Roll over each instrument to see it labelled. Beginning students should name and roll until the names become second nature.
Adjusting the Kollsman altimeter.
Here are some examples of real aircraft that you can do the same thing with.
The Federal Government has lots of good stuff on its web sites. Most of it is easy to find with a quick search if you’d even think of looking for it. This page is a collection of pages you might not even think to look for. You can search on their site with the search bar, but I often find it easier to search using Google. Here’s an example of a general and specific search:
site:faa.gov "search term\" site:faa.gov fsdo
Electronic Code of Federal Regulations. Technically the FARs are “CFR Title 14, Aeronautics and Space”. Most airmen refer to FAR Part 91 for regulations governing private pilots but government publications usually refer to Title 14, Part 91.
The AIM is online.
It is not searchable but Google has indexed it pretty well:
site:http://www.faa.gov/airports_airtraffic/air_traffic/publications/ATpubs/AIM/ "search term"
This page gets you started on downloading all of the FAA books—like Pilots Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge. Library. Most of these have been updated recently and the text is searchable. Since the questions on the Knowledge Test come word for word from these publications, they are a good thing to have around if you are a student.
Legal Interpretations and the Chief Counsel’s opinions are now available at this site.
This site is organized by letter, so if you know what you want, it is easy to find. If you don’t know what you are looking for use the site search trick with this URL:
http://www.faa.gov/airports_airtraffic/air_traffic/publications/atpubs/PCG/
This site has lots of interesting information.
Search the advisory circulars.
This age has a graphic of Active Special Use Airspace—SUAs and the times that they are scheduled to be active in the next 24 hours. It will display Military Training Routes but that option is not on by default. An airports page lets you put in two airports and it will draw a line between the two so you can see where the flight path would intersect hot MOAs. Unfortunately, it doesn’t work with VORs—just airports. PIREPs from the CPA web site indicate that it is reasonably accurate. It’s still advisable to get flight following and check activity in the air.
Receiver autonomous integrity monitoring (RAIM) is a technology developed to assess the integrity of global positioning system (GPS) signals in a GPS receiver system. It is of special importance in safety-critical GPS applications, such as in aviation or marine navigation. Receiver autonomous integrity monitoring (RAIM) is a technology developed to assess the integrity of global positioning system (GPS) signals in a GPS receiver system. It is of special importance in safety-critical GPS applications, such as in aviation or marine navigation. (Source: Wikipedia
Many receivers have RAIM warnings. In addition, the FAA has a website the predicts locations and times when GPS may not be available on your route of flight.
This site contains the guidance materials used by FAA inspectors in certification, inspection, or surveillance. It contains FAA Order 8900.1, Flight Standards Information Management System, at the same time cancelling Orders 8300.10, 8400.10, and 8700.1 FSIMS provides several different means to access specific information. The site allows you to search by subject: Aircraft, Airmen, Air Operators, Air Agencies, and General. Within each of these subject libraries, you can drill down to more specific information or select a regulation area within each.
There are lots of ways to waste time here.
I never knew the rules for N-Numbers. N-Numbers consist of a series of alphanumeric characters. U.S. registration numbers may not exceed five characters in addition to the standard U.S. registration prefix letter N. These characters may be:
To avoid confusion with the numbers one and zero, the letters I and O are not to be used.
The Type Certificate Data Sheets (TCDS) database is a repository of Make and Model information. The TCDS is a formal description of the aircraft, engine or propeller. It lists limitations and information required for type certification including airspeed limits, weight limits, thrust limitations, etc. It is located here.
This section has forms and info on all aspects of the medical renewal process, including finding an AME, FAQs, and the
MedXpress on-line medical form.
All of the FAA knowledge tests are here in PDF format.
This magazine has news stories on FAA rulings, safety, new regulations, and other items of interest to pilots. It is published bi-monthly and you can subscribe to the paper copy or download the pdf. Link
International commercial air travel has reached levels of safety and convenience which would have been unimaginable just a generation ago. Although almost always extremely tragic events, the lessons from accidents have played an important role in the process to continue improving this safety.
This Lessons Learned From Aviation Accidents library represents some of the most major accidents and their related lessons. The U. S. Federal Aviation Administration, with support from many others, plan to continue adding to this material on an annual basis. The objective is to populate the material with many more of the most historically significant, policy shaping accidents, in order that the lessons that can be learned from their review may be available to all users of the library. Link
This office provides the VFR and IFR charts and the Terminal Procedures Publications (Approach Charts, SIDs, and STARs) that you are familiar with if you’ve studied for the IFR written test. The have a list of downloadable charts. From my browsing it looks like have airport diagrams for all airports with IFR approaches _and_ a control tower, which can be handy for VFR and IFR pilots. Their downloadable User’s Guides are very good.
NOTAMs for your route of flight can be found here. Note: The FAA rearranges their website a lot, so links may change, but a little searching will usually get you what you need.
The ASRS collects voluntarily submitted aviation safety incident/situation reports from pilots, controllers, and others. NASA administers this system. The main site has a link to electronic submission and links to PSF’s for paper submission. The database is searchable.
Controllers and pilots refer to aircraft flying under Part 121 and 135 using company designators, not the type of aircraft as is done in general aviation. You might hear “Amflight 2349 cleared for takeoff”. What you’ll probably see on the runway is an older twin with no markings. You can find out who is flying these aircraft at the AIRCRAFT COMPANY/TELEPHONY/THREE-LETTER DESIGNATOR site.
There are coding and decoding sections. Section 2 lets you decode what you hear to the company name. Here are two that land in SBP every morning.
AMFLIGHT AMERIFLIGHT, INC. (BURBANK, CA) UNITED STATES AMF
PAC VALLEY WESTAIR INDUSTRIES, INC. (CHICO, CA) UNITED STATES PCM
This doesn’t really tell you much unless you notice the UPS truck pulling up to the AMFLIGHT Piper Navajo and the Fedex Logo on the Cessna Caravan that called in as Pac Valley. The regional jets and turbo-props are frequently called things that don’t have any obvious connection to their logos because many of the feeder routes are handled by small airlines under various arrangements. All of these flights are under IFR rules, so if you note the arrival time, you can track them at Flight Aware and find out what kind of plane they are and the name of the operator.
When contacting ATC for flight following or to file a flight plan they will need your type designator. You can find the type at this site. You can decode a type designator on the next page. When filing you also need an equipment code suffix. They are found in the Table 5-1-2 of the AIM. It is currently located here about halfway down the page.
This site has lots of visuals for understanding aerodynamics and propulsion.
ADs are difficult to keep track of. Part of the reason is that an AD might be issued for a specific part that is on a some models of an airplane, but the AD is issued for all aircraft sold by the manufacturer. The best way to track ADs for your airplane is to use software that your A&P has that can pinpoint ADs that apply to your aircraft. Should you want to look up ADs the FAA Airworthiness Directives site is well organized and easy to use.
This might be of interest to you if you are filing an IFR flight plan to one of the airports with a delay. Flight Delay Information
List of TFRs sorted by state.
This site has a map of active Special Use Airspace (SUA). Active times change frequently, so you can’t rely on it and need to check while en route, but it gives you some idea of which areas are hot.
The Bureau of Land Management provides current and interactive aviation charts displaying complete graphic and textual Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) information to help pilots plan and execute safe flight operations. The web site is here.
Civil Air Regulations (CARs)
The Civil Air Regulations were part of the original certification basis for aircraft first certified in the 1940’s, 1950’s, and 1960’s by the Civil Aeronautics Administration. As such, the CARs may still be needed as a reference for older aircraft, or as a standard for minor changes to older aircraft designs.
Civil Aeronautics Manuals (CAMs)
Civil Aeronautics Manual policies provide detailed technical information on acceptable methods of complying with the regulations. Such policies are for the guidance of the public and not mandatory.
Aeronautical Bulletins
Prior to the establishment of the Civil Air Regulations (CAR) by the Civil Aeronautics Authority in 1938, the aeronautical regulations used during 1926 until 1938 were the Aeronautical Bulletins.
A link to PDFs is here.
The FAA’s Regulatory & Guidance Library contains many aviation regulatory, certification and safety information documents. The page contains:
FAA NAIMES PilotWeb NOTAM System is a portal with links NOTAMs, TFRs, WAAS Availability Predictions, ICAO Airport listings by country and more.
NTSB PART 830 NOTIFICATION AND REPORTING OF AIRCRAFT ACCIDENTS OR INCIDENTS AND OVERDUE AIRCRAFT, AND PRESERVATION OF AIRCRAFT WRECKAGE, MAIL, CARGO, AND RECORDS
The NTSB has a YouTube video channel with interesting accident recreations and reports.
