PART 61KSNSGROUND SCHOOL
North Aero NORTH AERO

Phase 4 · Module 4-2

Checkride Week 2: Tasks B and G

Task B of the checkride is Airworthiness Requirements and Task G is Operation of Systems. Both are in Area of Operation I, Preflight Preparation, which the evaluator covers on the ground. Task B asks whether this airplane is legal to fly today. Task G asks whether the pilot knows what is inside it. The evaluator uses one airplane for both Tasks, the airplane provided for the checkride.

The Task B objective names what the evaluator measures: "To determine the applicant exhibits satisfactory knowledge, risk management, and skills associated with airworthiness requirements, including airplane certificates" . Task B carries four knowledge elements with nine sub-elements, one risk element and three skill elements. Two of the three skill elements are scenarios the evaluator gives.

The Task G objective is narrower. It covers "safe operation of systems on the airplane provided for the flight test" . Task G carries two knowledge elements, three risk elements and two skill elements. A Note binds the evaluator: "If K1 is selected, the evaluator must assess the applicant's knowledge of at least three sub-elements." PA.I.G.S1 binds the applicant to operate at least three of the twelve systems listed in K1a through K1l.

Task B lists these references :

Task G lists a different set :

The seaplane handbook is on the Task G list for one sub-element. PA.I.G.K1k is water rudders, and it applies to airplane single-engine sea and airplane multiengine sea. A single-engine land applicant does not answer it.

Part 39 is airworthiness directives. Part 43 is maintenance, preventive maintenance, rebuilding and alteration. Part 91 subpart E is maintenance and inspections. The POH is the source for most Task G answers, because the handbooks describe airplanes in general and the POH describes this airplane.

The evaluator asks the two Tasks in two places. An evaluator runs Task B at the table with the airplane's maintenance records open. The evaluator runs Task G at the airplane with the cowling and the panel in view. A pilot who reads only the handbooks answers Task G in general terms and fails to answer it for the airplane on the ramp.

PA.I.B.K1e is "Owner/Operator and pilot-in-command responsibilities" . 14 CFR 3.5(a) defines the word airworthy: "Airworthy means the aircraft conforms to its type design and is in a condition for safe operation" . The definition has two parts joined by the word and. Conformity to type design is a paper question, and the records hold the answer. Condition for safe operation is a physical question, and an inspection of the airplane gives the answer.

An airplane can pass one part and fail the other. A cracked exhaust stack conforms to type design and is not in a condition for safe operation. An unapproved part installed correctly and working well breaks conformity while the airplane flies normally. An evaluator who asks for the definition wants both halves and the word and between them.

Two rules divide the duty between two people. 14 CFR 91.403(a): "The owner or operator of an aircraft is primarily responsible for maintaining that aircraft in an airworthy condition, including compliance with part 39 of this chapter" . That duty runs continuously, whether or not anybody flies the airplane. Part 39 is the airworthiness directives, and the rule names Part 39 so that an owner cannot treat the directives as optional.

14 CFR 91.7 gives the pilot in command the other duty. Paragraph (a): "No person may operate a civil aircraft unless it is in an airworthy condition." Paragraph (b): "The pilot in command of a civil aircraft is responsible for determining whether that aircraft is in condition for safe flight" . The owner maintains. The PIC determines. Both duties exist at the same time on the same airplane, and neither one discharges the other.

The same paragraph (b) carries a second sentence with a different tense. "The pilot in command shall discontinue the flight when unairworthy mechanical, electrical, or structural conditions occur" . The duty does not end at the run-up. Three conditions can occur in flight:

The rule directs the PIC to discontinue the flight.

The Airplane Flying Handbook states the same division in one paragraph. "The owner/operator is primarily responsible for maintenance, but in accordance with 14 CFR part 91, section 91.7(a) and (b) no person may operate a civil aircraft unless it is in an airworthy condition and the pilot in command of a civil aircraft is responsible for determining whether the aircraft is in condition for safe flight" . A renter who says the school takes care of maintenance gives the wrong answer. The school holds 91.403. The renter holds 91.7(b) and flies the airplane.

