Pilot of small aircraft makes a low pass over a lake within the charted national park area.

Attributes
ACN	406140
Time
Date	199806
Day	Sun
Local Time Of Day	0601 To 1200
Place
Locale Reference	airport : pga
State Reference	AZ
Altitude	agl bound lower : 50 agl bound upper : 500
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Daylight
Aircraft 1
Controlling Facilities	tower : ord
Operator	general aviation : instructional
Make Model Name	Any Unknown or Unlisted Aircraft Manufacturer
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	cruise other other
Flight Plan	VFR
Person 1
Affiliation	Other
Function	flight crew : single pilot
Qualification	pilot : private
Experience	flight time last 90 days : 10 flight time total : 135 flight time type : 85
ASRS Report	406140
Events
Anomaly	non adherence : published procedure
Independent Detector	other flight crewa
Resolutory Action	other
Consequence	Other
Supplementary
Primary Problem	Flight Crew Human Performance
Air Traffic Incident	Pilot Deviation

Narrative:

Flew 1 pass across lake at 50-500 ft AGL. Greater than 1000 ft from boats, tourists on water. Regulations state 'a minimum of 2000 ft AGL is requested' over lake powell. Instructor, others say it is legal to fly below 2000 ft AGL. Regulations are vague. Is it legal or not? Regulating scenic areas with a request leads to confusion for pilots and enforcement agencies.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: PLT OF SMA MAKES A LOW PASS OVER A LAKE WITHIN THE CHARTED NATIONAL PARK AREA.

Narrative: FLEW 1 PASS ACROSS LAKE AT 50-500 FT AGL. GREATER THAN 1000 FT FROM BOATS, TOURISTS ON WATER. REGS STATE 'A MINIMUM OF 2000 FT AGL IS REQUESTED' OVER LAKE POWELL. INSTRUCTOR, OTHERS SAY IT IS LEGAL TO FLY BELOW 2000 FT AGL. REGS ARE VAGUE. IS IT LEGAL OR NOT? REGULATING SCENIC AREAS WITH A REQUEST LEADS TO CONFUSION FOR PLTS AND ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2007 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.