NTSB Accident Database is an aviation accident database contains information from 1962 and later about civil aviation accidents and selected incidents within the United States, its territories and possessions, and in international waters.
A vertical stabilizer provides lateral stability to minimize yaw. The vertical stabilizer is sometimes referred to as the fin. There is a part of the airplane that extends along the top of the fuselage and connects to the vertical stabilizer. In some airplanes, like the Pilatus and Cessna 150 below
this part looks like it could have a substantial impact on yaw forces.
In other cases, like the Cherokee 140
it looks like it is mostly for inspecting the tail fin attachment.
My question is, “Does it have a name?”
Maybe. (2017-02-19)
In the Cessna 170 and Cessna 182 parts catalog, the part is much smaller, but it is called a “dorsal fin”. It is about the same size as a C152 on the C210 and has the same name. So at least for Cessna, the part is called a “dorsal fin”.
The PA-28 Cherokee manual just calls it a “Fairing – Fin”.
Communication between ATC and aircraft is facilitated by the use of a phonetic alphabet to refer to numbers and letters. This avoids confusion between similar sounding letters (p/b, t/d, m/n) and numbers (3/t, 9/5).
From the FAA site.
| Letter | Pronunciation | Letter | Pronunciation | Letter | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Alpha | J | Juliett | S | Sierra |
| B | Bravo | K | Kilo | T | Tango |
| C | Charlie | L | Lima | U | Uniform |
| D | Delta | M | Mike | V | Victor |
| E | Echo | N | November | W | Whiskey |
| F | Foxtrot | O | Oscar | X | X-ray |
| G | Golf | P | Papa | Y | Yankee |
| H | Hotel | Q | Quebec | Z | Zulu |
| I | India | R | Romeo |
| Number | Name | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Zero | ZE-RO |
| 1 | One | WUN |
| 2 | Two | TOO |
| 3 | Three | TREE |
| 4 | Four | FOW-ER |
| 5 | Five | FIFE |
| 6 | Six | SIX |
| 7 | Seven | SEV-EN |
| 8 | Eight | AIT |
| 9 | Nine | NIN-ER |
There is also a good reference in the AIM.
Wikipedia has a good entry on the history of the phonetic alphabet.
Ken Jenks has a post on the Radio Alphabet that includes sound files.
The International Telecommunications Union site has a version as well. Note that they use different pronunciations for the numbers.
If you listen carefully for a while, you’ll find that most pilots mispronounce “Papa” by placing the emphasis on the first syllable. They also mispronounce “Quebec” by pronouncing it as the city (kwa BECK) rather than (keh BECK). Usage is split on 9 (NINE) vs. (NINE er). I have never heard anyone say 3 correctly (TREE).
There is a page here that you can use to practice the names of the phonetic alphabet letters.
Once you have your pilot certificate it never expires but there are things you need to do to exercise all of the privileges associated with your certificate. I thought I’d put all of the currency rules in one place and annotate them.
A pilot needs a Flight Review every 24 months. Like most other flying related things, the 24 month period goes thru the end of the month. For example; my last flight review was on October 25, 2005 so I was legal to fly thru October 31, 2007. I had a flight review on November 28, 2007 that now makes me current until November 30, 2009.
There are several things that restart the clock, just like a Flight Review. Passing a pilot proficiency check for a pilot certificate, rating, or operating privilege; or completing a phase Wings program, count as a Flight Review. So getting an instrument rating, or adding a category or class rating, like Multi-engine eliminate the need for a Flight Review. Getting a CFI or CFII certificate does _not_ count since it is not a pilot proficiency check. (FAA Opinion pdf) Getting a high-performance, complex, or tail-wheel endorsement do not count, unless you specifically make it part of your Flight Review and your instructor concurs and and signs your logbook appropriately.
There are two parts to a flight review, 1 hour of ground and 1 hour of flight training. The FARs are fairly vague on what is required so I usually pick something that I’d like to know more about or that I think I need practice in for the review. I have just started flying a Cessna T210, so we did crosswind landings for 2 hours and spent the ground time talking about landing characteristics of the airplane. This was enough to persuade my CFI that I have the skills necessary for the pilot to demonstrate the safe exercise of the privileges of the pilot certificate.
You can do your flight review in any aircraft for which you are rated and it counts for all of the aircraft for which you are rated. You can do your review in a Cherokee and then fly a tailwheel Citabria, a twin Cessna 310, Lake Amphibian, or any other aircraft for which you are rated.
No person may act as pilot in command of an aircraft carrying passengers… unless that person has made three takeoffs and three landings within the preceding 90 days, and—
(i) The person acted as sole manipulator of the controls; and
(ii) The required takeoffs and landings were performed in the same category, class, and type (if a type rating is required), and, if the aircraft to be flown is an airplane with a tailwheel, the takeoffs and landings must have been made to a full stop in an airplane with a tailwheel.
These are the rules for part 91 pilots, there are exceptions for pilots flying for airline operations and turbine-powered aircraft.
…no person may act as pilot in command of an aircraft carrying passengers during the period beginning 1 hour after sunset and ending 1 hour before sunrise, unless within the preceding 90 days that person has made at least three takeoffs and three landings to a full stop during the period beginning 1 hour after sunset and ending 1 hour before sunrise, and—
(i) That person acted as sole manipulator of the flight controls; and
(ii) The required takeoffs and landings were performed in an aircraft of the same category, class, and type (if a type rating is required).
This is one of the three “dark periods” that the regulations refer to. Refer to Day and Night for Pilots” for more info. Note also that the regulations refer to Category and Class. If you make the required takeoffs and landings in a Cessna 152 (Single engine land) then you are legal to carry passengers in a Cessna 210, Bonanza A36, or any other single engine tri-cycle gear plane.
For Part 91 operations,
Day/Night – 3 takeoffs and 3 landings within 90 days. Full stop at night and if carrying passengers in a taildragger. Must be made in category, class, and type of aircraft that is used to carry passengers.
…no person may act as pilot in command under IFR or in weather conditions less than the minimums prescribed for VFR, unless within the preceding 6 calendar months, that person has:
(1) For the purpose of obtaining instrument experience in an aircraft (other than a glider), performed and logged under actual or simulated instrument conditions, either in flight in the appropriate category of aircraft for the instrument privileges sought or in a flight simulator or flight training device that is representative of the aircraft category for the instrument privileges sought—
(i) At least six instrument approaches;
(ii) Holding procedures; and
(iii) Intercepting and tracking courses through the use of navigation systems.
(d) Instrument proficiency check. Except as provided in paragraph (e) of this section, a person who does not meet the instrument experience requirements of paragraph (c) of this section within the prescribed time, or within 6 calendar months after the prescribed time, may not serve as pilot in command under IFR or in weather conditions less than the minimums prescribed for VFR until that person passes an instrument proficiency check consisting of a representative number of tasks required by the instrument rating practical test.
The instrument proficiency check must be in an aircraft that is appropriate to the aircraft category
and given by an examiner, a company check pilot, an authorized instructor, or a person approved by the Administrator to conduct instrument practical tests.
I omitted the parts relating to gliders in the section above. The rule is pretty self-explantory. If you haven’t made the required flights in the previous six-month period, you have a six month period to get current on your own (with a safety pilot) before you need to take an instrument proficiency check with an instructor or examiner. The use of months in the regulation implies that it follows the usual month rule in the regulations. In Section 31 of this document the FAA clarified its rule.
For example, if a pilot is intending to act as pilot in command under IFR (or in weather conditions less than the minimums prescribed for VFR) on a flight on February 24, 2007, and the pilot has not completed the required instrument recent flight experience of proposed Sec. 61.57(c), then the pilot would count backwards 12 calendar months from the date of the flight. Thus, the pilot would have to have performed and logged the instrument recent flight experience requirements at sometime between February 24, 2007, and February 1, 2006, to avoid being required to submit to an instrument proficiency check.
The student pilot certificate expires 24 calendar months from the month in which it is issued.
A flight instructor certificate is effective only while the holder has a current pilot certificate and expires in 24 calendar months. Details on how to renew are contained in § 61.197(b)
Ground instructor certificates don’t expire, but instructors must perform ground instruction for at least 3 months in a 12 month period, or receive an endorsement from an authorized ground or flight instructor.
Medical certificates are required on a regular basis in order to exercise the privileges of the pilot certificate. I’ll cover those in a later post.
The winds along the Central Coast of California are sometimes strong, but usually onshore so runways are pretty much lined up with the wind. When they vary in direction it is usually because of thermal activity so they are fairly light. In the fall the Santa Ana’s can be very strong and from directions where we don’t normally get wind. Winds in the mountains can also be variable as well. My private-pilot-exam cross-country flight plan was to (Mojave) where there are some strong winds. When I did my flight planning the winds were 180° at 34 kts. Mojave has three runways, 12/30, 8/26 and 4/22. So the question was, which one to expect and could I land there.
