This article is about aviation flight corridors. For walkways, see Jet bridge. For companies that provide air transport services called "airways", see Airline. For other uses, see Airway (disambiguation).
"VOR Federal airways and Low/Medium Frequency (L/MF) (Colored) Federal airways"[2]
These are designated routes which aeroplanes fly to aid in navigation and help with separation to avoid accidents.[3][4][5][a] Airways are defined with segments within a specific altitude block, corridor width, and between fixed geographic coordinates for satellites navigation system, or between ground-based radio transmitternavigational aids (navaids; such as VORs or NDBs) or the intersection of specific radials of two navaids.
To guide airmail pilots on their delivery routes, the United States Postal Service constructed the first airways in the United States, the Contract Air Mail routes. These airways were between major cities and identified at night by a series of flashing lights and beacons which pilots flew over in sequence to get from one city to the next.[6] Intermediate fields were located every 30 miles (48 km) in case of emergencies, with at least 2 landing strips a minimum of 2,000 feet (610 m) in length, and 600 feet (180 m) in width. Rotating airways beacons were erected every 10 miles (16 km).[7] However, these visual airways required the pilots to be in visual contact with the ground which precluded flying in fog or clouds. Subsequently, the Department of Commerce funded the development of other means of airway navigation.[8]
The first airways to be delineated by radiofrequency were based on the old Low-frequency radio range also called the "Four Course Radio Range" or "A/N" system. The pilot listened for the stronger of the Morse codes transmitters ("· –" for "A" and "– ·" for "N", indicating left or right of the course); the objective was to be centered on course hearing a steady tone (the A and N Morse codes merge to form a steady tone when the receiver is equidistant from both transmitters).
Later airways were based on low/medium frequency ground stations, like the beat frequency oscillator (BFO) and the non-directional beacon (NDB). These L/M frequency airways were the colored airways. Colored airways still exist, mostly in Alaska. There are only a few colored airways remaining in the contiguous United States. There is one colored airway on the coast of North Carolina called G13 (Green 13). Additionally, there are several colored airways connecting to, and transitioning through, the Florida Keys. B9 (Blue 9) connects the Southern Florida mainland to Marathon Key. B646 (Blue 646) connects Mérida, Mexico to Nassau, Bahamas and transitions through the Florida Keys. A portion of B646 connects Key West to Marathon Key and serves as a bypass for aircraft unable to meet the 15,000 foot minimum altitude along that portion of V3. Finally, G765 (Green 765) connects Key West to Cozumel, Mexico. Colored airways are all depicted in brown on low and high altitude charts produced by the FAA's Aeronautical Navigation Products.
Low altitude airways (below 18,000 feet (5,500 m) MSL) that are based on VOR stations, appear on sectional charts, world aeronautical charts, and en route low altitude charts and are designated with the prefix "V" (pronounced victor, hence, victor airways). High altitude airways (from 18,000 feet (5,500 m) MSL to FL450) based on VOR stations are called jet routes; they appear on high altitude charts (that usually do not show topography, as the low altitude charts do) and are prefixed by the letter "J". VOR-based routes are depicted in black on low and high altitude charts produced by the FAA's Aeronautical Navigation Products.
With the invention of RNAV routes, airway structure no longer has to be based on ground-based navaids; a new naming convention is used. RNAV routes not based on VOR routes in low altitudes are preceded with the letter "T"; high airway routes are designated with the letter "Q". RNAV routes are depicted in blue on low and high altitude charts produced by the FAA's Aeronautical Navigation Products.
Airways are corridors 10 nautical miles (19 km) wide of controlled airspace with a defined lower base, usually FL070–FL100, extending to FL195. They link major airports giving protection to IFR flights during the climb and descent phases, and often for non-jet aircraft, cruise phase of flight. Historically, they were laid out between VORs; however, advances in navigational technology mean that this is no longer a necessity. Each airway has a designator containing one letter and one to three numbers. All airspace above FL195 is class C controlled airspace, the equivalent to airways being called Upper Air Routes and having designators prefixed with the letter "U". If an upper air route follows the same track as an airway, its designator is the letter "U" prefix and the designator of the underlying airway.
In the UK, airways are all class A below FL195 and, therefore, VFR flights are prohibited.
