When man overcame the challenge of rising up into the air and managed to reach a destination he himself had traced out, his major concern was that the weather conditions were not adverse and they would enable him conclude his flight as soon as possible. As early aircraft could not fly at high altitudes, pilots could guide themselves and know exactly where they were by looking at the land forms and basing themselves on specific local landmarks, such as railway lines when they travelled in daylight or shipping lights or lighthouses when they moved at night.

Gradually, coinciding with the development of aeronautical techniques, aircraft began to rise up to higher altitudes, even putting up with adverse weather conditions, making it necessary for them to have means other than just the pilot's sight to know exactly where they were flying. It was then that they began to draw up air navigation charts to enable them to know where they were in the skies. These were based on the shipping charts used by ships' crews to know accurately where they were when at sea. This was the origin of the "aeronautical charts": kinds of maps that offer essential data on the routes aircraft must follow.

Discovering Aeronautical Cartography in a very didactic way the whole process this discipline has gone through, from its very beginnings. It helps us learn how to interpret it, its symbols, applications, etc. This book will fill a gap in this task of bringing aeronautics and society closer together, something that Javier Moya and Miguel Bernabé have more than achieved and that Aena is pleased to offer readers who are inquisitive and curious to learn about this science, somewhat of an unknown entity for the general public.

Publication index:
PART I: Background
1. Historical evolution
PART II: Navigation
1. The concept of air navigation
Determining the position of an aircraft
2. Air navigation methods
Autonomous navigation methods
Assisted navigation methods
The flight rules
The purpose of the charts
3. Structure of airspace
The control of the sky
Flight information regions
Controlled airspace
Airspace reserves
Airspace representation
4. Phases and procedures
Rising phase (climb)
Cruising phase (en route)
Descent phase (arrival)
Approach and landing phases
PART III: Cartography
1. General concepts of cartography
Representation of the Earth
Geographic coordinate system
Distances and scales
Cartographic projections
Choice of projections in air navigation
Elements making up a chart
2. Aeronautical charts
Normalisation of aeronautical charts
Needs and requirements
Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP)
Charts published in the AIP of Spain
PART IV: Interpretation
1. Cartographic symbolisation
Simplification and symbolisation
Typology of conventional symbols
2. Guidelines for chart interpretation
Visual flight charts
Instrument flight charts
PART V: Methodology
1. Use of cartography in a visual flight
Charts for observation flights
Selection of verification points
Securing headings, distances and arrival time calculation
In-flight: map reading and orientation
2. Use of cartography in an instrument flight
Flight phases, needed charts and flight plan
Introduction to the flight
Taxi and take-off procedure
Standard Instrument Departure (SID) execution
Cruising (en route) phase execution
Descent (arrival) phase execution
Approach and landing phases execution
Taxi procedure and docking
PART VI: Formats
1.Geographic information use setting
Cockpit
2. Information provision formats
Paper charts
Navigation displays
Electronic cartography
PART VII: The future
1. The cartography of tomorrow
Aeronautical data infraestructures
The e-paper and the augmented reality
In the year 2100