Maintenance ends with two acts, not one. 14 CFR 91.407(a): "No person may operate any aircraft that has undergone maintenance, preventive maintenance, rebuilding, or alteration unless— (1) It has been approved for return to service by a person authorized under § 43.7 of this chapter; and (2) The maintenance record entry required by § 43.9 or § 43.11, as applicable, of this chapter has been made" . The approval is one act. The record entry is the other. An airplane with the work done and no entry made is not legal to fly.

The approval for return to service covers only the work performed. 14 CFR 43.9(a)(4) requires "the signature, certificate number, and kind of certificate held by the person approving the work," and then adds one sentence: "The signature constitutes the approval for return to service only for the work performed" . A mechanic who replaces a starter approves the starter. The same signature does not cover the tires, the magnetos or the airworthiness directives.

The limit matters at the checkride table. A student who points at the most recent logbook signature and calls the airplane airworthy reads the entry as a certificate of the whole airplane. It is a certificate of one job. The annual inspection entry covers the whole airplane, and it covers the airplane on the date of the entry.

PA.I.B.K1a is "Location and expiration dates of required aircraft certificates" . ARROW names the five items a pilot checks before a flight:

Two rules carry the list. 14 CFR 91.203(a) requires the airplane to have within it "an appropriate and current airworthiness certificate" and "an effective U.S. registration certificate issued to its owner" . 14 CFR 91.9(b) splits into two paragraphs. Paragraph (b)(1) covers an airplane for which 21.5 requires a flight manual, and paragraph (b)(2) covers an airplane for which it does not. A 1974 Warrior falls under (b)(2), where the operating limitations are the manual, "approved manual material, markings, and placards, or any combination thereof" . The radio station license comes from the FCC and not from the FAA, and a domestic flight under 12,500 pounds does not need one.

The two certificates have different rules on board. A pilot carries the registration and displays the airworthiness certificate. 14 CFR 91.203(b): "No person may operate a civil aircraft unless the airworthiness certificate required by paragraph (a) of this section or a special flight authorization issued under § 91.715 is displayed at the cabin or cockpit entrance so that it is legible to passengers or crew" . An evaluator can ask a pilot to point at it, and pointing is the answer.

The airworthiness certificate shows no expiration date, and it is not permanent. 14 CFR 21.181(a)(1) states the condition: standard airworthiness certificates "are effective as long as the maintenance, preventive maintenance, and alterations are performed in accordance with parts 43 and 91 of this chapter" . The blank expiration box does not mean the certificate never ends. An airplane that misses its annual holds a certificate that is no longer effective, with nothing on the certificate itself to show it.

The registration does expire, and the interval changed. 14 CFR 47.40(a): "A Certificate of Aircraft Registration issued in accordance with § 47.31 expires seven years after the last day of the month in which it is issued" . Older study material gives three years, and that answer is wrong. The certificate in the airplane shows the date.

Operating limitations are the O in ARROW, and they include more than the flight manual. 14 CFR 91.9(a) forbids operating "without complying with the operating limitations specified in the approved Airplane or Rotorcraft Flight Manual, markings, and placards" . A placard on the panel and a red line on a gauge are operating limitations with the same force as a page in the POH. Weight and balance data is part of the same set, because the airplane's own weighing record fixes its empty weight and moment.

PA.I.B.K1b is "Required inspections and airplane logbook documentation" . AV1ATE(S) names the inspections, and each one has its own interval:

The annual is the one that applies to each airplane. 14 CFR 91.409(a) bars operation unless the airplane had an annual inspection within the preceding 12 calendar months "and has been approved for return to service by a person authorized by § 43.7" . A calendar month interval ends on the last day of a month. An annual signed on 14 March 2026 is valid through 31 March 2027, not through 13 March.