Air corridorEdit
"Air corridor" redirects here. For the Mozambiquean airline, see Air Corridor.
An air corridor is a designated region of airspace that an aircraft must remain in during its transit through a given region. Air corridors are typically imposed by military or diplomatic requirements. During the Berlin Blockade, for example, pilots flying across Soviet-controlled German airspace were required to maintain very specific positioning within air corridors defined by the commander in charge of the airlift. Subsequent flights, both military and civilian, between West Germany and West Berlin during the Cold War were required to remain within their designated corridor or risk being shot down.
Air corridors should not be confused with airways. Airways are navigational aids which a pilot generally may deviate from when circumstances warrant, while compliance with a designated air corridor is mandatory.
NotesEdit
^The term airway is used by aviation professionals including the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), but other terms have been used or misused by non-specialist sources, sometimes to mean the same thing.
ReferencesEdit
^Wragg, David W. (1973). A Dictionary of Aviation (first ed.). Osprey. p. 31. ISBN9780850451634.
^"Air Traffic Service Routes - Section 3. Federal Airways". from the original on 2020-10-19.
^Gunston, Bill (2004). The Cambridge Aerospace Dictionary Cambridge. Cambridge University Press. pp. 34. ISBN978-0521841405.
^ in Section 3. En Route Procedures; archived from www.faa.gov, accessed 25 October 2020
^Airway (definition)- Airway Description www.skybrary.aero, accessed 25 October 2020
^Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge(PDF). U.S. Department of Transportation: Federal Aviation Administration. 2016. p. 1‑4. Retrieved 2021-04-12.
^Smith, Frank (1981). Legacy of Wings; The Harold F. Pitcairn Story. New York: Jason Aronson, Inc. p. 97. ISBN0876684851.
^"The Evolution of Airway Lights and Electronic Navigation Aids". Centennialofflight.net. 1924-07-01. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
External linksEdit
FAA Order JO 7400.2L, Procedures for Handling Airspace Matters, effective 2017-10-12 (with changes), accessed 2017-12-04
Cold War Berlin air corridor disagreement.
October 15, 2023
airway, aviation, this, article, about, aviation, flight, corridors, walkways, bridge, companies, that, provide, transport, services, called, airways, airline, other, uses, airway, disambiguation, flight, path, redirects, here, other, uses, flightpath, disambi. This article is about aviation flight corridors For walkways see Jet bridge For companies that provide air transport services called airways see Airline For other uses see Airway disambiguation Flight path redirects here For other uses see Flightpath disambiguation In the United States airways 1 or air routes are defined by the Federal Aviation Administration FAA in two ways This instrument flight rules chart shows low altitude airways in the Oakland Area Control Center near San Francisco California VOR Federal airways and Low Medium Frequency L MF Colored Federal airways 2 These are designated routes which aeroplanes fly to aid in navigation and help with separation to avoid accidents 3 4 5 a Airways are defined with segments within a specific altitude block corridor width and between fixed geographic coordinates for satellites navigation system or between ground based radio transmitter navigational aids navaids such as VORs or NDBs or the intersection of specific radials of two navaids Contents 1 United States 2 Europe 3 Air corridor 4 Notes 5 References 6 External linksUnited States EditTo guide airmail pilots on their delivery routes the United States Postal Service constructed the first airways in the United States the Contract Air Mail routes These airways were between major cities and identified at night by a series of flashing lights and beacons which pilots flew over in sequence to get from one city to the next 6 Intermediate fields were located every 30 miles 48 km in case of emergencies with at least 2 landing strips a minimum of 2 000 feet 610 m in length and 600 feet 180 m in width Rotating airways beacons were erected every 10 miles 16 km 7 However these visual airways required the pilots to be in visual contact with the ground which precluded flying in fog or clouds Subsequently the Department of Commerce funded the development of other means of airway navigation 8 The first airways to be delineated by radiofrequency were based on the old Low frequency radio range also called the Four Course Radio Range or A N system The pilot listened for the stronger of the Morse codes transmitters for A and for N indicating left or right of the course the objective was to be centered on course hearing a steady tone the A and N Morse codes merge to form a steady tone when the receiver is equidistant from both transmitters Later airways were based on low medium frequency ground stations like the beat frequency oscillator BFO and the non directional beacon NDB These L M frequency airways were the colored airways Colored airways still exist mostly in Alaska There are only a few colored airways remaining in the contiguous United States There is one colored