02-A: Preflight Assessment
Knowledge
K1: Pilot Self-Assessment
- A person may not act as a crewmember of a civil aircraft after alcohol consumption within 8 hours, bottle-to-throttle (FAR 91.17).
- The pilot is responible to determing whether they are fit to fly for a particular flight, even with a medical certficate.
K2: Determining that the airplane to be used is approriate and airorthy
K3: Airplane preflight inspection, including
K3a: Which items should be inspected
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ARROW
- airworthiness certifcate
- on display (FAR 91.203)
- registration
- radio operator license
- operating limitations (POH, placards)
- weight and balance data (POH, weight and balance sheet)
- airworthiness certifcate
-
Parachute required for aerobatic flight, i.e.,
- when exceeding nose-up or nose-down of 30° (FAR 91.307)
- when when exceeding bank of 60 degrees or more
-
hand-propping
- requires a team of two trained people
- the second person needs
- to be familiar with the airplane and hand-propping techniques and
- needs to sit at the controls in the cockpit
-
crankcase breather lines
- purpose
- vent heat and vapors from the engine crankcase away
- location
- crankcase breather lines coming out behind the nose gear
- https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=704352075555505
- failure mode
- ice may have formed as a result of the crankcase vapors freezing after engine turn off
- preflight action
- visually inspect crankcase breather lines
- purpose
K3b: The reasons for checking each item
To purge water from the fuel system of a anircraft equipped with fuel tank sumps and fuel strainer quick drain, it is necessary to drain fuel from - the fuel strainer (= gascolator) drain, and - drain location - under engine behind the nose gear - strainer purpose - lowest point - last filter before fuel reaches the carburetor - the fuel tank sumps (the sumps at the bottom of each wing tank).
K3c: How to detect possible defects
- altimeter
- indicated altitude equals true altitude
- at sea level and
- under standard conditions
- altimeter setting:
- the value to which the barometric pressure scale is set so the altimeter indicates true altitude at field elevation
- temperature-induced error
- on cold days, the pressure levels in the air column contract
- at true altitude of e.g., 2000, the pressure felt is, e.g., 2500
- thus the altimeter indicates higher than true
- watch out below for terrain!
- indicated altitude equals true altitude
K3d: The associated regulations
- The pilot in command is responsible for determining wehterh the aircraft is safe for flight (FAR 91.7)
- Advisory circulars are not binding.
- Preflight action includes determining
- an alternate course of action (FAR 91.103)
- insufficient: defining an alternate airport
- Airworthiness determination requires
- a preflight inspection
- a review of the maintenance records
K4: Environmental factors, including weather, terrain, route selection, and obstructions
- information to be gathered prior to flight
- all available information concerning flight (FAR 91.103)
- runway requirements (FAR 91.103)
- determine runway lengths at airports of intended use
- aircraft's takeoff and landing distance data