First note that ATIS and ASOS give wind direction using magnetic north not true north. This differs from the METARs/TAFs and the Winds Aloft forecast which uses true north. Runway headings are also determined using magnetic north so the direction matches what you hear when you get the numbers. A good way to remember the difference is that, Text is True. Anything you read (METAR’s, TAF’s, FD’s, Wx Charts) is True. Anything your hear (ATIS, ASOS) is Magnetic.
The simplest way to calculate the crosswind component is to use the chart on the back of the E6B and shown below.
The crosswind component table doesn’t have all of the wind speeds or directions so you need to interpolate to get an answer. Linear interpolation is close enough. In this case the wind of 34 kts is 40% of the way from 30 kts and 40 kts in the table. The table below calculates the crosswind component for various runways. I didn’t calculate the crosswind component for a tailwind and indicate them with a T. (Note: Subtract the smaller number from the bigger number. If the crosswind component is greater than 90°, there is a tailwind.1)
| Runway | Angle of Wind | Calculations | Crosswind |
| 12/30 | 60/120 | 40% * (35 − 26) + 26 = 29.6 | 29 / T |
| 4/22 | 140/40 | 40% * (26 − 19) + 19 = 21.8 | T / 22 |
| 8/26 | 100/80 | 40% * (39 − 30) + 30 = 33.6 | T / 34 |
You can also find the crosswind and headwind components by using this chart from the AIM. (FIG 4−3−4)
You can find the Maximum Demonstrated Crosswind Component (MDCC) in the POH if your aircraft was built after 1975. Most light aircraft have a MDCC of around 15-17 kts and that is what I use for the Cessna 182 I flew on the checkride. There are no runways that would work for landing. The examiner then asked, “What would you do if you had to land.” I’m not sure that I would have come up with this answer in the air, but taxiway E looks like it is at about 190°. The crosswind component would be less than 10 kts and it is plenty long. So, if I had an emergency or low fuel and had to land, I could ask the tower to land into the wind on Echo and do a short field landing.
Last week as part of my Flight Review we went to Paso Robles to practice crosswind landings.
The ASOS indicated wind from 080 at 12 kts and I was flying a 1973 Cessna T210 that was made before MDCC numbers were put in the POH. The MDCC is probably 21 kts for this plane.
| Runway | Angle of Wind | Calculations | Crosswind |
| 01/19 | 70/110 | 20% * (19 − 9) + 9 = 11.0 | 11 / T |
| 13/31 | 50/130 | 20% * (15 − 8) + 8 = 9.4 | 9 / T |
Either Rwy 1 or 13 would be good for landing. A Cherokee in front of us was using 13 so we opted to follow them in. When landing with a strong crosswind you need to continue flying the plane after it is on the runway and keep the aileron turned into the wind. We did a full stop landing so I could practice controlling the plane until it is off the runway. The main thing is to fly through the rollout keeping the ailerons turned into the wind until the wind has little capability to cause you problems. On the taxi back we noticed that the windsock was fully extended. We guessed that the wind had picked up and was at least 15 kts at 090°.
| Runway | Angle of Wind | Calculations | Crosswind |
| 01/19 | 80/100 | 50% * (20 − 10) + 10 = 20.0 | 11 / T |
| 13/31 | 40/140 | 50% * (15 − 8) + 8 = 15.0 | 9 / T |
We decided to switch to Rwy 01 since it is the one most commonly used and the wind was almost directly off the right. These were challenging landings but after doing six marginal landings, the last two were fine and we called it a day.
1 Technically to find the angle between the Wind Direction and the True Course you subtract TC from WD using mod 360 arithmetic. If the wind is 090 and the runway is 31 then 090−310=−220. Since it is modulus 360 arithmetic, add 360 to -220 to get 140. Another way to think about it is that the wind is 90° to the right of North and the runway is 50° to the left of North. The angle between the two is 90 + 50 = 140°. This angle is more than 90° so it is a tailwind. You can use the chart to calculate corsswind and tailwind component by subtracting 90° from the angle. Use the chart just as you would with a positive difference but now the headwind component would actually be a tailwind component. The crosswind component would still be positive.
These calculations are fine for doing the written tests but rather difficult to do in the cockpit. Even the table lookup can be challenging on final. You can quickly and fairly accurately calculate the crosswind component using the clock method.
Compare this to the chart and it’s surprisingly close.
The night before she gave me a cross country assignment (Mojave) and four problems to work out. Weight and Balance, Crosswind component, Takeoff distance, and density altitude.
We started out looking at the documents. She wanted me to show her that we were legal to fly. She needed to see the AR(R)OW docs and the logs. Then she asked about the logs. She asked about when the ELT and Transponder needed to be checked and how we can tell that all of the ADs were complied with. She was satisfied with my answer that we pay Pat, our mechanic, to make sure that everything is done correctly when he does the annual. Though she implied that printing out all of the ADs and checking the log to be sure they were complied with would be a good idea. This turns out to be a very good idea. Your IA will have access to a computer program that will print out all of the AD’s that apply to your aircraft. Go over it carefully.
She told me her weight (130) the night before and that we would have 20 lbs of gear for Weight and Balance. My book had very small graphs that are hard to read near the boundary of the CG so I went to the FAA web site and downloaded the type specification for my plane so I could get the actual arm and CG data. I told her about how I had calculated various scenarios and that if my dad and I wanted to fly together one of us would have to lose twenty pounds or we would have to put a bag of sand in the back. She didn’t ask to look at my calculations, she just wanted to know if we were ok to fly.
For the Crosswind exercise—the wind was at 180 at 34 knots in Mojave—none of the runways were appropriate for landing. She wanted to know what I would do if we were low on fuel. If you look at the runway picture, there is a taxiway that is at 180/360 so it would be a good place to land. She didn’t look at the takeoff distance problem. We looked at a PIREP and I decoded the info. We talked about what to do if you lose power on takeoff, and off the record, she said that my plane (Cessna 182) could probably glide back to Rwy 29 or 25 at 500’ and that I should take it up and check it out sometime. This is actually harder than it seems, I think I could make it back at 800′ but not lower.
We talked about the density altitude problem and high altitude takeoffs. She asked some questions that seem to be taken from the Oral Exam Guide. Several questions on stuff I forgot like, whether a transponder was required in Class C airspace, but I looked them up in the FAR/AIM. We talked about spins and stalls, and she asked me if I had heard of the PARE mnemonic for remembering what to do in a spin. (I hadn’t).
We looked briefly at my cross country plan on the map, but she didn’t look at my calculations or weather summary. (The weather part took me several hours to compile since it was marginal over most of the route, but possibly clearing.) We made a decision to postpone the checkride until there was better visibility. The weather was much better on Tuesday, but the wind was gusty. We started off with a short field takeoff. We got knocked around a bit in the air and encountered several updrafts which made maintaining altitude difficult. We did a quick speed check over AG to validate my flight plan, then did the hood work, since we were at 4,500 ft. I flew straight and level for a while then did some turns, and she did three unusual attitudes, though they weren’t too far off from straight and level.
We went over the ocean for the 45 degree banked turns and then a rough engine exercise. She wanted me to actually pull out the carb heat, push in the mixture, etc. Everything except touch the throttle. I’d never practiced it by actually working the knobs before. I don’t remember practicing a rough engine exercise so I did the same thing you would do for an engine out, set the airspeed at best rate of glide and look for someplace to land. Since I had power, I should have just tried to maintain altitude and spiral in to a landing at Oceano. She doesn’t actually land there, because of the noise issues.
We had almost no wind for the S turns so she skipped the rectangular course and turns around a point. We did slow flight for a while, then headed back to SLO for a straight in approach. The controller asked me to do S turns on the way in so I didn’t have a really stabilized approach. Even though the ATIS said there was wind, I didn’t expect to get knocked around as much as I did on the landing since we had just done S turns with no wind. I landed a little rough but close to the centerline and rather than do a touch and go pulled off at Kilo since I didn’t feel that I had enough control over the airplane for a TnGo. She asked if I wanted to continue and I said that I was just surprised by the wind, but was willing to do the rest of the TnGo’s. We did a short field and then one with no flaps and they were much better. She said she does the first landing so you can judge the wind for the other landings.
I know I went 50 feet over on my right 45° turn rollout, I didn’t do the right thing for the rough engine exercies, I had a turn that I thought was too steep in my S-turn on final, and I called ground rather than tower on the taxiback, otherwise I think I was within tolerances for everything. We went back to the FBO and she told me to wait downstairs while she did some paperwork. At that point I wasn’t sure that I had passed, but a few minutes later she came back down with my temporary certificate so I was good to go.
