22. Weight and balance

Question 1

The total weight of the aeroplane and all of its contents at any particular time is known as its …….. weight.

Answer 1

gross.

Question 2

The weight of the empty aeroplane (i.e. excluding pilot, passengers, cargo and fuel) is known as its (basic empty / zero fuel / maximum take-off) weight.

Answer 2

basic empty.

Question 3

The weight of the loaded aeroplane, but excluding the weight of usable fuel in the wings, is called its …….. …….. weight.

Answer 3

zero fuel.

Question 4

The gross weight of the aeroplane on the ramp, i.e. in its start position but before it taxis out to the take-off position, is known as its (ramp / take-off / zero-fuel) weight).

Answer 4

ramp.

Question 5

The maximum permissible gross weight for structural reasons at take-off is known as the …….. …….. …….. ……..

Answer 5

maximum certified take-off weight (MCTOW)

Question 6

The maximum permissible gross weight for structural reasons at landing is known as the …….. …….. …….. ……..

Answer 6

maximum certified landing weight (MLW)

Question 7

The point through which the weight of an aeroplane can be considered to act is called the …….. …….. …….. abbreviated to ……..

Answer 7

centre of gravity; (CG)

Question 8

The aeroplane will be nose heavy and more reluctant to move in the pitching plane if the CofG is at the (forward / aft) limit.

Answer 8

forward.

Question 9

The aeroplane will be tail heavy and less stable in the pitching plane, making it more difficult to control, if the CofG is at the (aft / forward) limit.

Answer 9

aft.

Question 10

Weight and balance calculations are made by calculating the gross weight, to ensure that no weight limits are exceeded, and by calculating …….. about a datum, to ensure that the CofG is within limits.

Answer 10

moments.

Question 11

For balance calculations, the manufacturer will nominate a point from which all measurements will be taken, known as the …….. or station ……..

Answer 11

datum; zero.

Question 12

The distance from the datum to the point where a weight acts, for the purposes of calculating moments, is called the ……..

Answer 12

arm.

Question 13

The length of the moment arm for a passenger sitting at STA 1,200 is …….. mm behind the datum.

Answer 13

1,200 mm.

Question 14

Multiplying the weight by the length of the arm gives a quantity known as the ……..

Answer 14

moment.

Question 15

A weight of 30 kg, with an arm of 1,200 mm from the datum, will have a moment of …….. kg-mm.

Answer 15

36,000 kg-mm.

Question 16

A weight of 120 kg with an arm of 2,000 mm from the datum will have a moment of …….. kg-mm.

Answer 16

240,000 kg-mm.

Question 17

To reduce the size of the numbers, they can be divided by 1,000 to be expressed as …….. units.

Answer 17

index.