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Altitudes 
For CPL & ATPL 

 
 
Should’s * -  
ISA  

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

* You should have completed these short courses to understand this module 
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Section 1 Recap 

ISA 
Also known as the ICAO Standard Atmosphere, ISA is a standard against which to compare the 
actual atmosphere at any point and time. 
The ISA is based the following values of pressure, density, and temperature at mean sea level each 
of which decreases with increase in height: 

● Pressure of 1013.2 millibar - Pressure is taken to fall at about 1 millibar per 30 feet in the 
lower atmosphere (up to about 5,000 feet). 

● Temperature of +15 °C - Temperature falls at a rate of 2 °C per 1,000 feet until the 
tropopause is reached at 36,000 feet above which the temperature is assumed to be 
constant at -57 °C. (The precise numbers are 1.98 °C, -56.5 °C and 36,090 feet) 

● Density of 1,225 gm/m3. 

The real atmosphere differs from ISA in many ways. Sea level pressure varies from day to day, and 
there are wide extremes of temperature at all levels. 
  
This is the model ISA. The 
actual temperature at the 
pressure altitudes varies 
from day to day & is 
termed as ISA+ for hot or 
ISA- for colder. I.e. ISA+10 
means temperature at the 
pressure altitude is 10℃ 
higher than what it should 
be in ISA conditions.  

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Notice that the fall of Pressure with Altitude is steeper at lower Altitudes as compared to higher 
altitudes, which means that at 3000 ft if the pressure is dropping @ 1mb / 30 ft at higher altitude it 
will be lesser i.e. 1mb/50 or 60 ft. For lower Altitudes (<5000ft) 1mb/30 ft can be used as a thumb 
rule but not at higher altitudes. 
 
Why ?
International Standard Atmosphere (ISA) is a model used for the standardization of aircraft 
instruments and Performance documentation.​ It was established, with tables of values over a 
range of altitudes, to provide a common reference for temperature and pressure. Flying in 
ISA-plus temperatures will have a negative impact on aircraft performance. If ISA-plus 
temperatures are excessive, aircraft may not climb at the anticipated rate and/or may be unable 
to maintain altitude. 
ISA is a hypothetical model ​– representative of an ideal atmosphere based on the 
thermodynamic equation, as defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization, devoid of 
water vapor, wind, and turbulence. It uses a standard reference for pressure, density, viscosity, 
and temperature at different altitudes throughout the atmosphere. It consists of a table of values 
and indicates how these values change over a range of altitudes. 

How is Altitude measured ? 

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Altitude is measured by measuring the static pressure outside by an instrument called Altimeter. It 
has a window to set the desired pressure setting which is usually set in Hecta Pascal or mb. 

Pressure Altitude 
Pressure Altitude is the Altimeter Reading on STD setting (1013.25 mb).  

Flight Level  
Flight Level is Pressure Altitude Expressed in hundreds of feet . Therefore FL50 means pressure 
altitude of 5000 ft and Altimeter is Set to 1013.25 mb. 
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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Section 2  

Working of an Altimeter 
To understand different Altitudes it is essential that we understand the working of an Altimeter, 
which is explained below. 

 
 
The altimeter is a simple barometer that measures the Ambient Static Pressure, subtracts it from 
the setting on the Pressure Setting selected by the Pilot & displays the Altitude corresponding to 
this pressure in the ISA. In the above picture.  
Ambient Pressure sensed = 300 hPa (Hecto Pascals or Millibar) 
Pressure Setting = 1013 hPa (Set by Pilot Using the Knob marked ‘BARO’) 
Altitude Displayed = 30066 ft (As per ISA) 
 
 
 

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What if I Change the Pressure Setting ? 

In the diagram below, the pressure setting has been changed to 993 mb i.e. 20 mb lower while 
flying at the same altitude i.e. no change in ambient pressure. The difference between the setting 
& the actual pressure is now reduced by 20mb & the altimeter will display an altitude of about 
29550 ft.  
 

 
So, the Altimeter reading is not only dependent on the ambient static pressure but also the 
pressure setting. Since the altimeter functions on the ISA Model but in real life ISA does not always 
exist, by changing the pressure setting we can make the Altimeter read the value of our interest in 
the existing atmosphere. The commonly used Pressure Settings by the Pilots expressed in Q 
Codes are:- 
QNE​ - This implies Standard pressure setting of 1013.25 mb/hPa. The Altimeter reads the ISA 
Altitude or Flight Level or the Altitude above Sea Level in ISA. ​This is also called as Pressure 
Altitude​. Since it is standard it is used during route flying so that everyone is flying on the same 
setting & is separated in vertical plane.   
QNH​ - This is the setting at which the Altimeter will read the altitude from Mean Sea Level in the 
present Atmosphere. This is calculated by the Meteorology Department & given by the ATC Tower. 

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When on ground, on this setting the Altimeter should read the elevation (Height of Ground above 
Sea Level) of the parking ground. You can also move the setting to make the altimeter read the 
known ground elevation to arrive at the QNH but then you wouldn’t know if your altimeter is 
serviceable or not. So, we take the QNH from ATC tower, set it on the altimeter & check that it is 
reading the correct value.  
Since it changes from place to place it is used when flying close to the ground. All Take offs , 
Landings, Instrument Approach Procedures etc are carried out on QNH. The altitude below which 
QNH must be used is called the transition altitude. Above this QNE is used.  
QFE :- This is the Setting at which your altimeter should read zero on ground. This is used for VFR 
flying only to indicate height within a limited area.  
The diagram below shows the altimeter indications when flying at the same physical altitude but 
different altimeter settings.   

