Aviation attorneys typically do not help their business aircraft operator clients obtain authorizations from the Federal Aviation Administration to operate in reduced vertical separation minimum (RVSM) airspace. But lawyers quickly can become involved in defending against alleged violations of these requirements, so they need a working knowledge of the requirements. What follows is some historical background on RVSM, plus some current issues that attorneys should be aware of regarding compliance and enforcement activity in this area.
The advent of air commerce created the need for guidelines to separate aircraft safely. By the 1940s, one method was to specify that airplanes would fly at designated altitudes with at least 1,000 feet of vertical separation between them. By the 1950s, as airplanes could climb increasingly higher, this separation grew to 2,000 feet at altitudes above 29,000 feet because the altimeters of the time grew increasingly less accurate with increasingly higher altitudes.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.
For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]