This link is an video of the oral portion of a practical test. It’s rather thorough but over an hour long.
There are all kinds of cool airplanes out there and sometimes when I see one I want to ask someone what it is. That’s not always possible but you can always find out if you know the N number. Go to the FAA registry and type in the N number. Suppose you put in N7290J (one of the planes I sometimes fly). You get the following info.
| Serial Number | 2824642 | Type Registration | Partnership | |||
| Manufacturer Name | PIPER | Certificate Issue Date | 01/08/2002 | |||
| Model | PA-28-140 | Status | Valid | |||
| Type Aircraft | Fixed Wing Single-Engine | Type Engine | 4 Cycle | |||
| Pending Number Change | None | Dealer | No | |||
| Date Change Authorized | None | Mode S Code | 52343534 | |||
| MFR Year | 1968 |
Now I happen to know that a PA-28 is a Cherokee and the 140 refers to the 140 hp engine. If I don’t know I can go to the ICAO Aircraft Type Designators site and look it up. It turns out that the PA28 designation is no longer the official designation. The new info is
PIPER Cherokee (PA-28-140/150/160/180) P28A I’m guessing they made the change because Piper built lots of different airplanes on the same basic airframe and calls everything from a 140 HP Cherokee to a 200 HP retractable Arrow II a PA28 and controllers need to be able to distinguish between them. You can view the Type Certificate Data Sheets at an FAA site. It looks like Piper started with a 160 HP Cherokee in 1960 and used the same type certificate for lots of Cherokees, Arrows, and Dakotas so it takes a bit of digging to find this one. There is lots of information on props and engines, center of gravity data, and speeds. One bit of information that is usually there and sometimes not in the Owners Manual for older planes is the maneuvering speed.
If you care you can also go to the FAA Make/Model site to find out how many are registered and in which states. Then to waste more time I go to Airliners.net and look for more pictures. There aren’t many in their archives, since they have mainly airliners, but here are some.
The really interesting ones are experimental. This familiar-looking but different plane is a KitFox but the manufacturer of experimental planes is the builder so that’s what it says in the manufacturer section. I especially like the underbelly cargo pod and the see-through doors.
| Serial Number | S69912-006 | Type Registration | Individual | |||
| Manufacturer Name | OLIVER ROBERT K | Certificate Issue Date | None | |||
| Model | OLIVER SERIES 6 | Status | Valid | |||
| Type Aircraft | Fixed Wing Single-Engine | Type Engine | Reciprocating | |||
| Pending Number Change | None | Dealer | No | |||
| Date Change Authorized | None | Mode S Code | 50147543 | |||
| MFR Year | 2000 | Fractional Owner | NO | |||
| Kit Manufacturer | SKYSTAR ACFT CO | Kit Model | KITFOX SERIES 7 |
There are a lot of things about flying that I have a hard time remembering and a lot of things that I find confusing at first glance. I figured that if I have trouble others might too, so I’ve collected my thoughts here. There are lots of things that I just find interesting that appear here as well.
In general, if I quote from a FAR (14 CFR) I’ll put it in italics along with a reference to the section, unless I’m quoting long sections. If I paraphrase i’ll just put the section number. I’ll often leave out parts that don’t apply to the topic, e.g. rules specific to gliders, or rules for ATPs. I’ll indicate missing text with an ellipsis, …. In general, I’ll indicate text that is quoted or paraphrased by citing the source if it is important, but for many things, like the rules for assigning N-Numbers, I’ll quote or rephrase things from the FARs, FAA Web site, or other government publications without attribution. It should be obvious from the context where I got the information if you want to verify things for yourself. If I quote from another web site or book, I’ll always indicate the source and put the quoted text in italics or quote marks.
Update 2017-02-19: The website addresses for the FAA articles and the FARs frequently change. I am in the process of deleting references to the FARs since you can find them yourself at the government website. Right now Title 14 is at e-CFR DATA. If you can’t find an article at the link, search engines are pretty good at finding the content based on the old link or the context of the article. Keep in mind that many FAA documents are updated on a semi-regular basis and that they increment the version with letters. e.g. FAA Order JO 7400.9 is on version Z. So when you search for the current version, leave out the last letter.
The Detroit/Pontiac branch of NOAA’s National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office had a glossary of weather terms that you can get through the Internet Archive. It includes common terms that every airman should know like Air Mass Thunderstorm as well as less common terms like Alberta Clipper that apply to certain areas of the country. I especially like the odd-ball terms like Achluophobia: The fear of darkness.
Another good source of weather terms is A Pilot’s Guide to Aviation Weather Services. This brochure contains a description of services offered, how to obtain weather information from various sources, and a list of contractions used in aviation weather forecasts. Its a bit scattered but has lots of good info.
NOAA also has the ASOS Guide for Pilots. This is the computer generated ATIS recording at non-towered airports and at towered airports when a weather observer is not present. The information contained in the ground-to-air radio broadcast message and the telephone dial-in message are identical.
Many weather products give decoded METARs and TAFs but you often run across the coded versions when space is at a premium. The Garmin 495 with XM weather is an example. You can roll across an airport and get the coded METAR. One way to get practice decoding METARS and TAFs is to use the Aviation Digital Data Service. Here is the current and here is the forecast weather for San Luis Obispo. (Update: 2012-07-07 The format has chanced, so you’ll need to update your bookmarks.) You can easily get practice decoding the terms by looking at airports that are having interesting weather. To get the weather at other locations, look for the “station_ids=KSBP” and simply change the KSBP airport code to your code. Note that it is not case sensitive.
You can string together airports in with a + sign. So, station_ids=KSBP+KSMX+KPRB+KSBA will give you the metar or TAFs for all of the listed airports. Here is an example where I have my home airport and two nearby airports as well as likely VFR airports north, east, and south of here.
Here are some airports around the country to get you started.
You used to be able to get METARs and TAFs on the same page and then they changed the input strings and I couldn’t figure out how to do it. A commenter figured it out. Use the Metars link and add chk_tafs and chk_metars as shown below.
http://www.aviationweather.gov/adds/metars?station_ids=ksbp&std_trans=translated&chk_metars=on&hoursStr=most+recent+only&chk_tafs=on&submitmet=Submit
Here’s my home airport: KSBP
The Alaska FAA Office has had a document on-line that was written to show how the old-style Surface Observations (SA) convert to the METAR format. They have had several examples and tables that summarize the new terms. They might still be somewhere on the site, but I can’t find them. The sky cover table and the Notations for Reporting Weather table are good summaries of the abbreviations used in METARs. I’ve reproduced Sky Cover and Notations.
The Federal Meteorological Handbook No. 1 – Surface Weather Observations and Reports can be viewed as a series of PDFs. The METAR home page has FAQs and historical information on METARs and TAFs. The Quick Reference Guide is especially useful.
The Plymouth State University Meteorology Program Weather Center has archived METARs for the US and Canada going back to 1998.
If you run across terms that you don’t know, the AMS Glossary can help.
Beginning on November 5, 2008 some larger international airports are moving to a 30 hour TAF. The weather portion remains the same. TAFs for all airports will have a small change in the date and time area to conform to ICAO standards and accommodate the change in forecast period. Details can be found on the National Weather Service site. The change appends the day to the forecast period, FM, PROB, TEMPO times.
Updated: 2016-01-04
Update: 2017-02-23 I can’t find anything in the AIM or FAA docs about RITTRs so I suspect that they never happened or were test areas for Terminal Arrival Areas (TAA).
From the Piper Flyer article RITTRs Understood.
“The NPRM defines a RITTR as a low altitude route based on Area Navigation for GPS-equipped aircraft designed to expedite the handling of IFR overflight traffic through busy terminal airspace areas. From this definition emerge three key concepts that pilots wishing to use these routes should understand.
First, RITTRs are only available to GPS-equipped aircraft. Although the NPRM specifically referenced their availability to aircraft eligible to file “/G” in their flight plan, the routes are also available to aircraft that file “/E” and “/F.” The latter two prefixes are for aircraft equipped with Flight Management Systems.
Second, RITTRs exist only in the vicinity of Class B or other highly congested airspaces. You can spot these routes on NACO and Jeppesen low-en route charts as they are the airways charted in blue, instead of the traditional black. They have the prefix “T” (for Tango) and a number between 200 and 500. They are not less than 12, nor more than 500, nautical miles in length. The minimum length requirement appears to be based on issues of chart clutter, but the rationale for the maximum length restriction is not so clear.