 
 

What is True Altitude ? 

As we saw the altimeter indications are based on ISA model. Therefore if the pressure & 
temperature are both as per ISA the altimeter indication will match with the ​geopotential altitude 
also. But that is never the case since ISA is a hypothetical model & rarely exists in day to day life. 
The pressure part is taken care by using Pressure Altitude i.e. The fact that if my altimeter is set to 
1013.25 and it is reading 30000 ft, then the pressure outside is indeed 300mb. Now only the 

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temperature correction has to be applied to arrive at the true geopotential altitude. This is mostly 
never required to be calculated manually in day to day flying except over hilly terrain when you 
find that the actual conditions are grossly in variation with the ISA and safety could be an issue. 
But Ground exams do need you to calculate ! 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

True Altitude = Pressure Altitude x (Actual temperature / ISA Temperature) 

The High - Low - High Rule  

 
So, what happens if you enter a colder Air Mass 
while flying at the same altimeter setting. The rule 
is HIGH - LOW - HIGH i.e High Temperature to Low 
temperature your altimeter will Read Higher than 
True Altitude or OVER-READ. If going from Low 
temperature to High temperature its the opposite. 
I.e. LOW-HIGH-LOW. 

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What is Density Altitude ? 

As we said that one of the purpose of defining ISA was to document & compare performance of 
aeroplanes. The performance of engines, True Air Speed etc..are all dependent on the ambient 
density. Density is a function of pressure and temperature. If my altimeter is reading 0 ft Pressure 
Altitude or Sea Level (i.e. setting of 1013.25 mb), the performance i.e. take off run, climb etc will 
match the sea level performance only if the temperature is also same as that corresponding to 
Sea level in ISA i.e. +15​℃​. But that is rarely the case. So we need to calculate the P
​ ressure 
Altitude at which the prevailing density would exist in ISA​. This is called the density altitude. If 
the temperature at sea level is +30​℃, ​then my density altitude will be higher. 

Density Alt = Pressure Alt + (120 x temperature deviation) 

 

Let’s solve a question 

Given: Pressure Altitude 29000 FT, OAT -55°C. Calculate the Density Altitude? Calculate True 
Altitude ? 

(a) Density Altitude 

 
Density altitude calculations carried out on the Computer are not very accurate. A more accurate 
estimation can be made using the standard equation : 
Density Alt = Pressure Alt + (120 x temperature deviation). 
Where temp deviation is actual temperature – ISA temperature  
Step 1 - Find the ISA temperature at the Pressure Altitude from Computer  
Setting 10 on the inner scale against 10 on the outer scale on the Computer causes the altitude 
window to indicate that at 29000 ft the ISA temperature is -43°C. Subtracting this from the actual 
temperature gives temperature deviation = -12°C. 
Inserting this value into the equation gives : 
Density Alt = 29000 + (120 x (-12)) = 27560 feet. This is closest to 27500 ft . 
Sanity Check - If your Temperature is below ISA the density Altitude will be below your 
Pressure Altitude  

Try yourself - See the answer if you read - 44 or -42 instead of -43 

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(b) True Altitude  
Use Computer  
Step 1 Set ISA on Computer 10 on 10  

 
 
 
 
 
 

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Step 2 - Set & Read 

 

 
True Altitude is 27400 Ft in this case.  
 
 
 
 

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Lets Solve some questions on Pressure Setting  

 

Question 1 
If QNH is 999 hPa, what is the pressure altitude at an elevation of 25000 ft? 

Solution by Formula 
This problem can be solved using the standard equation: 
Pressure altitude = Elevation + (30 x (1013 - QNH)) 
Inserting the data provided in the question gives: 
Pressure altitude = 25000 ft + (30 x (1013 - 999)) which is = 25420 ft, which is closest to option d, 
25400 ft. 
  

Visualise this problem 

In this question elevation is 25000 ft & QNH is 999. This means that my altimeter is reading 25000 
when the pressure is set to 999. Pressure altitude means the altimeter indication when the 
altimeter is set to 1013. So, if i increase the pressure setting to 1013, the altimeter indication will 
increase @30ft / mb. In this case i have to increase pressure setting by 14 mb (1013-999). So my 
altimeter indication will increase by 14x30=420 ft or it will read 25420 now.  
 

Question 2 
If pressure altitude is 3700 ft amsl & QNH is 1000 mb, what is field elevation? 

Solution by Formula 
This problem can be solved using the standard equation: 
Pressure altitude = Elevation + (30 x (1013 - QNH)) 
This can be rearranged to give: 
Elevation = Pressure altitude - (30 x (1013 - QNH)) 
Inserting the data provided in the question gives: 
Elevation = 3700 - (30 x (1013 - 1000)) 
Which is Elevation = 3310 

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Visualise this problem 

Pressure altitude is 3700 ft means altimeter is reading 3700 when pressure is set to 1013. QNH is 
1000 means my altimeter will read the elevation when i set it to 1000. To find the elevation i just 
need to find out what will the altimeter read when pressure is set to 1000. Which is - it will reduce 
from present reading by (1013-1000) X30 = 390 ft or it will read 3700-390 = 3310 ft.  
 
 
 
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