Sectional chart: the FAA VFR chart at your location, legend explained

On the chart: Solid blue lines. Each part carries two blue numbers, its ceiling over its floor, in hundreds of feet above sea level (MSL): 100 over SFC means from the surface up to 10,000 ft.

For your drone: The airspace around the busiest airports, built in layers like an upside-down wedding cake. Under a part whose floor is SFC, a drone needs FAA airspace authorization (LAANC or FAA DroneZone) before it takes off. Under a higher shelf, such as 100 over 30, the floor is 3,000 ft MSL, and the airspace at drone height is whatever lies below it.

How LAANC authorization works

On the chart: Solid magenta lines and magenta numbers, ceiling over floor in hundreds of feet MSL. A ceiling of T means up to, but not including, the floor of the Class B above.

For your drone: The airspace around a mid-size airport with a tower and radar: usually an inner circle from the surface and an outer shelf. Inside the inner circle (SFC), a drone needs authorization. Under the outer shelf the floor is written in MSL: subtract the ground elevation and it is well above 400 ft, so check what airspace lies under it.

Drone airspace classes, side by side

On the chart: A blue dashed line around an airport with a tower. The ceiling sits in a dashed blue box, in hundreds of feet MSL: 25 means up to 2,500 ft; -25 means up to but not including 2,500 ft.

For your drone: The airspace of a smaller towered airport, from the ground up to the boxed ceiling. A drone needs authorization anywhere inside the dashed line. A note such as "See NOTAMs/Supplement for Class D eff hrs" means it is part-time: the Chart Supplement gives its hours and what the airspace becomes after them.

How LAANC authorization works

On the chart: A magenta dashed line, around an airport without a tower or as an extension of a towered airport's airspace.

For your drone: Controlled airspace that starts at the ground. For drones it counts with Class B, C and D: a drone needs authorization inside the magenta dashed line, for Part 107 and recreational flights alike.

Drone airspace classes, side by side

On the chart: A soft magenta band with one sharp edge. On the side where it fades, controlled Class E airspace starts 700 ft above the ground.

For your drone: Below 700 ft that side is Class G, so a drone may fly up to 400 ft there without authorization. Outside the band, Class E usually starts at 1,200 ft above the ground.

On the chart: A soft blue band: the edge of Class E airspace whose floor is not 700 ft, often 1,200 ft above the ground. A floor that differs again is written as a number. With no band at all, Class E starts at 1,200 ft above the ground.

For your drone: Either way the floor is far above a drone: up to 400 ft above the ground you are in Class G, with no authorization needed.

On the chart: No line and no shading of its own: it is the airspace near the ground wherever no other class is drawn.

For your drone: Where most drone flights happen. Class G reaches up to where Class E starts: 700 or 1,200 ft above the ground, or higher where marked. A drone may fly in it up to 400 ft above the ground with no authorization, unless a restriction on top of it says otherwise.

How high a drone may fly

On the chart: Two numbers stacked over a bar: the ceiling on top, the floor below, in hundreds of feet above sea level (MSL). SFC is the surface; T is up to the Class B above; a + before a floor means from just above that height; a - before a boxed Class D ceiling means up to but not including it.

For your drone: Your drone's 400 ft limit is measured from the ground, the chart's numbers from the sea. Subtract the ground elevation (the nearest airport's, or a contour's): with ground at 1,000 ft, a floor of 30 starts 2,000 ft above you, and 70 over SFC starts at your feet.

On the chart: A thin magenta circle 30 nautical miles around a Class B airport, labelled MODE C & ADS-B OUT 30 NM.

For your drone: It sets transponder and ADS-B rules for crewed aircraft, from the surface to 10,000 ft MSL. It is not a drone limit: under Part 107 a drone may not fly with a transponder on or with ADS-B Out transmitting, unless the FAA allows it.

On the chart: A blue line with short hatch marks on its inner side, labelled P and a number, such as P-56 in Washington, DC.

For your drone: Flight is prohibited. A drone may not fly inside without permission from the agency that uses or controls the area; treat it as a no-fly zone.

On the chart: The same blue hatched line, labelled R and a number. The table in the chart margin gives its altitudes, its hours and the agency that controls it.