The 100-hour is the one that does not apply to most private flying. 14 CFR 91.409(b) attaches it to two activities: carrying "any person (other than a crewmember) for hire," and giving "flight instruction for hire in an aircraft which that person provides" . A private pilot who rents an airplane and flies it solo carries no person for hire. The rule covers a trainer the school provides for instruction, and school airplanes therefore have both inspections.

The two inspections substitute in one direction. An annual can substitute for a 100-hour. A 100-hour substitutes for an annual only when the person performing it holds the authority to perform annual inspections. That person must also enter it as an "annual" inspection in the required maintenance records . The reason is the authority of the signer, because an annual requires an inspection authorization and a 100-hour does not.

The 100-hour has one overrun allowance. The limit "may be exceeded by not more than 10 hours while en route to reach a place where the inspection can be done," and the excess time counts against the next 100 hours . A flight to the maintenance base can use it. A lesson cannot.

Two inspections apply to the airplane's equipment rather than its airframe. 14 CFR 91.413(a) bars use of a transponder unless a test and inspection occurred in the preceding 24 calendar months . The rule attaches to using the transponder, so it binds a VFR airplane as much as an IFR one. 14 CFR 91.411 puts the altimeter, the static system and the automatic altitude reporting system on the same 24 calendar months . That rule binds only IFR operations in controlled airspace.

The ELT battery rule depends on use and shelf life rather than the calendar. 14 CFR 91.207(c) requires replacement or recharge "when the transmitter has been in use for more than 1 cumulative hour" or "when 50 percent of their useful life... has expired, as established by the transmitter manufacturer" . The person who replaces the battery marks the new expiration date on the outside of the transmitter and records it in the maintenance record. An evaluator who asks about the ELT usually asks for the battery rule, because the 12-month inspection is the simpler requirement.

14 CFR 91.417(a) splits the maintenance records into two kinds. Paragraph (a)(1) covers records of maintenance, preventive maintenance and alteration, and of the 100-hour, annual, progressive and other required inspections. Paragraph (a)(2) covers a list of status items :

The two kinds have different retention periods. 14 CFR 91.417(b)(1) keeps the work and inspection records "until the work is repeated or superseded by other work or for 1 year after the work is performed" . Paragraph (b)(2) keeps the status records for the life of the airplane and transfers them "with the aircraft at the time the aircraft is sold." A buyer who receives no status records cannot prove the airplane's inspection and directive history.

14 CFR 43.9(a) requires four parts in each entry :

An entry missing any of those parts is an incomplete entry. An evaluator can hand a student a logbook page and ask what is missing from it.

Reading the records is the only way to answer Task B. The Airplane Flying Handbook states the habit: "It should be a matter of procedure by the pilot to inspect the airplane logbooks or a summary of the airworthy status prior to flight to ensure that the airplane records of maintenance, alteration, and inspections are current and correct" . The certificates in the airplane prove only that the FAA issued them. They prove nothing about the annual, the directives or the transponder check. PA.I.B.S2 asks the applicant to determine the airplane is airworthy in a scenario the evaluator gives. The records hold the answer.

An airworthiness directive is a regulation. 14 CFR 39.7: "Anyone who operates a product that does not meet the requirements of an applicable airworthiness directive is in violation of this section" . AC 39-7D states the consequence for the word operate: "ADs are regulations issued under part 39. Therefore, no person may operate a product to which an AD applies, except in accordance with the requirements of that AD" . The advisory circular then widens operate to include "causing or authorizing the product to be used for the purpose of air navigation," so an owner who lends the airplane operates it.

Compliance is continuous and not limited to inspections. AC 39-7D says so in one sentence: "The belief that AD compliance is only required at the time of a required inspection (e.g., at a 100-hour or annual inspection) is not correct" . Each directive states its compliance time. An airplane can hold a fresh annual and still be unairworthy, because a recurring directive came due in the hours since the inspection.

A directive is one of two kinds. An owner complies with a one-time directive once and records it once. A recurring directive repeats at a stated interval of hours or calendar time. AC 39-7D notes that a directive can allow an owner to adjust the interval to coincide with the part 91 inspections . Only the status record proves which directives apply and when each one is next due.

A Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin is not a directive and carries no compliance requirement. FAA Order 8110.100B defines it: "An SAIB contains non-regulatory, non-mandatory information and guidance for safety issues that do not meet the criteria for airworthiness directive (AD) action under Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 39" . A manufacturer's service bulletin is in the same category for a part 91 operator. A bulletin becomes mandatory only when a directive adopts it by reference.

PA.I.B.K1d is "Purpose and procedure for obtaining a special flight permit" . 14 CFR 21.197(a) states what it is for: a permit "may be issued for an aircraft that may not currently meet applicable airworthiness requirements but is capable of safe flight" . The rule then lists the purposes, and the first one is the purpose a private pilot meets: "Flying the aircraft to a base where repairs, alterations, or maintenance are to be performed, or to a point of storage." An airplane overdue for its annual reaches the shop on a permit.

The permit is a certificate with a form number and a limit. Plane Sense names both: "A special flight permit is an FAA Form 8130-7, Special Airworthiness Certificate, issued pursuant to 14 CFR part 21, section 21.197, for an aircraft that may not currently meet applicable airworthiness requirements but is safe for a specific flight" . The application goes to the FAA office or to a designated airworthiness representative. The permit carries its own operating limitations on the route, the occupants and the weather.

One case prevents a permit. Plane Sense states it directly: "If an Airworthiness Directive (AD) requires compliance before further flight and does not have a provision for issuance of a special flight permit, the operation of the aircraft to which it applies would not be appropriate, and a special flight permit will not be issued" . A directive that says before further flight means the airplane does not fly again until the work is done.

PA.I.B.K2 is "Pilot-performed preventive maintenance" . 14 CFR 43.3(g) grants the privilege: "Except for holders of a sport pilot certificate, the holder of a pilot certificate issued under part 61 may perform preventive maintenance on any aircraft owned or operated by that pilot which is not used under part 121, 129, or 135 of this chapter" . That sentence contains three conditions:

AC 43-12A adds the minimum certificate for approving the work: "Section 43.7 limits the privilege to persons holding at least a private or sport pilot certificate" .

The list of tasks is closed. AC 43-12A states the rule for reading it: "If a task or maintenance function does not appear in the list, it is not preventive maintenance" . The list is in part 43 appendix A paragraph (c), and it begins with a limit of its own. Preventive maintenance "is limited to the following work, provided it does not involve complex assembly operations" .

Named examples from that list include :

The work ends in a logbook entry the pilot writes. 14 CFR 43.9(a) applies to "each person who maintains, performs preventive maintenance, rebuilds, or alters" the airplane, so the pilot owes the same description, date, signature, certificate number and kind of certificate a mechanic owes . AC 43-12A adds the limit on the approval: "pilots may only approve for return to service preventive maintenance which they themselves have accomplished" . A pilot who changes the oil and writes nothing leaves the airplane illegal to fly under 91.407(a)(2).

PA.I.B.K3 is "Equipment requirements for day and night VFR flight" . The rule applies to a defined set of airplanes. 14 CFR 91.205(a) covers "a powered civil aircraft with a standard U.S. airworthiness certificate," and it requires the listed equipment to be "in operable condition" . An experimental airplane is outside 91.205, because it holds a special airworthiness certificate and its own operating limitations state its equipment rules .

ATOMATOFLAMES names the day VFR list of 14 CFR 91.205(b) :

The mnemonic does not name each item in the rule. 91.205(b)(12) adds flotation gear and a pyrotechnic signaling device for a flight for hire over water beyond gliding distance from shore . The letters are a way into the rule and not a substitute for reading it.

The fuel gauge is the item students most often answer wrong. The rule requires a "fuel gauge indicating the quantity of fuel in each tank" . A two-tank airplane with one inoperative gauge does not meet the rule. The airplane does not fly until the pilot works the 91.213 process, and dipping the tanks does not change the rule.

