ForeFlight determines Traffic Pattern Altitude (TPA) by using various sources, depending on the airport’s location:
For US Airports
For airports in the US, ForeFlight determines Traffic Pattern Altitude (TPA) by:
- Checking the FAA’s eNASR database for specific published TPAs.
- If no TPA is found, it checks the Jeppesen database.
- If specific TPAs are still not available, ForeFlight uses the following standard rules from the FAA’s AIM 4-3-3:
- 1,000 feet above ground level (AGL) for propeller-driven aircraft.
- Large and turbine-powered aircraft enter the traffic pattern at an altitude of not less than 1,500 feet AGL or 500 feet above the established pattern altitude.
- Helicopters operating in the traffic pattern may fly a pattern similar to the fixed−wing aircraft
pattern but at a lower altitude (500 AGL) and closer to the runway. This pattern may be on the opposite side of the runway from fixed−wing traffic when airspeed requires or for practice power−off landings (autorotation) and if local policy permits. Landings not to the runway must avoid the flow of fixed-wing traffic.
For Non-US Airports
For airports outside the US, ForeFlight determines Traffic Pattern Altitude (TPA) by:
- Checking the Jeppesen database.
- For Canadian airports, if no specific TPA is found, ForeFlight applies the standard TPAs from Transport Canada’s AIM RAC 4.5.2 Note 1.
For non-US airports, ForeFlight first checks the Jeppesen database. If no information is in the Jeppesen database, and the airport is Canadian, ForeFlight applies standard TPAs as published in Transport Canada’s AIM RAC 4.5.2 Note 1.
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