Private Airports to Remain on VFR Charts, with Removal of “Emergency” Labeling

A bit of confusion regarding VFR charting rules going forward was subtly cleared up this week when the FAA issued a follow-up notice regarding a September publication.

That notice had said that  “Effective November 3, 2022, Visual Flight Rules (VFR) aeronautical charts will no longer make reference to emergency value in private airport charting.” Worsening the news, it added that “Only private airports with landmark value will be retained and charted beyond February 23, 2023.” Many in the general aviation community took this to mean that private airports would largely be absent from future VFR charts, leaving out useful landmarks and safety options for aviators reliant on the maps for navigation. The EAA noted that nearly ¾ of the country’s airports are private. Without being able to locate them, the imperiled aviator is all the worse off. 

In response, the FAA published a notice this week, clarifying that the only real, essential change noticed by the average pilot will be the removal of the term “emergency” from the chart legend when referring to private airfields. The FAA clarified that it determines the inclusion of such fields based on their use as a landmark, and those criteria will remain unchanged, leaving any previously charted private airports just as they were before the updated cycle. Airports are evaluated by operational status, airspace, length and surface of their runways, owner’s preference, satellite imagery, and airport remarks before adding them to VFR charts.

The updated notice states that “aeronautical charts users should not see a significant change to private airports depicted on VFR charts.”

FMI: www.faa.gov