Third, because they are GPS-based, they are charted with a Minimum En route Altitude containing a “G” suffix (i.e., 2800G). This MEA may be lower than the MEAs for nearby Victor airways because the RITTR does not depend on receiving signals from VORs, which are often subject to constraints dictated by local geography. A RITTR may also be charted with a Maximum Authorized Altitude (MAA). For example, T213, located to the west of Cincinnati, has an MAA of 8000. MAAs may be necessitated by the arrival and departure paths commonly used at the underlying airport.
Note that although RITTRs are defined by GPS coordinates, the starting and ending points will always be located within Victor airways. In other words, a RITTR will not have a GPS en route fix as its starting or ending location; instead, it will intersect a Victor airway. The stated purpose for this requirement, according to the NPRM, is “to provide connectivity between the RITTR and the low altitude en route structure.””
I’ve been listening to the JFK tower and approach on LiveATC. It is interesting to listen to the takeoffs and landings at parallel runways like JFK, Las Vegas, or LAX. Landings usually take place on the runway farthest from the terminal and then the planes taxi and hold short of the active takeoff runway. Even though these guys are professionals ATC still has to remind some of them that they must read back the hold short instructions.
A clue to which runway is used for takeoffs and which for landings is that the takeoff runway is usually longer than the landing runway.
LiveATC now has an iPhone app so you can listen when you aren’t near your computer. I just bought it and my home field is listed. You can view details here. For new pilots and anyone learning to copy clearances, I think this app (or the website) can dramatically reduce the time required to learn proper radio technique.
I was listening to the tower at JFK and pulled up the airport diagram to follow along. I noticed the notation EMAS and 392 × 226 at the approach end of Rwy 22L.
The Google Maps image below shows what it looks like from the air.
It turns out that there are many airports that do not have a Runway Safety Area overrun of 1,000′ available and some of them use an engineered concrete overrun to slow planes that would otherwise overrun the end of the runway. The details are in this FAA document and a 2016 update.
The picture below is the EMAS at Greenville, SC that stopped a Mystere Falcon 900 airplane that ran off the runway in July 2006.
Chevrons on the runway mean don’t land on that part of the runway. If you are ever tempted to land on the chevrons because you think that the chevrons just mean that the runway won’t support the weight of the big guys and it will be fine for your little 172, you could be in for a surprise.
Our local airport is one of the first to get an EMAS installed. You can see a distinct difference between the EMAS and normal pavement.
AOPA has a good course on GPS usage. Garmin has a simulator that you can use to explore the features of their GPS products.
GPS has a 100′ horizontal accuracy. If augmented with WAAS it has 10′ horizontal accuracy. The WAAS capability also allows approaches with vertical guidance—LPV and LNAV/VNAV.
Terms to know:
GPS CDI measures distance off course, unlike VOR mode which measures degrees off course.
AIM 1−1−17. Global Positioning System (GPS)
5. GPS Instrument Approach Procedures (3) When an approach has been loaded in the navigation system, GPS receivers will give an “arm” annunciation 30 NM straight line distance from the airport/heliport reference point. Pilots should arm the approach mode at this time if not already armed (some receivers arm automatically). Without arming, the receiver will not change from en route CDI and RAIM sensitivity of ±5 NM either side of centerline to ±1 NM terminal sensitivity. Where the IAWP is inside this 30 mile point, a CDI sensitivity change will occur once the approach mode is armed and the aircraft is inside 30 NM. Where the IAWP is beyond 30 NM from the airport/heliport reference point and the approach is armed, the CDI sensitivity will not change until the aircraft is within 30 miles of the airport/heliport reference point. Feeder route obstacle clearance is predicated on the receiver being in terminal (±1 NM) CDI sensitivity and RAIM within 30 NM of the airport/heliport reference point; therefore, the receiver should always be armed (if required) not later than the 30 NM annunciation.
(5) When within 2 NM of the Final Approach Waypoint (FAWP) with the approach mode armed, the approach mode will switch to active, which results in RAIM and CDI changing to approach sensitivity. Beginning 2 NM prior to the FAWP, the full scale CDI sensitivity will smoothly change from ±1 NM to ±0.3 NM at the FAWP. As sensitivity changes from ±1 NM to ±0.3 NM approaching the FAWP, with the CDI not centered, the corresponding increase in CDI displacement may give the impression that the aircraft is moving further away from the intended course even though it is on an acceptable intercept heading. Referencing the digital track displacement information (cross track error), if it is available in the approach mode, may help the pilot remain position oriented in this situation. Being established on the final approach course prior to the beginning of the sensitivity change at 2 NM will help prevent problems in interpreting the CDI display during ramp down. Therefore, request- ing or accepting vectors which will cause the aircraft to intercept the final approach course within 2 NM of the FAWP is not recommended.
Within 30 nm of the destination airport, but not yet within 2.0 nm of the final approach fix (FAF), the GPS receiver is operating in Terminal Mode with the CDI depicting a total course width of 2.0 nm. GPS switches to approach mode 2nm before the FAF. Full CDI deflection becomes .3 nm. In most cases GPS sensitivity in approach mode stays the same regardless of distance to the waypoint. However, when a WAAS-certified receiver is used to fly an LPV approach, once past the FAF the CDI needles will behave like localizer/glideslope needles, becoming more sensitive as the aircraft proceeds down the final approach course.
The OBS display when using GPS navigation differs from the OBS display when navigating using a VOR or localizer. In VLOC mode, the CDI needle sensitivity increases as an aircraft flies closer to the station because the CDI displays the angular deviation from the course. If the aircraft remains the same distance from the course, CDI needle deflection will increase as the aircraft gets closer to the VOR. In GPS mode the CDI needle deflection displays the distance from the course. If the aircraft remains the same distance from the course, CDI needle deflection will remain the same as the aircraft gets closer to the waypoint.
WAAS-enabled GPS units will begin to display angular deviation when the aircraft approaches the FAF of an LPV approach.
To summarize: En route full scale CDI deviation is 5nm. Terminal is 1 nm. Approach mode is .3 nm
9) Pilots should pay particular attention to the exact operation of their GPS receivers for performing holding patterns and in the case of overlay approaches, operations such as procedure turns. These procedures may require manual intervention by the pilot to stop the sequencing of waypoints by the receiver and to resume automatic GPS navigation sequencing once the maneuver is complete.
On the Garmin 430 for example, press the OBS key before entering the holding pattern, before executing a course reversal, before proceeding to the first waypoint in the missed approach procedure.
As pilots we often talk about night flying and daytime flying meaning when it is dark or light, but for logging time and for currency there are specific definitions that we must pay attention to.
FAR 1.1 General Definitions
Night means the time between the end of evening civil twilight and the beginning of morning civil twilight, as published by the American Air Almanac, converted to local time.
Day is not defined in the FARs but the definition of night implies that it is the time between the beginning of morning civil twilight and the end of evening civil twilight.
The Air Almanac is published annually on CD-ROM but you can find sunset, sunrise, and civil twilight times for specific locations at the US Naval Observatory website.
The time between sunrise/sunset and twilight is 26-30 minutes depending on the time of year. Since you can easily find sunrise/sunset information in newspapers, the weather channel, etc. you can estimate twilight fairly easily.
§61.57 (b) (1) … no person may act as pilot in command of an aircraft carrying passengers during the period beginning 1 hour after sunset and ending 1 hour before sunrise, unless within the preceding 90 days that person has made at least three takeoffs and three landings to a full stop during the period beginning 1 hour after sunset and ending 1 hour before sunrise, and…
Only Class G airspace has different minimums depending on night and day and they use the standard night definition—end of evening twilight to the beginning of morning twilight.
Aircraft lighting is required between sunset and sunrise.
§91.209 During the period between sunset and sunrise no person may 1. operate an aircraft unless it has lighted position lights, 2. park or move an aircraft in an area of an airport where night operations are being conducted unless it is clearly illuminated, has position lights, or is in an area marked by obstruction lights.
In order to obtain a private pilot certificate night training is required. The commercial pilot certificate required solo night flights. In these cases the standard night definition—end of evening twilight to the beginning of morning twilight—applies.
AIM 4-4-6 g. Special VFR operations are prohibited between sunset and sunrise unless the pilot is instrument rated and the aircraft equipped for IFR flight.
Logging of night flight should be made in accordance with Part 1 definitions, which is from the end of evening civil twilight to the start of morning civil twilight. This differs from the definition used for night currency.
Position lights – sunset to sunrise
Special VFR – except sunset to sunrise unless instrument rated
Carry Passengers – 1 hour after sunset to 1 hour before sunrise
Everything else – evening twilight to morning twilight
Most pilots in the US are more familiar with temperature in degrees Fahrenheit than in degrees Celsius as reported in METARs, with the winds aloft forecasts, and in most aviation reports. And most pilots that I know don’t think in Celsius but need to make the conversion to Fahrenheit. If you know a couple of benchmarks, it is easy to make conversions in your head.
