Amateur/Home Built/Experimental
Flight Crew Commercial
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 22.9; Flight Crew Total 1800; Flight Crew Type 141
Confusion; Training / Qualification
Airspace Violation All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR
General None Reported / Taken
Chart Or Publication; Human Factors
I was on a VFR flight from LAS going north. VGT - BTY takeoff avoid restricted airspace north of Las Vegas. BTY - LOL with course deviations to west to avoid restricted air space east and southeast of Fallon NAS. I flew between R-4810 and R-4804. I was not aware at the time that these two restricted areas were attached creating a third restricted area in between them. After being informed by a Sheriff during a fuel stop that I had flown through restricted airspace; I checked the sectional and still didn't see the R-4812 space. I finally figured it out when I got home. I showed my flight path to two pilot friends and neither one could see where I was in restricted air space. In retrospect; this was pretty poor chart reading on my part. I even had a warning on my GPS; but I thought it was reading R-4804A; so I altered course to the west a little.
The pilot reported that ATC radar tracked him through R-4812 and at his next fuel stop the Local Sheriff approached his aircraft to get his aircraft N number. His GPS gave him advance warning about approaching the Restricted area but he thought that because he was going between R-4810 and R-4804A that he could carefully navigate between the two and so ignored the warning. In retrospect chart clutter was probably the main reason he failed to detect that the entire area he flew through was restricted.
A pilot reported flying through R-4812 southeast of FLX after he did not see the restriction between R-4810 and R-4804A because of MOA chart clutter even though his GPS gave him advanced warning.