CHAPTER 6: ALTIMETRY

JOAOK

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 OBJECTIVES
 Relationship of pressure and height
 Relationship of pressure altitude and density altitude
 Calculation of altitude and various heights in relation to
various pressure settings

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 INTRODUCTION
 Altimetry
 science of measuring vertical distances in the atmosphere.
 Fact applied is that pressure decreases with height as its
operating principle.
 Radio and radar altimeter operate on non-meteorological
principles.

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 The International Standard Atmosphere
(ISA)

Height in Flight Height in Temp Pressure Density

Feet Level Metres °C hPa Kg/m3
-1000 - 10 - 305 +17 1050 1.26
0 0 0 +15 1013 1.23
5000 50 1524 +05 843(850) 1.06
10 000 100 3048 -05 697(700) 0.90
15 000 150 4572 -15 572 0.77
18 000 180 5486 -21 506(500) 0.70
24 000 240 7315 -33 393(400) 0.57
30 000 300 9144 -44 301(300) 0.458
34 000 340 10 363 -52 250 0.394
39 000 390 11 900 -56.5 197(200) 0.317

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 RELATIONSHIP OF PRESSURE AND
HEIGHT
• From the fact that the pressure at any point is equal to the weight
of air above it
– Implies that the pressure at any height above the surface of the earth
is less than the pressure at the surface itself by the weight of the
column of air of unit cross-section extending from the surface up to
that height.
– Hence pressure decreases with height.
– The amount of reduction being simply the weight per unit area of
the air column up to that height,
• depends on the density or temperature of the air.

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 RELATIONSHIP OF PRESSURE AND
HEIGHT
• Taking two columns of air
– one with warm air and the other with cold air
– both having same surface pressure (P0).
• Up to some height h
– the weight of the warm column (AC) is therefore less than that of a
cold column (BD).
– Hence , reduction in pressure from surface (A) to (C) top of the
height in the warm column is less than that from cold column i.e.
surface (B) to top of the height (D), and pressure at (C) is greater
than at (D).
– At height h the pressure decreases from C to D, the higher pressure
lying over warmer, and the lower pressure over the colder air.
– By joining lines of equal pressures at various points in the warmer
side and the colder side
• the lines of constant pressure will be sloping being at lower level in the cold side and
up in the warm side.

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 RELATIONSHIP OF PRESSURE AND
HEIGHT cont..
P2=960 hPa
1500 ft

970 hPa

1000 ft
W 980 hPa
C
A
O
R 990 hPa
L
500 ft M
D
1000 hPa

A
1010 hPa A
I B
0 I
A
R Variation of pressure
P0=1013 hPa
with height
R
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 RELATIONSHIP OF PRESSURE AND
HEIGHT cont..
• In accordance to ISA, increase of height corresponding to fall of pressure of 1
hPa for any particular values of pressure and temperature can be given by:
– Height difference in feet for 1 hPa change of pressure = 96T/P
– change of 1 hPa is roughly equivalent to a height interval of 27 feet at 1000 hPa,
50 feet at 500 hPa and 100 feet at 200 hPa.
• To express the difference between the heights h1, and h2 in terms of the
corresponding pressures P1 and P2. When the temperature T is constant may
be shown as below:-
– h2-h1=221.1 T(log P1 - log P2)

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 FLYING WITH CHANGING GROUND
PRESSURES
• If a constant altimeter reading is maintained
– then the aircraft must be following constant pressure surface.
– But pressure surfaces slope so
• an aircraft will actually be descending slightly when flying towards a lower surface pressures,
• or ascending slowly when flying towards higher surface pressures even though the indicated
altitude will not change.
• Flight at lower levels with the QNH setting
– calls for extra attention for safe terrain clearance.
• e.g. An aircraft departs from A and sets QNH 1010 hPa. The aircraft ascends to an
indicated altitude of 5000 feet and flies to B where QNH is 1020 hPa. Unless the
altimeter setting is adjusted it will indicate approximately 300 feet lower than actual
altitude of the aircraft. Alternatively an aircraft departing from B with QNH 1020
would arrive at A with the altimeter overreading by about 300 feet.

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 FLYING WITH CHANGING GROUND
PRESSURES

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 ALTITUDE VARIATIONS
 Atmosphere colder than standard
 an aircraft will be flying lower than indicated.
 Atmosphere warmer than standard
 an aircraft will be flying higher than indicated.
 The correction to use is 1% (of height) per 2.5 C of
temperature deviation from standard atmosphere. This is
approximately 4 feet per 1000 feet for every °C of difference
from ISA.

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 ALTITUDE VARIATIONS cont..
 Example: An aerodrome has an elevation of 1500 ft. The QFE is
965 hPa. Calculate an approximate QNH
 Solution: 1500 ft is equivalent to approximately 56 hPa
 1500 ÷ 27 = 55.5 (approx 56 hPa) hPa
 QFE + 56 = QNH
 965 + 56 = 1021
 QNH = 1021 hPa

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 PRESSURE CHANGES cont…
 In summary:
 When pressure falls the altimeter will over-read
 When pressure rises the altimeter will under-read
 or
 High – Low – High
 When flying from a high pressure system to a low pressure system the
altimeter will read high
 Low – High - Low
 When flying from a low pressure system to a high pressure system the
altimeter will read low

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