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MINIMUM VECTORING ALTITUDE (MVA)

Pilot/Controller Glossary with JO 7110.65BB, Change 3, effective July 9, 2026 · Official text on faa.gov

The lowest MSL altitude at which an IFR aircraft will be vectored by a radar controller, except as otherwise authorized for radar approaches, departures, and missed approaches. The altitude meets IFR obstacle clearance criteria. It may be lower than the published MEA along an airway or J‐route segment. It may be utilized for radar vectoring only upon the controller's determination that an adequate radar return is being received from the aircraft being controlled. Charts depicting minimum vectoring altitudes are normally available only to the controllers and not to pilots.

Refer to AIM.

Also called MVA.

In the 7110.65

Used in 22 paragraphs of JO 7110.65BB.

  1. 1-2-6Abbreviations
  2. 4-3-2Departure Clearances
  3. 4-5-6Minimum En Route Altitudes (MEA)
  4. 4-7-4Radio Frequency and Radar Beacon Changes for Military Aircraft
  5. 4-8-1Approach Clearance
  6. 4-8-9Missed Approach
  7. 4-8-11Practice Instrument Approaches
  8. 5-6-1Application
  9. 5-6-2Methods
  10. 5-6-3Vectors Below Minimum Altitude
  11. 5-8-1Procedures
  12. 5-8-2Initial Heading
  13. 5-9-1Vectors to Final Approach Course
  14. 5-9-7Simultaneous Independent Approaches- Dual & Triple
  15. 5-9-9Simultaneous Offset Instrument Approaches (SOIA)
  16. 7-4-2Vectors for Visual Approach
  17. 7-4-5Charted Visual Flight Procedures (CVFP). Usa/Usn Not Applicable
  18. 7-4-6RNAV Visual Flight Procedures (RVFP)
  19. 7-7-5Altitude Assignments
  20. 7-8-5Altitude Assignments
  21. 7-9-7Altitude Assignments
  22. 10-2-17Emergency Obstruction Video Map (EOVM)/Emergency Altitude Map (EAM)