Flying over town depends upon whether you are flying an ultralight or a certified aircraft, what exactly you are flying over, and the airspace you are flying in.

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Ultralights:

Part 103, Section 103.15 (Operations over congested areas.) says, “No person may operate an ultralight vehicle over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons.”

Section 103.17 Operations in certain airspace.
“No person may operate an ultralight vehicle within Class A, Class B, Class C, or Class D airspace or within the lateral boundaries of the surface area of Class E airspace designated for an airport unless that person has prior authorization from the ATC facility having jurisdiction over that airspace."

N-numbered powered parachutes.

First of all, there are no rules saying that N-numbered powered parachutes can’t fly over congested areas.

But there are rules that certified pilots (of all kinds of aircraft) have to pay attention to.) Let’s start with minimum safe altitude rules.

Instead of Part 103, the ultralight rules, certified pilots need to refer to Part 91, General Operating and Flight Rules.

And specifically, pilots need to look at Section 91.119 Minimum safe altitudes: General.

“Except when necessary for takeoff or landing, no person may operate an aircraft below the following altitudes:”

Paragraph (a) is the first one we want to look at, which refers to ‘anywhere’.

For ‘anywhere’, pilots need to stay at “an altitude allowing, if a power unit fails, an emergency landing without undue hazard to persons or property on the surface.”

Section 91.119, Paragraph (b)
“Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement, or over any open air assembly of persons, an altitude of 1,000 feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of 2,000 feet of the aircraft.”

That means that you have to stay 1,000 feet above everything. But if something is higher than the average, it gets a protected area 1,000 feet above it specifically and 2,000 feet around it. If you are further than 2,000 feet away from it, you can go lower again. Well, at least down to 1,000 feet above the shorter stuff.

Then there is the airspace over and around airports near town. While it is possible for N-numbered powered parachutes to enter into some of that airspace, it isn’t very likely to be legal.

First, most powered parachute sport pilots don’t have the logbook endorsements to go into airspace associated with control towers.
You also have to be sure that your aircraft has the right equipment to enter control tower airspace. That includes a powerful enough radio to talk to the tower from a few miles away. It also may mean that your powered parachute has to be equipped with ADSB out.

ADSB out allows your powered parachute to show up on the flight controllers radar. It is now mandated in aircraft that are flying in certain kinds of airspace. Those kinds of airspace include…

• Class A, B, and C airspace;
• Class E airspace at or above 10,000 feet mean sea level, excluding airspace at and below 2,500 feet above ground level;
• Within 30 nautical miles of a Class B primary airport (commonly known as the Mode C veil);
• And finally, above the ceiling and within the lateral boundaries of Class B or Class C airspace up to 10,000 feet;

This doesn’t cover very much of the airspace that powered parachutes normally want to fly in, but it covers a whole lot of airspace close to bigger cities.

Class B Airports in the USA

Arizona:
• Phoenix Sky Harbor Intl
California:
• Los Angeles Intl
• Marine Corps Air Station Miramar
• San Diego Intl
• San Francisco Intl
Colorado:
• Denver Intl
Florida:
• MCO / Orlando Intl
• Miami Intl
• Tampa Intl
Georgia:
• Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta Intl
Hawaii:
• Honolulu Intl
Illinois:
• Chicago–O'Hare Intl
Kentucky:
• Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Intl
Louisiana:
• Louis Armstrong New Orleans Intl
Maryland:
• Andrews Air Force Base
• Baltimore/Washington Intl
Massachusetts:
• Boston–Logan Intl
Michigan:
• Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County
Minnesota:
• Minneapolis–Saint Paul Intl
Missouri:
• Kansas City Intl.
• Lambert–St. Louis Intl
Nevada:
• Las Vegas–McCarran Intl
New Jersey:
• Newark Liberty Intl
New York:
• New York–John F. Kennedy Intl
• New York–La Guardia
North Carolina:
• Charlotte Douglas Intl
Ohio:
• Cleveland Hopkins Intl
Pennsylvania:
• Philadelphia Intl
• Pittsburgh Intl
Tennessee:
• Memphis Intl
Texas:
• Dallas/Fort Worth Intl
• Houston–Hobby (class B secondary airport)
• Houston–George Bush Intl
Utah:
• Salt Lake City Intl
Virginia:
• Ronald Reagan Washington National
• Washington Dulles Intl
Washington:
• Seattle–Tacoma Intl

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