Definition
A VFR sectional is an aeronautical chart published by the FAA at a scale of 1:500,000, designed for pilots flying under Visual Flight Rules. It depicts terrain elevation, airports, airspace boundaries and classes, navigation aids, communication frequencies, obstructions, and visual landmarks used for pilotage. Sectionals are named after a major city in the area they cover (e.g., Los Angeles Sectional, Seattle Sectional) and are updated on a regular cycle.
Plain English
It is a paper or digital map made for pilots flying by visual reference. It shows what is on the ground, where airports are, what the airspace looks like, and what to avoid — at a scale that gives a useful view of a region.
Context Anchor
You will see a VFR sectional during preflight planning and often in the cockpit, either as a paper chart or on an electronic display.
Derivation
‘Sectional’ comes from the Latin ‘sectio,’ meaning ‘a cutting’ or ‘division.’ The full U.S. coverage is divided into sections, each printed as one chart. ‘VFR’ stands for Visual Flight Rules — the rules under which the chart is intended to be used.
Why Pilots Care
It supplies the visual references and airspace information a pilot needs to navigate safely and legally when flying under visual flight rules.
Intuition Check
Do not read sectional as a generic section of any map. In this context, a VFR sectional is a specific type of aeronautical chart used for visual flying.
Example Sentence 1
Before the cross-country flight, she pulled up the Denver VFR sectional to check the airspace around her route.
Example Sentence 2
Before takeoff she traced the planned route across the VFR sectional to identify any tall towers or restricted areas along the way.