface area: outside its boundary, basic VFR minimums apply again.(AIM 4-4-6)

Want it all on one page, with scenarios? Read the full lesson.

3 · Say it out loud

Answer each one out loud, then check yourself and mark how it went.

  1. Remember Recall it

    “What are the VFR minimums in Class C, D and E below 10,000 MSL?”

  2. Understand Explain why

    “Why does night special VFR need an instrument-rated, current pilot?”

  3. Apply Use it on a flight

    “Your destination, a Class D airport, reports 800 overcast and 2 miles visibility in mist, in the afternoon. A passenger is waiting. What are your options?”

4 · Common mistakes

  • Knowing only the Class E numbers.

    Class B, G and the high-altitude rows are different.

    Instead: Learn the 91.155 table by class and altitude.

  • Skipping the TFR check on a familiar route.

    TFRs pop up with little notice.

    Instead: Check NOTAMs for every flight.

  • Treating special VFR as easy.

    Clear of clouds with 1 mile is little margin.

    Instead: Use it with your own, higher minimums.

5 · Quick check

Answer, then reveal. Flag anything you want to see again.

  1. 1. Class D entry requirement?

  2. 2. Class B VFR minimums?

  3. 3. Class E VFR minimums at or above 10,000 MSL?

  4. 4. Maximum speed below a Class B shelf?

  5. 5. What does a faded magenta band show?

  6. 6. Special VFR visibility?

  7. Scenario7. A customer wants a scenic flight right over a stadium during a game. What do you check?

Trained it? Now prove it: practice national airspace system (commercial) out loud with our examiner.

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Connect it

One situation that runs across this lesson and its neighbors in the same ACS area. Decide first, then check.

Connect it · Preflight Preparation

A week after your checkride, a friend's company offers to pay you to fly three employees to a meeting in a rented 172. They want to leave at 6 a.m.; you have a full workday before.

Can you take the job, and what else matters? Decide, then see the worked answer

It turns on who provides the airplane and who has operational control. If you rent the 172 and provide the company pilot plus airplane, that's carrying persons for compensation, and offering it (holding out, under AC 120-12A) makes it common carriage. That needs an operator certificate under Part 119, with the flight run as an on-demand Part 135 operation, so decline. The lawful version is the company renting or leasing the airplane in its own name, holding operational control, and paying you only to fly it. That's a Part 91 flight, and your commercial certificate lets you be paid as its pilot (the FAA's Green (1993) and Ferris (1990) interpretations draw this line). None of the 119.1(e) exceptions, such as student instruction, nonstop commercial air tours under 91.147, ferry or training flights, or aerial work like banner towing, covers flying a company's employees to a meeting. 91.409(b) requires a 100-hour inspection for an aircraft carrying any person, other than a crewmember, for hire, or used for flight instruction for hire in an airplane the instructor provides. Company employees flown on the company's own business, without being charged, aren't passengers for hire in that sense, so it doesn't automatically apply to the Part 91 version; check the airplane's inspections either way. Then check yourself: a second-class medical for commercial privileges, a current flight review, and three takeoffs and landings in the last 90 days to carry passengers. Without an instrument rating, 61.133(b)(1) bars carrying passengers for hire on cross-countries over 50 NM or at night. Part 91 has no duty or rest limits, so fatigue is yours to manage: run IMSAFE honestly, and a 6 a.m. report after a full workday needs a real sleep opportunity first. If you won't get one, decline or move the departure. Pressure to please a client makes the call harder, not different.

14 CFR 61.23, 61.56, 61.57, 61.133, 91.409(b), 119.1; AC 120-12A; Risk Management Handbook (FAA-H-8083-2A)

Brings together: Pilot Qualifications · Airworthiness Requirements · Human Factors

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Study aid, not FAA guidance. Sources: Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA-H-8083-25C); Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM); 14 CFR; Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B). Checked against current sources 2026-11-13.