All pilots know that standard temperature and pressure are 59°F or 15°C and 29.92 inches of mercury. Likewise, water freezes at 32° F or 0° C and boils at 212° F or 100° C. So to start we have three numbers.
0 32 15 59 100 212
The formula for converting from Celsius to Fahrenheit is
F = 9/5 C + 32.
So if the temperature is 0° C, then 9/5 * 0 + 32 = 32° F.
If the temperature is 40° C, then 9/5 * 40 + 32 = 104° F.
This seems like too much work for me to do in the cockpit. The basic thing we need to take away from the formula is that for each 1° change in Celsius there is a 2° change in degrees Fahrenheit. If you know a few relationships you can estimate the rest.
0 32 Freezing 10 50 Crisp 15 59 Standard temperature 20 68 Chilly 25 77 Just right 30 86 Start thinking about density altitude 40 104 Darn hot 50 122 Death Valley hot
If you want to estimate the temperature between these numbers just use 2° per degree celsius to calculate the temperature in degrees Fahrenheit. Here’s the same table with estimated temperatures using 0°, 15°, or 40° as the base.
°C °F Estimate 0 32 32 10 50 52 15 59 59 20 68 69 25 77 79 30 86 89 40 104 100 50 122 120
You might want to memorize the whole table or, if you fly where there aren’t temperature variations, just learn the numbers that you need. Where I fly I just need 10° in the morning and 25° in the afternoon as my baseline and I’m good to go.
Right now it is 21° here, so knowing that 25° is 77°F I just subtract 4*2=8 to get 69°F.
This morning it was 10°C so subtract 5*2=10 from 59 to get 49°. The actual number is 50° so you are close enough.
The Boston METAR says that it is 16°, so add 2° to 59 to get 61°. The temperature to three digits is actually 15.6 which converts to 60°.
Dallas/Fort Worth is 27° which is 77 + 4 = 81°. The actual temperature is 27.2°C which converts to 81°F.
A good link explaining International Standard Atmospheres is here.
The easiest way to find the opposite direction on a compass is to use a two step process. If the current direction is less than 180, add 200 and then subtract 20. If the current heading is greater than 180, subtract 200 then add 20. So for a simple example, the opposite direction of 90° is found by adding 200 to get 290 then subtracting 20 to get 270°. The opposite direction of 270° is 270 minus 200 plus 20 equals 90°. For an arbitrary compass point, say 143°. Add 200 and subtract 20. 343-20 = 323.
You can use this method for any arithmetic involving compass points.
VOR radials are arranged clockwise from 0° to 360°. If you are heading away from the VOR then set the OBS to the radial you are traveling on and the To/From flag will read “From”. If you turn around and head back to the VOR without changing the OBS then it will still read “From”. To get a “To” reading you need to rotate the OBS 180° so that the current radial is on the bottom. As an example, say an airway is on the 260° radial of the VOR. If you are headed TO the VOR your heading would be 260-200+20 = 80°.
Runways are numbered based on their magnetic direction. Explanation That means that adding 180° to the runway heading gives the heading in the opposite direction. My home field usually uses Runway 29 in VFR conditions. The approximate heading of the runway is 290°. The runway heading in the opposite direction is 290 -200 -20 = 110, so the runway designation is 11. There is also a runway just off my hanger that I sometimes use. It is runway 07. The runway in the opposite direction is 07 + 20 -2 = 25.
The standard hold at a VOR is given as a radial and direction. “Hold south of XYZ VOR on the 275 radial at 5,500 expect further clearance at 9:20”. The radial goes in the bottom of the OBS, so the heading inbound to the VOR is 275-200+20 = 95°. The outbound heading is 275. (Implicit in these instructions is standard turns to the right.)
The use of the GUMPS check has never made any sense to me. It is usually taught to students flying simple trainers and doesn’t really apply. I’ll describe an alternative after I dissect the current practice.
GUMPS usually stands for Gas, Undercarriage, Mixture, Prop, Safety. Sometimes GUMPRS, adds Radios to the list and C-GUMPS for carb heat. In my Cessna 182 the fuel selector is set to both in the initial pre-flight check and is never changed, the undercarriage is fixed so it is always down, the mixture needs adjusting but is usually full rich by the time I’m in the pattern, the prop isn’t an issue for most trainers since they are usually fixed pitch, and safety items should be completed well before entering the pattern. Repeating this list at various times is basically a waste of time and lulls the pilot into thinking that they are ready to land.
In addition, messing around with the fuel selector at pattern altitude is just a bad idea. This NTSB report is one of many where a pilot (in this case a student) turned the fuel selector in a airplane to OFF when performing a GUMPS check in the pattern.
I use a two stage checklist that starts just before beginning my descent or, if in the practice area, just before the initial call to the tower or CTAF. This is where you get things out of the way that you need to do only once. If you are not on a training flight, it would probably be 120 miles out. At 120 kts that would be only 10 minutes of flight time.
The mnemonic that I use is C-FARTS—Compass, Fuel, ATIS, Runway, Traffic Pattern, Safety.
So now you have all of the one-time things done. You have an idea of the traffic pattern so now you can decide if it is time to descend. To make a comfortable 500 fpm descent you can use the rule of thumb. For a slow airplane, say a C172 or Cherokee, assume a descent speed of 120 kts. That’s 2 nm per minute. So the number of miles out that you need to start your descent is 4 times the number of feet (1,000s) you need to descend. Suppose you are at 5,500′ and TPA is 1,200′. Then you need to descend 4,000′. At 500 fpm that’s 8 minutes. In 8 minutes you’ll travel 16 nm. So start your descent at 4 times the number of feet (in 1,000s) you need to descend. If you are in a faster plane, say a Bonanza or C210, your descent rate might be more like 180 kts. In eight minutes you’ll travel about 24 miles. So start your descent at 6 times the number of feet (in 1,000s) you need to descend.
Start off this portion of the checklist with Report. Call the tower or CTAF and let them know where you are, that you have ATIS, and your intentions. They’ll ask you to report at some location so make a note of it. Check your airspeed and altitude. Are you too high? Too fast? Now do the first run-through of the landing checklist. I do it in the physical order of the controls on the panel. First is gear. Check that the light is orange. Push it to see if it turns green. Carb heat would be next for planes that aren’t fuel injected. Then power—do we want to decrease power for the descent or build up speed. Prop next—increase by 2,000 RPM if power decreased. Mixture a few turns rich. Flaps should be up. Check temperatures to be sure they are where they belong. Then Scan aggressively for traffic.
At the first reporting point. Report, Airspeed, Altitude, Gear, Scan. Of course airspeed and altitude depend on Throttle, Prop, and Flaps so adjust accordingly.
Repeat this when entering the pattern, at the numbers, turning base, turning final.
In my Cessna 210 I want to be below gear and 10° Flaps range (160 MPH) before I enter the pattern and usually closer to 110 MPH.
Boost Pump - If flying most low-wing airplanes. Carb Heat - If advised for carbureted airplanes. Report - If instructed or on CTAF Airspeed - Adjust pitch for 110 MPH Altitude - Pattern altitude
Gear - Not yet Scan - Listen for and scan for traffic Throttle - Should be at 17" MP. Slowing to 110 MPH. Prop - Top of the Green Mixture - Richen - should be almost full rich by now.
Runway - does it match the number you are supposed to land on Airspeed - Aiming for 100 MPH Altitude - Pattern altitude
Gear - Down Throttle - no change Prop - Full Mixture - Rich Flaps- Not yet unless very short approach
Report – in uncontrolled field report turning base as the wings are turned. It is easier to see a plane when it is in a standard rate turn than when flying level because the cross-section is larger. You also get sun glint from in a turn as well.
Airspeed - aiming for 90 MPH Altitude - descending at 600 fpm so about 700 ft above touchdown Gear - Check for green light(s) Throttle - Pull ¾ if making short approach Prop - Full Mixture - Full Flaps - Add 10°
Report - if necessary Airspeed - aiming for 80-85 Altitude - descending at 600 fpm so about 400 ft above touchdown Gear - look out the window and see the wheels Throttle - Adjust for height Prop - nothing Mixture - nothing Flaps - add 10 or 20° depending on gusts
On final there are only two things that matter, airspeed and altitude. So keep looking out the window to get the right picture of the runway, then check airspeed. Adjust pitch and power. Repeat until ready to flare.