For your drone: An area with hazards to aircraft that often cannot be seen from the air. A drone needs permission from the using or controlling agency to fly inside; the margin table names it and its hours.

On the chart: The same blue hatched line, labelled W and a number, drawn offshore.

For your drone: Hazardous activity over the water, listed with its hours in the chart margin. No drone rule names warning areas, but a drone flown from a boat or a beach near one meets the same hazards: check the hours first.

On the chart: A magenta line with hatch marks on its inner side, labelled A and a number.

For your drone: An area with a lot of pilot training or unusual flying. A drone needs no permission, but expect crewed aircraft low and often: keep a sharp lookout and give way.

On the chart: A magenta hatched line around an area named in capitals with MOA, such as VANCE 2 MOA. The chart margin lists its altitudes and hours.

For your drone: Airspace set apart for training flights that can be fast and low. A drone needs no permission, but before flying inside, check whether the area is active (the margin's hours, or a NOTAM) and keep a lookout.

On the chart: A thin line with IR or VR and a number printed in black on it, and small arrows for the direction of flight. Four digits (VR1234): no part of the route is above 1,500 ft above the ground. Three digits or fewer (IR123): one or more parts are above 1,500 ft.

For your drone: A route for training flights at high speed and low height. A drone needs no permission, but aircraft on a four-digit route can pass very low with little warning: stay low, watch and listen.

On the chart: A broken magenta line, often with a note asking pilots to avoid flight below a given height.

For your drone: Airspace over sites that need extra security. Pilots are asked to avoid flying through; when necessary, flight there is temporarily prohibited by NOTAM, and that prohibition binds a drone too.

On the chart: A blue line with small blocks along it. Around Washington, DC, the SFRA reaches 30 miles from Reagan National Airport; the Flight Restricted Zone (FRZ) inside it is drawn with the prohibited-area hatching.

For your drone: Flying a drone within 15 miles of Reagan National Airport is prohibited without specific FAA authorization. From 15 to 30 miles, recreational flights are allowed under the FAA's conditions for the area: registered, below 400 ft, in sight.

On the chart: A blue dotted line around the area, with its name in blue.

For your drone: The chart asks crewed aircraft to keep high above these areas. For drones the stricter rules are on the ground: the National Park Service prohibits launching, landing or operating drones in national parks, and other land agencies set their own rules.

Drones in national parks

On the chart: A purple dotted outline over the water, with a boxed note.

For your drone: The chart's note says flight below 1,000 ft above the surface in the marked zones breaks NOAA rules (15 CFR part 922). Drones fly far below that, so read the sanctuary's own rules before you fly over it.

On the chart: A broken blue line. Only TFRs relating to national security are charted, and only standing ones.

For your drone: No drone flight inside without the permission the TFR names. The chart shows nothing else: wildfire, VIP, space launch, airshow and most other TFRs are never printed on a sectional, so check current TFRs before every flight.

Live TFR map

On the chart: A small magenta diamond with the word STADIUM.

For your drone: A venue where the standing sports TFR applies: no drones within 3 nautical miles, up to 3,000 ft above the ground, from one hour before to one hour after a qualifying game or race. On other days, the normal rules apply.

Live TFR map

On the chart: An area bounded with magenta cross-hatching, with a boxed note such as "Dallas National Defense Airspace TFR, Check NOTAMs".

For your drone: Airspace under routine security TFRs that run for 12 months or more. Read the current NOTAMs before you fly anywhere inside it.

On the chart: A blue circle with a boxed note, such as "Disneyland Theme Park, See Note for requirements".

For your drone: A flight restriction that does not lapse. The chart note says where its terms are; read them and the NOTAM before flying anywhere near, and expect a drone to need FAA permission inside.

On the chart: A shaded blue fan near a launch or re-entry site; the darker tint is the 91.143 area.

For your drone: Airspace that is closed by NOTAM during a launch or re-entry. On launch days, check TFRs before you fly anywhere near it.

Live TFR map

On the chart: A magenta parachute with a radio frequency.

For your drone: Skydivers jump here, falling from thousands of feet and landing nearby. A small drone is hard for them to see and avoid: fly somewhere else while jumps are on.

