Originally Posted by
Uplinker
A fixed wing aircraft would never normally fly below the MSA unless they were landing, or in an extreme emergency.
I usually lurk here as I'm a plank driver but can't let this one go without comment.
MSA is set to give clearance (1,000 ft) over the highest peak or obstacle in a large area (25 nm radius of a navaid or waypoint). Where there are hills there are often valleys. I enjoy flying in the valleys when the peaks are obscured by cloud. I'm often several thousand feet below MSA when flying in my local area. No emergency, no commercial operation, just flying because I enjoy flying.
To put this in perspective - my base airport is at 1,480 ft and has a charted MSA of 7,800 ft!