Runway - One more chance to make sure it is the right one. Altitude - How’s the sight picture Airspeed - If it’s not nailed, something is wrong. Go around. Gear - one more glance out the window. Throttle - just a bit of power, unless gusty
If you don’t have airspeed nailed when crossing the threshold, it could be because you forgot to lower the gear. Or maybe the flaps. It doesn’t really matter why the airspeed isn’t nailed, but it means that you aren’t in a stabilized approach and you need to go around.
If you fly any planes that require carb heat or fuel pumps for landing, you can add those two items at the numbers or entering the pattern depending on when the POH says to use them.
This method focuses on airspeed and altitude which are controlled by the pitch and power respectively with a little help from the flaps and gear.
This is the panel of the Cessna 210 described above.
Note the positions of the gear on the left, throttle, prop, then mixture. The flaps are hidden by the right yoke.
This is the panel of a Commanche.
The basic approach to checking everything can be the same as with the 210, but the order will be different and there are some additional items. It is a low wing with carbureted engine so there is a boost pump, and carb heat to think about. The gear light is in the middle of the panel. Note the positions of the controls—mixture on the left, throttle, carb heat, then prop. The gear lights and handle are next to the VORs.
As an airplane moves through the air it also can rotate about its center of gravity in three axes. Rotation along the lateral axis (found by drawing a from one wing-tip to the other through the body of the plane) is called pitch and is controlled by the elevator. Rotation along the longitudinal axis (found by drawing a line from the front of the plane to the rear along the body) is controlled by the ailerons on the wing and is called roll. Rotation along the vertical axis (found by drawing a line from the ground straight up through the plane—perpendicular to the body) is called yaw and is controlled by the rudder. Most light airplanes are designed to be stable in pitch, yaw, and roll. The control surfaces are designed to maintain that stability.
“The pitch axis is perpendicular to the aircraft centerline and lies in the plane of the wings. A pitch motion is an up or down movement of the nose of the aircraft. ” NASA
The empennage is where the control surfaces for pitch and yaw are generally located. Most pilots refer to the empennage as the tail or tail assembly. It consists of two parts—the horizontal stabilizer and the vertical stabilizer. The vertical stabilizer is often referred to as the fin.
The vertical stabilizer provides stability along the yaw axis. The rudder pedals inside the cockpit control the rudder to move the nose of the plane to the left or right. Many airplanes also have rudder trim to relieve pressure on the pedals. Notice in the slide show that there aren’t many variations in rudder design. The V-tail shape of the Bonanza and the Fouga jet being the only major exception to a vertical stabilizer and rudder. This configuration is known as a ruddervator. Some airplanes, like the Cessna Skymaster, with an engine in the rear have two vertical stabilizers. The Lockheed P-38 Fighter is probably the most famous of the twin boom aircraft. Older fabric-covered planes like the Cessna 120 and aerobatic planes like the Pitts have rounded control surfaces. Otherwise the fins is pretty standard.
The horizontal stabilizer and elevator on the other hand have much more variation. Most light aircraft have a horizontal stabilizer that is in line with the fuselage. Some have the horizontal stabilizer at the top of the fin. These are called T-tails. Some aircraft look like they have two fins and are called V-tails. The horizontal stabilizer has the elevator, which controls pitch. Many light aircraft also have elevator trim, to relieve control pressures on the yoke.
Piaggo Avanti, Beech Starship and the Rutan designed Long-EZ have the elevator in the front of the airplane. This design is called a canard. The horizontal surface provides lift as well as controlling pitch. With these designs the rudders are on the wing tips and the engine is in the rear, pushing the airplane.
Almost all light airplanes use ailerons to rotate about the roll axis. Some airliners use a spoiler, located in the middle of the wing and the Wright brothers used wing-warping.
The Aircraft Aerodynamics and Design Group at Stanford has and interesting article on tail design and the relative advantages and disadvantages of various designs.
Roll—along the longitudinal axis—is controlled by the ailerons;
Pitch—along the lateral axis—is controlled by the elevators;
Yaw—along the vertical axis—is controlled by the rudder.
If you listen to the tower and traffic at a local airport you’ll get a feel for the landmarks that the tower uses for incoming traffic. At SBP for example, traffic that is straight in is asked to report abeam the landfill. Sometimes it is phrased as “report four-mile final”. If you are in the vicinity of the airport, you know that traffic is on the centerline, a few hundred feet above the traffic pattern.
Traffic from the north most often flies over Cuesta Grade and is told to make a right downwind. Likewise traffic from the south usually reports over Avila and is told to report the left 45. Traffic from the west is usually told to report Laguna Lake and make a left downwind entry into the pattern.
But then there are the places you’ve never heard of—Hasby, Cadab, and Crepe aren’t local landmarks yet pilots often report flying over them. That’s because they are waypoints on an IFR approach. IFR pilots are required to fly six approaches in six months to remain current. The approaches don’t have to be in actual instrument conditions but can be under the hood. Since these are practice approaches, the actual wind conditions aren’t taken into account when flying them so you could find traffic in the opposite direction that you would expect, given the winds. Some approaches aren’t straight in and leave the pilot in a position where they have to circle to land.
The local flight school often has old charts around the flight simulator. You can download the National Aeronautical Charting Office approach charts from the AOPA web site or from the NACO AeroNav charts from the FAA website.
This is what the KSPB ILS chart looks like.
Look for the Initial Approach Fix (CREPE). On an ILS it is usually 10-12nm from the runway. The final approach fix (FAF) is usually 6nm from the runway. IN this case DOBRA is 6.1 nm from the end of the runway. Often there will be additional waypoints inside the FAF. If there is traffic at the airport, practice approaches are often told to break off the approach at HASBY. Now most ILS approaches have a 3 degree glide slope. For a light plane that usually means a descent of 500-600 fpm that will place the aircraft on the runway at the touchdown zone. If you are on a straight-out departure climbing at 500 fpm you are basically on the same path as the traffic on the ILS inbound. Knowing where the reporting points are can help you see and avoid the incoming traffic.
The RNAV approach is similar to the ILS. The initial approach segment doesn’t have to follow radio waves so it is often angled. The final approach segment is usually straight in to give the pilot time to get stabilized but the actual path is dictated by local geography.
In this approach you’ll most often hear the pilot reporting at the IAF,CADAB, and sometimes also at CAVLI if there is traffic in the pattern. Note that at CAVLI the aircraft is at 2400 ft agl, 5.8 nm from the airport, and the glide slope that it should fly is 3.47 degrees. That’s slightly steeper than the VASI so you can expect them to be descending at about 600-700 fpm.
There are several variants on the procedures above but all of them involve an IAF, FAF, and prescribed altitudes. With a little work you’ll be able to spot aircraft that report using waypoints rather than compass directions.
Logging of PIC time is important for currency, insurance, and for experience necessary for obtaining ratings. The rules are not necessarily the same in all instances.
FAR 61.51 covers what must be included in logbooks and gives guidance on how to log experience. To interpret the regulation correctly it is important to first understand the terms that are used.
Pilot in command means the person who:
(1) Has final authority and responsibility for the operation and safety of the flight;
(2) Has been designated as pilot in command before or during the flight; and
(3) Holds the appropriate category, class, and type rating, if appropriate for the conduct of the flight. FAR 1.1.
Implicit in this definition is the fact that only one person is able to act as PIC for any segment of the flight. It says nothing about who is manipulating the controls of the aircraft and who can log time as PIC.
Category and class are used to describe aircraft and to describe airman ratings. Categories are also used to describe aircraft based on intended use and operating limitations: transport, normal, aerobatic, etc. Category is also used in IFR flying in reference to approach speed and equipment. For purposes of this section category and class refer to the type of aircraft for which the airman holds a rating.
61.51 (e) A sport, recreational, private, or commercial pilot may log pilot-in-command time only for that flight time during which that person—
(i) Is the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft for which the pilot is rated or has privileges;
(ii) Is the sole occupant of the aircraft;
(iii) Except for a recreational pilot, is acting as pilot in command of an aircraft on which more than one pilot is required…
We see that there is distinction between who is legally responsible for the flight and who can log the time. The person who logs PIC time may not be the person who is legally PIC.
The question that comes up frequently is: can you log PIC time when training in an airplane that requires an endorsement—complex, high performance, taildragger?
A pilot may log PIC time if they are “ the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft for which the pilot is rated“. So suppose you are a private pilot who learned in a 152 or Cherokee and want to move up to an airplane for which an endorsement is required. You have a single-engine land rating so you can log PIC time in any single-engine land airplane when you are sole manipulator of the controls. You cannot log PIC time when learning to fly a twin or a seaplane because you are not rated in the category and class of aircraft in which you are training. You cannot log PIC time when learning to fly a jet or turbine powered airplane because a type rating is required and you do not have one.