On the chart: A small magenta diamond with a letter: A aerobatic practice, G glider operations, H hang gliders, U ultralights, UA unmanned aircraft activity.

For your drone: Slow, quiet or unusual aircraft fly here, often low. No permission is needed; keep a lookout and give way to them.

On the chart: Airports with a control tower are blue. The data block shows CT and the tower frequency; a star means the tower is part-time.

For your drone: A towered airport sits in Class B, C or D airspace while its tower is open, so flying near it needs authorization. The FAA's facility maps, which LAANC uses, give the height you may ask for in each grid square.

How LAANC authorization works

On the chart: Magenta: no control tower. A C in a circle marks the CTAF, the radio frequency pilots use to announce where they are.

For your drone: Often no authorization is needed nearby, unless a magenta dashed Class E surface line surrounds it. Planes still take off and land low: stay well clear of the runway's approach and departure paths.

On the chart: A magenta circle with R is a private or restricted field; (Pvt) after a name means it is not open to the public. A circle with H is a heliport.

For your drone: Small fields and helipads still have aircraft landing low, and helicopters may come from any direction. Keep clear of their traffic.

On the chart: Under the name: the field elevation in feet MSL, L if the runway is lit, the longest runway in hundreds of feet, and the frequencies. 909 - 39 123.0 with a circled C: field 909 ft above sea level, unlit runway of 3,900 ft, CTAF 123.0.

For your drone: The elevation is the number a drone pilot uses most: subtract it from the airspace numbers nearby to get heights above the ground.

On the chart: A tall inverted V. The upper number is the top's height above sea level (MSL); the number in parentheses is its height above the ground (AGL). UC means under construction or not yet verified. A taller symbol marks obstacles 1,000 ft or more above the ground.

For your drone: Towers, stacks and antennas more than 200 ft tall, or more than 299 ft inside the yellow city areas. Shorter ones, trees and wires are not on the chart. A drone may go above 400 ft only within 400 ft of a structure and no more than 400 ft above its top.

How high a drone may fly

On the chart: Two inverted Vs joined: at least two obstacles close together. The numbers give the highest one.

For your drone: A cluster of towers. Several sets of guy wires may run between them; give the whole group a wide margin.

On the chart: Short rays drawn from the top of the obstacle symbol.

For your drone: Strobe lights on a tall structure. They may flash only part-time or when an aircraft comes near, so a dark tower is still there.

On the chart: A hatched area inside a dotted outline, with turbine symbols and a boxed number: the top of the highest turbine above sea level, with UC if it is not verified.

For your drone: Many turbines, each a tall obstacle with blades sweeping a wide circle. Give the farm a wide berth.

On the chart: A large number with a smaller one beside it, one per box of 30 minutes of latitude by 30 minutes of longitude: thousands and hundreds of feet MSL. 2 with a small 8 is 2,800 ft.

For your drone: The highest point in that box, terrain or obstacle, rounded up with a margin for error. It tells crewed aircraft how high to stay; for a drone it is a quick hint of how tall the land and towers get.

On the chart: Thin brown lines join points of equal height, every 500 ft, with some in between on flatter land. The color tints run from light green for low ground to dark brown for high ground.

For your drone: Use them for the ground elevation at your spot when no airport is near: you need it to turn the chart's MSL heights into height above the ground.

On the chart: Towns and cities are tinted yellow.

For your drone: Inside the yellow, obstacles are charted only when they are more than 299 ft above the ground, so expect towers and cranes the chart leaves out.

On the chart: A small magenta flag on a landmark, with its name underlined.

For your drone: A spot pilots of crewed aircraft fly over and report to the tower. Expect aircraft overhead near it.

On the chart: A blue compass rose around a radio beacon, and light blue bands between beacons labelled in blue with V and a number.

For your drone: Radio navigation aids and the routes between them. Crewed aircraft follow them, mostly far above drone height; they are not a drone limit.

On the chart: The title panel gives the effective date, such as "Effective 0901Z 29 OCT 2026", and the edition after it.

For your drone: A sectional is in force for 56 days, from 0901 UTC on its effective date. An old chart can miss new towers and airspace changes; the next edition is posted 20 days before it takes effect.