How pilots know building clearance when flying into cities vs flatlands

Question

When you fly into somewhere like San Diego or New York, you fly right over the city and are basically directly next to skyscrapers. But when you fly into somewhere like Austin or New Orleans, you’re flying over flatlands. How do pilots know clearance for certain areas, does ground control tell them how best to land or does that not matter?

In: Other

Answer 1

In actual kid terms: the FAA puts out a list every day of obstacles over 500 feet tall. Obstacles on this list need to be identified when you make your flight plan. The list has everything from buildings to antennas to bridges to cranes.