Another question that comes up frequently is when can a student pilot fly and log time.
61.51 (e) (4) A student pilot may log pilot-in-command time only when the student-pilot—
(i) is the sole occupant of the aircraft or … airship…
(ii) Has a current solo flight endorsement…
(iii) Is undergoing training for a pilot certificate or rating.
So a student pilot may log PIC time when alone in the aircraft. They may not log PIC time when flying with someone else. A student pilot may fly with another pilot, who is not an instructor, if the other pilot agrees to act as PIC for the entire flight. Neither pilot can log the time as PIC. The student pilot can’t because they are not flying solo and the other pilot can’t because they aren’t the sole manipulator of the controls.
Another group of questions arises about acting versus logging time arises when one pilot is manipulation the controls but is not current. Suppose a pilot has not made the required number of takeoffs and landings to carry passengers. If the other pilot agrees to act as PIC then the pilot manipulating the controls may log the time and it will count toward currency. The same is true for flight in IMC conditions. As long as an instrument rated pilot agrees in advance to act as PIC, then the flight is legal and the manipulator of the controls can log the time as actual IMC. The pilot acting as PIC cannot log the time.
The final scenario arises when flying with an expired medical. Section 61.3 ( c) (1) provides that a person may not act as pilot in command…unless that person has a current and appropriate medical certificate…
As above, as long as an pilot who is rated in the aircraft (and current) agrees in advance to act as PIC, then the pilot may log time as PIC and that time will count for recency of experience. The pilot should record the details of the flight and who is acting as PIC in the logbook to avoid any questions in the future if the logbook is inspected and the flight with an expired medical is noted.
FAR’s explained page 61-63 Notice No. 95-11[FR] “Two recreational, private, or commercial pilots may not simultaneously log pilot in command flight time when one pilot is acting as pilot in command as defined in Part 1, and the other pilot is the sole manipulator of the controls, unless the aircraft type certification or the regulations under which the flight is conducted require more than one pilot.”
Rod Machado on logging flight time. “…if you are taking the training to obtain your complex or high performance endorsement, you can log that time as pilot-in-command time. The difference here is between logging PIC time and acting as the required PIC. Your instructor is the legal PIC on that flight since he or she is the only one with a complex or high performance endorsement. You can log the time as PIC since you’re the sole manipulator of the controls on an aircraft for which you are rated. This is covered in CFAR 61.51(e).”
AOPA e-Pilot Quiz Me 10/5/07
Question: I have a private pilot certificate for airplane single-engine land and typically fly a Cessna 172. I am interested in stepping up to the Cessna 182RG that is available for rent at my local flight school. Will I be able to log pilot-in-command (PIC) time while training for the necessary complex endorsement?
Answer: Yes, you are allowed to log PIC flight time during your training. The difference between logging PIC time and acting as PIC is subtle, but important. FAA regulation 61.51(e)(1)(i) allows you as an airman to log PIC flight time whenever you are the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft for which you are rated or have privileges (i.e. aircraft category, class and/or type rating). However, you cannot act as PIC of the training flights. Because the complex airplane endorsement outlined in FAR 61.31(e) is required in order to act as PIC, you would not be allowed to fly solo in an aircraft requiring the endorsement until you obtain it through dual instruction with an authorized instructor.
This AOPA article covers logging PIC time and this article covers logging time as a safety pilot.
The pilot of an aircraft in VFR conditions is always responsible for seeing and avoiding other aircraft. This list is a quick shortcut to help you identify aircraft in the pattern. You can find pictures and info on all of these planes at Airliners.net.
When identifying your aircraft while approaching the pattern it helps others to identify your aircraft if you give identifying details. “Cessna 1EE abeam the tower” lets others in the pattern now where you are located—abeam the tower at traffic pattern altitude—but it doesn’t help them find you or judge your speed. The other pilots don’t know if there is a high wing 152 flying at 60 kts or a twin-engine 310 at 160 kts. Since the objective of radio calls around the pattern is to let other pilots know where you are, you don’t have to use the same terminology that you would use with ATC. If you are flying a tail-wheel Cessna 180 Skywagon or a tri-cycle gear Cessna 182 that doesn’t have the extra features that the marketing department put on for Skylanes, it makes sense to identify yourself as a Skylane. Everyone knows what a Skylane looks like and how fast they fly so they will know what to expect when looking for you. Similarly if you fly a Mooney, you might think there is a big difference between and Ovation and a Bravo but pilots in the pattern don’t really care. If you identify yourself as Mooney pilots know to look for a sleek, low-wing, fast airplane.
Very Fast—Pilatus, Saratoga, Malibu
Fast—Cirrus, Lancair, Columbia, Mooney, Bonanza, Arrow, Trinadad
Medium—Comanche, Archer, Cherokee 6, Cheetah
Slow—Cherokee, Tomahawk
Fast—Centurion (210), Stationair, Caravan
Medium—Skyhawk (172), Skylane (182), Maule, Husky
Slow—Cessna 150-152, Cub, Citabria
Pitts, Stearman, Waco
King Air, Crusader, 310, Baron, Seneca, Navajo, Aztec, Cheyenne, Twin Cessna
Commander, Mitsubishi
Dornier, Dash 8, Brasilia, Embraer
Saab
RJ, Citation, Hawker, Eclipse, Dornier
A student pilot normally learns to fly in an airplane that has one propeller and fixed-wheel landing gear. The student is usually pursuing a “Single-Engine Land Rating”. Once the required tests are passed the airman is issued a pilot certificate that has a single-engine land rating. The certificate never expires and allows the pilot to fly any airplane that is similar to the one they learned in. However, to exercise the privileges of the certificate the pilot must satisfy certain currency requirements. The two biggest ones are medical certification and a flight review every two years. To fly more complicated airplanes and other types of aircraft, the pilot needs additional ratings and endorsements.
Ratings are added to the pilot’s certificate. Common ratings are for multi-engine airplanes, seaplanes, gliders, and helicopters.
Endorsements are not recorded with the FAA and do not show up on the pilots certificate. They are written in the pilots logbook by a certified flight instructor (CFI). They are required before a pilot can act as pilot-in-command of airplanes that have more than 200 horsepower engines (high performance); aircraft with pressurization capable of operating at high altitudes; complex airplanes; and tailwheel airplanes. A complex airplane has retractable landing gear, flaps, and a controllable pitch propeller. A tailwheel airplane, like the name implies, has a wheel in the tail rather than the nose. Airplanes with a tailwheel have different handling characteristics than tricycle-gear airplanes that are the norm today.
Many people learn to fly in a Piper Cherokee or a Cessna 172. When they pass their practical test, they are then allowed to fly any airplane with similar characteristics without any additional training. Training aircraft often have only have room for two or three adults and aren’t particularly fast. Many pilots move up to faster aircraft which often means that they need endorsements to their certificate. Typical examples of airplanes that require a high performance endorsement are Cirrus SR22, Cessna 182 Skylane and 206 Stationair, and Piper Dakota. The Cessna 182 that I learned to fly in had a 230 hp engine so I got my high-performance endorsement before I got my license. Even though the 182 has flaps and a controllable pitch propeller, it is not a complex aircraft since it does not have retractable landing gear. When I got my Cessna T210 Centurion I needed to get a complex endorsement to fly it since it has retractable landing gear. Some aircraft, like the Mooney 201, Piper Comanche, and Piper Arrow require a complex endorsement but not a high performance endorsement because they do not have engines with greater than 200 hp.
An airman can fly any aircraft that is similar to ones they have ratings and endorsements for but more sophisticated aircraft require a type rating that allow the airman to fly any aircraft of that specific type. Specifically, large aircraft (>12,500 Lbs takeoff weight) and turbojet-powered airplanes require a type rating. The manufacturer and the FAA can also agree that a type rating is required for a specific model and require a type rating as part of their certification process.
Many of the FARs refer specifically to aircraft Category and Class. In fact, all airmen receive ratings specifically for a category and class of aircraft. Unfortunately, the term “category” is used at least five different ways when referring to aircraft and pilots and it can get confusing. Section 61.5.b lists the categories of aircraft with respect to airman ratings.
Each of these categories is subdivided into classes. The airplane category, for example, has four classes, single-engine land, multi-engine land, single engine sea, and multi-engine sea.
In the discussion above the generic term “fly” was used. Technically airmen don’t fly the aircraft. They “manipluate the controls” and act as “pilot in command”. In the discussion above the ratings and endorsements allow the pilot to act as pilot-in command e.g. the pilot responsible for operation and safety of the aircraft during flight time where flight time is defined as the time from the moment the aircraft moves under its own power for the purposes of flight until it comes to rest after landing.
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