Height Above Airport (HAA) is associated with which type of instrument approaches?

Height Above Airport (HAA) is associated with which type of instrument approaches?

• A. Straight-in
• B. Circling
• C. No-gyro vectors
• D. Radar

Answer: (B)

Height Above Airport is used for circling instrument approaches. Circling minimums are defined in terms of the aircraft’s height above the airport surface to ensure obstacle clearance all around the airport while maneuvering from the instrument approach to a visual landing. Because the circle may be flown around different parts of the airfield, using HAA directly ties the minimum descent point to the airport’s elevation rather than to a fixed runway threshold. Straight-in approaches publish minimums as decision altitudes/MDAs related to the approach path, not as height above the airport. No-gyro vectors and radar describe how you’re guided, not how the minimums are defined, so they don’t use HAA.

Height Above Airport is used for circling instrument approaches. Circling minimums are defined in terms of the aircraft’s height above the airport surface to ensure obstacle clearance all around the airport while maneuvering from the instrument approach to a visual landing. Because the circle may be flown around different parts of the airfield, using HAA directly ties the minimum descent point to the airport’s elevation rather than to a fixed runway threshold. Straight-in approaches publish minimums as decision altitudes/MDAs related to the approach path, not as height above the airport. No-gyro vectors and radar describe how you’re guided, not how the minimums are defined, so they don’t use HAA.