airway on the coast of North Carolina called G13 Green 13 Additionally there are several colored airways connecting to and transitioning through the Florida Keys B9 Blue 9 connects the Southern Florida mainland to Marathon Key B646 Blue 646 connects Merida Mexico to Nassau Bahamas and transitions through the Florida Keys A portion of B646 connects Key West to Marathon Key and serves as a bypass for aircraft unable to meet the 15 000 foot minimum altitude along that portion of V3 Finally G765 Green 765 connects Key West to Cozumel Mexico Colored airways are all depicted in brown on low and high altitude charts produced by the FAA s Aeronautical Navigation Products Low altitude airways below 18 000 feet 5 500 m MSL that are based on VOR stations appear on sectional charts world aeronautical charts and en route low altitude charts and are designated with the prefix V pronounced victor hence victor airways High altitude airways from 18 000 feet 5 500 m MSL to FL450 based on VOR stations are called jet routes they appear on high altitude charts that usually do not show topography as the low altitude charts do and are prefixed by the letter J VOR based routes are depicted in black on low and high altitude charts produced by the FAA s Aeronautical Navigation Products With the invention of RNAV routes airway structure no longer has to be based on ground based navaids a new naming convention is used RNAV routes not based on VOR routes in low altitudes are preceded with the letter T high airway routes are designated with the letter Q RNAV routes are depicted in blue on low and high altitude charts produced by the FAA s Aeronautical Navigation Products Europe EditThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed July 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Airways are corridors 10 nautical miles 19 km wide of controlled airspace with a defined lower base usually FL070 FL100 extending to FL195 They link major airports giving protection to IFR flights during the climb and descent phases and often for non jet aircraft cruise phase of flight Historically they were laid out between VORs however advances in navigational technology mean that this is no longer a necessity Each airway has a designator containing one letter and one to three numbers All airspace above FL195 is class C controlled airspace the equivalent to airways being called Upper Air Routes and having designators prefixed with the letter U If an upper air route follows the same track as an airway its designator is the letter U prefix and the designator of the underlying airway In the UK airways are all class A below FL195 and therefore VFR flights are prohibited Air corridor Edit Air corridor redirects here For the Mozambiquean airline see Air Corridor This section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed July 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message An air corridor is a designated region of airspace that an aircraft must remain in during its transit through a given region Air corridors are typically imposed by military or diplomatic requirements During the Berlin Blockade for example pilots flying across Soviet controlled German airspace were required to maintain very specific positioning within air corridors defined by the commander in charge of the airlift Subsequent flights both military and civilian between West Germany and West Berlin during the Cold War were required to remain within their designated corridor or risk being shot down Air corridors should not be confused with airways Airways are navigational aids which a pilot generally may deviate from when circumstances warrant while compliance with a designated air corridor is mandatory Notes Edit The term airway is used by aviation professionals including the International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO but other terms have been used or misused by non specialist sources sometimes to mean the same thing References Edit Wragg David W 1973 A Dictionary of Aviation first ed Osprey p 31 ISBN 9780850451634 Air Traffic Service Routes Section 3 Federal Airways Archived from the original on 2020 10 19 Gunston Bill 2004 The Cambridge Aerospace Dictionary Cambridge Cambridge University Press pp 34 ISBN 978 0521841405 FAA regulations 5 3 4 Airways and Route Systems in Section 3 En Route Procedures archived from www faa gov accessed 25 October 2020 Airway definition Airway Description www skybrary aero accessed 25 October 2020 Pilot s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge PDF U S Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Administration 2016 p 1 4 Retrieved 2021 04 12 Smith Frank 1981 Legacy of Wings The Harold F Pitcairn Story New York Jason Aronson Inc p 97 ISBN 0876684851 The Evolution of Airway Lights and Electronic Navigation Aids Centennialofflight net 1924 07 01 Retrieved 2014 07 28 External links EditFAA Order JO 7400 2L Procedures for Handling Airspace Matters effective 2017 10 12 with changes accessed 2017 12 04 FAA Aeronautical Information Manual Chapter 1 Cold War Berlin air corridor disagreement Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Airway aviation amp oldid 1177610315 Air corridor, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
