Flight Operations Flashcards
How is air worthiness verified?
Aircraft’s Certificate of Airworthiness
Pre-Flight Inspection (walk around)
Required Equipment
What is included in the pre flight inspection?
Crew License/Medical, POH, Registration, Airworthiness Certificate, Insurance, Journey log book
What crew qualifications and proficiency should be verified prior to flying?
License validity, recency (6, 24, 60 month), pilot proficiency check
What factors are included in flight planning?
Weather, NOTAMs, weight and balance, studied routes and destinations, charts and publications, flight plan, preflight inspection, required equipment onboard, informing passengers
What should passengers be briefed on before flight?
Seats and seat belts, normal and emergency exists, stowage of baggage, first aid, survival equipment, fire extinguisher, ELT, smoking, action in the event of an emergency, questions
Define datum, moment, and arm
Datum: an imaginary vertical plane or line from which all measurements of the arm are taken
Moment: product of the weight of an item multiplied by its arm and expressed in pound inches. Total moment is the weight of the aircraft multiplied by the distance between the datum and the center of gravity
Arm: horizontal distance in inches from the reference datum line to the C of G of the item
What are center of gravity limits?
Specified forward and aft or lateral points beyond which the C of G must not be located at any time
What will happen to an aircraft if the center of gravity is beyond it’s limit?
Aircraft may rotate prematurely on take-off and pitch up during the climb. Longitudinal stability will also be reduced and this can lead to inadvertant stalls and spins. Recoveries from this may be prolonged or impossible.
If the center of gravity is too far forward, the aircraft’s stall speed will be increased
What is empty weight and gross weight?
Empty weight: weight of the airframe, engines, and all operating equipement that have fixed locations
Gross weight: the max, loaded weight of the aircraft
What is the formula for load adjustment?
Baggage must be shifted from rear baggage area 125 to the forward baggage area 40. The aft C of G limit is 46, but the loaded C of G is 48. How much baggage should be moved forward?
70.5 lbs of baggage
What are critical surfaces?
Wings, control surfaces, propellers, rotors, horizontal stabilizers, and any other surfaces that contrinute to lift or stabilizing the aircraft
What is the clean aircraft concept? Why is it important?
Take-offs are prohibited when ice, snow, or frost is adhering to any surface. The concept is important because frozen contaminants can reduce lift by 30% and increase drag by 40%
What is the cold soaking phenomenon?
Occurs when the wings and fuel are much colder than the ambient temperature. Frost will form on the under and upper sides of the fuel tank region during ground turn-around time, and will reform when removed.
What is white-out?tmosphere optical phenomenon of the polar regions in which the observer appears to be engulfed in a uniformly white glow. Neither shadows, horizon, nor clouds are discernible; sense of depth and orientation is lost; only very dark, nearby objects can be seen. Whiteout occurs over an unbroken snow cover and beneath a uniformly overcast sky. Blowing snow may be an additional cause
What are the negative effects of in-flight icing?
Ice on props will reduce efficiency and increase vibration
Visibility from cockpit is reduced
Jet engine compressor stalls due to large pieces of ice entering into the engine
What are hazards associated with thunderstorms?
Turbulence, wind shear, lighting, rain, icing
While flying in a thunderstorm, when will the greatest turbulence be felt?
Updrafts (6000+ feet per minute)
Downdrafts (2000-2500+ feet per minute)
Compare increased performance shear and decreased performance shear.
Increased performance shear is caused by a rapid increase in headwind or decrease in tailwind. Will cause the aircraft to overshoot the runway
Decreased performance shear is caused by a decrease in headwind or an increase in tailwind. Will cause the aircraft to undershoot the runway. Most dangerous
What are the dangers of lighting? What aircraft are more susceptible to lighting strikes?
Dangers include explosion of fuel vapor, loss of flight controls, loss of electrical power, pilot blindness
Larger and faster aircraft are more susceptible to lighting strikes
Explain the dangers of rain during a thunderstorm
The impact pressure of rain can wear down plexiglass, erode fiberglass and antennas, and peel paint off. Rain can also affect airborne radars and flame out jet engines.
Rain on the windscreen causes a distortion that will make terrain contours appear lower than reality (error of approx 5° down)
What are warning stages of mountain waves?
Cap clouds, lenticular clouds, rotor clouds
What causes mountain waves?
Air pouring down the side of the mountain, creating eddies and vertical air currents
How fast are the downdrafts and updrafts caused by the mountain effect?
Downdrafts up to 2000 feet per minute, updrafts up to 5000 feet per minute
What are the two main ideas in collision avoidance?
Use the proper lookout and use the landing light (all day time aircraft in VFR conditions are required to run with all serviceable lights on in high traffic areas)
Runway numbering is done corresponding to the nearest __°, and is expressed as a __________
10, magnetic value
What colour is the airport beacon and how often does it flash?
White, 20-30 evenly spaced times per minute
What colours are threshold lights, end runway lights, and taxi way lights
Threshold: green
Runway: red
Taxi way: blue
What colours are towers marked with? Are they lighted?
Red and white. Towers can be lighted
How far apart should taxi way lights be spaced?
Not exceeding 200 feet