Approach Plate Minima (Minimums) Section

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*NOTE: While talking about the LDA 19 Approach I mistakenly mentioned reduced ceiling requirements. I should have said that the MDA is lowered from 880ft to 480ft.*

The minima section of the instrument approach chart gives the pilot the complete set of descent minimums and visibility criteria for the procedure to be flown. The information provided includes all minimum altitudes for the approach, minimum visibility required to start the approach, heights above touchdown, and heights above the airport. Depending on the type of approach there can be many different minimums on just one chart. Some GPS approaches have 4 different sets of minimums depending on the capabilities of your GPS receiver. Some non-precision approaches have multiple minimums based on your ability to fix an intersection along the approach path.

Let's take a deeper look at all those numbers.