11: Controlled Airports

Not many people fly from tower-controlled airports (Class D) since it requires communications, but it can be done. And it doesn’t always require an aircraft radio.

To be welcome, though, you must understand how they work, about runways, markings, patterns, terminology, and how pilots work with controllers.

Flying in the D airspace may be possible without an aircraft radio, especially if you’re near the edge by just calling the tower and explaining your request. Chapter 11 covers this.


Airspace: We’re not Alone

From Jeff Goin’s 2006 USHPA Magazine Article Our sweetly simple FAR 103 grants enormous flexibility. It gives equally ambiguous restrictions—leaving a lot up to us. The sharp edge of this freedom is how easy we can cause problems or get “violated” by the Federal...