are you here for the free pilot training that's awesome because today on lesson 18 we'll be discussing class d airspace we're going to be talking about everything you need to know as a private pilot to go into this airspace so sit back and relax and let's knock out some studying class d airspace is controlled airspace that surrounds smaller towered airports usually it's cylinder shaped with a 5 statute mile radius that starts at the surface and goes up to 2500 agl but to get the exact specs we need to look at a vfr sectional of the airport we want to fly into we can tell we're looking at class delta airspace by this blue segmented circle surrounding the airfield the segmented circle is telling us that this airspace starts at the surface but don't be fooled when you see a magenta segmented circle this is actually class echo airspace that starts at the surface the way i remember the difference is that this magenta airfield in the center means this airport is not towered when you see a blue airport like this it means that the airfield has a tower and class delta airspace is designed for smaller towered airports now we already mentioned that class d airspace starts at the surface but if you want to know where the top is look inside this little square right here this altitude is expressed in hundreds so the top of this class delta airspace is 3500 msl now occasionally you'll see this number with a minus sign in front of it this just means that the airspace goes up to but does not include the 3500 msl so if i'm flying my airplane at 3500 msl here technically i'm not in the class delta airspace all right let's look at some of the rules we need to know before we can go into class delta first we must establish two-way radio communications with atc prior to entry then we must maintain those communications while within that airspace do these rules look familiar yeah they're the exact same ones for class charlie airspace let's call up joplin regional they look like a nice place to stop for fuel before i call them up i'll make a quick mental note of exactly where i am then i'll grab the adis joplin tower cessna 5678 papa 10 miles to the southeast inbound with yankee sometimes it can be beneficial to let atc pick the runway for you that's why here from my request i just told them that i'm inbound aircraft calling shea altitude oh shoot i forgot to tell them my altitude but first can i enter the airspace yet nope not yet they haven't said our call sign joplin tower this is cessna 5678 papa at 2 000 feet yeah chestnut 5678 papa joplin tower we see you now altimeter three zero zero two make right base for runway three six when you hear this the first thing that should go through your head is i can go in now but i haven't been cleared to land yet when they tell you which runway they want you to use this is not the same as getting a landing clearance three zero zero two right base for runway three six cessna five six seven eight papa all they need to hear is the basic information all the numbers and your call sign session of five six seven eight papa joplin tower you're number two now following a piper cub on one mile final clear to land runway 3-6 okay now i'm cleared to land but there's somebody in front of me we need to try to find that guy and let the tower know when we see him then at the very least we need to repeat our landing clearance back to tower but i think i just spotted him traffic in sight clear to land runway 36 cessna 5678 papa next let's take a quick look at the vfr weather minimums for class delta airspace once again this is the worst weather we can have and still be able to fly vfr in this airspace we need to have at least three statute miles of visibility then we need to stay away from the clouds we need to stay at least 500 feet below the clouds 2000 feet away from the sides and a thousand feet away from the tops and if you remember from the last lesson this is the exact same weather minimums as class c air space don't forget our memory aid of 3152 or three cessna 152s as far as our equipment requirements are concerned all we need to go into class delta is a working two-way radio how else are we going to talk to that crusty old controller from joplin to operate in delta you don't need adsb or a transponder hey i hope you learned something today don't forget to smash like for me before you get out of here and if you haven't already don't forget to subscribe and hit the bell notification and i'll see you on the next episode of free pilot training you