Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

2 Answers

Clearway and stopway. Where does DER start?

Asked by: 4111 views ,
Instrument Rating

Hello. The TERPS Departure Procedures requires that the pilot cross the departure end of the runway (DER) at least at 35 feet above it for proper obstacle clearance. If the runway has a clearway or stopway extending from the end of the runway, where does the DER start? Is it from the end of the "actual" runway or is it from the end of the clearway or stopway?

Ace Any FAA Written Test!
Actual FAA Questions / Free Lifetime Updates
The best explanations in the business
Fast, efficient study.
Pass Your Checkride With Confidence!
FAA Practical Test prep that reflects actual checkrides.
Any checkride: Airplane, Helicopter, Glider, etc.
Written and maintained by actual pilot examiners and master CFIs.
The World's Most Trusted eLogbook
Be Organized, Current, Professional, and Safe.
Highly customizable - for student pilots through pros.
Free Transition Service for users of other eLogs.
Our sincere thanks to pilots such as yourself who support AskACFI while helping themselves by using the awesome PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, and Android aviation apps of our sponsors.

2 Answers

  1. Best Answer


    John Scarry on Jun 28, 2017

    This is beyond my understanding of the TERPS, but you might want to read AC 150:5300-13A-chg1 Airport Design starting on page 98 where they talk about TORA, TODA, and say “When the full runway beyond the start of takeoff is available for the takeoff run, the departure end of the TORA is located at the end of the runway (see Fighre 3-28). ”

    My non-expert reading of the document says that it is at the end of the portion of the runway that can be used for takeoff. So that would include displaced thresholds but not include things like EMAS.

    +1 Votes Thumb up 1 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  2. Wes Beard on Jul 13, 2017

    All aircraft are required to plan to cross the designated end of the runway by at least 35 ft. The DER is the physical end of the runway unless a clearway exists. A clearway will increase the declared TODA distance while the TORA distance remains the same. It is my understanding that the aircraft must cross at least 35′ high by 50% of the clearway. I would imagine the TODA would compensate for that but haven’t done the research.

    Read AIM 4-3-6 Declared Distances. There are some other great resources out there on the internet.

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes


The following terms have been auto-detected the question above and any answers or discussion provided. Click on a term to see its definition from the Dauntless Aviation JargonBuster Glossary.

Answer Question

Our sincere thanks to all who contribute constructively to this forum in answering flight training questions. If you are a flight instructor or represent a flight school / FBO offering flight instruction, you are welcome to include links to your site and related contact information as it pertains to offering local flight instruction in a specific geographic area. Additionally, direct links to FAA and related official government sources of information are welcome. However we thank you for your understanding that links to other sites or text that may be construed as explicit or implicit advertising of other business, sites, or goods/services are not permitted even if such links nominally are relevant to the question asked.