FLAPS names what night adds, from 14 CFR 91.205(c) :

Night flight requires each item on the day list plus those five, because 91.205(c)(1) starts by naming "instruments and equipment specified in paragraph (b)" . The rule requires the landing light only for hire, and many pilots assume it applies to each night flight. A position light that does not work grounds a night flight and does not ground a day flight.

PA.I.B.K3a is "Flying with inoperative equipment," and K3b, K3c and K3d add the MEL, the Kinds of Operation Equipment List and the required discrepancy records or placards . The governing rule is 14 CFR 91.213. A student who answers with 91.205 first names the wrong rule. 91.205 applies later in the process, as one of the four screens.

AC 91-67A names the three methods: "Section 91.213 provides three methods for operating an aircraft with inoperative instruments or equipment installed. The relief could be obtained: Through an MEL and LOA; Under the provisions of § 91.213(d); or Under a special flight permit (SFP) issued in accordance with §§ 21.197 and 21.199" . A Minimum Equipment List requires a letter of authorization from the responsible Flight Standards office, and the MEL and the letter together "constitute a supplemental type certificate for the aircraft" . Most training airplanes have no MEL, so most deferrals use the second method.

The second method needs no paperwork in advance. AC 91-67A: "No application, written request, or approval is required to operate under § 91.213(d)" . The airplane must qualify first, and a non-turbine-powered airplane that has no MMEL does qualify . Four screens follow, and the inoperative item must pass each screen.

Screen one is the type certification list. The item must not be "part of the VFR-day type certification instruments and equipment prescribed in the applicable airworthiness regulations under which the aircraft was type certificated" . The regulations named are the ones in force when the airplane was certificated. A 1974 Warrior therefore uses its own certification basis, not today's part 23.

Screen two is the airplane's own lists. The item must not be "indicated as required on the aircraft's equipment list, or on the Kinds of Operations Equipment List for the kind of flight operation being conducted" . The equipment list and the KOEL are in the POH. Kinds of operation means day VFR, night VFR, IFR and icing, and one item can be required for one column and not for another.

Screen three is 91.205 and the rest of part 91. The item must not be "required by § 91.205 or any other rule of this part for the specific kind of flight operation being conducted" . The last phrase makes the answer depend on the specific flight. A position light fails this screen for a night flight and passes it for a day flight.

Screen four is the directives. The item must not be "required to be operational by an airworthiness directive" . A pilot cannot defer an item that a recurring airworthiness directive requires to be operational. The other three screens do not change that limit.

An item that passes all four screens needs one of two dispositions. 14 CFR 91.213(d)(3): the item is either "removed from the aircraft, the cockpit control placarded, and the maintenance recorded in accordance with § 43.9," or "deactivated and placarded 'Inoperative'" . AC 91-67A adds what deactivation means in practice: "Deactivation may involve more than simply turning off a system switch, which does not remove power from the system," and a person authorized under 43.7 must make the 43.9 entry . The placard is the discrepancy record PA.I.B.K3d names.

The last step is a determination by a person. 14 CFR 91.213(d)(4): "A determination is made by a pilot, who is certificated and appropriately rated under part 61 of this chapter, or by a person, who is certificated and appropriately rated to perform maintenance on the aircraft, that the inoperative instrument or equipment does not constitute a hazard to the aircraft" . The pilot in command can make that determination. The rule requires judgment about this airplane and this flight. The four screens do not supply that judgment.

PA.I.B.K4 is "Standard and special airworthiness certificates and their associated operational limitations" . 14 CFR 21.175(a) lists what a standard certificate covers: airplanes type certificated "in the normal, utility, acrobatic, commuter, or transport category," manned free balloons, and special classes . The certificate itself shows the category. One airplane can hold more than one category, and the POH then gives different weight and maneuver limits for each.

Special airworthiness certificates cover a different set. 14 CFR 21.175(b) lists four groups :

Each special certificate has its own operational limitations. An experimental airplane, for example, operates under 91.319, which requires the pilot to advise each person carried of the experimental nature of the airplane .

PA.I.B.R1 is "Inoperative equipment discovered prior to flight" . It is a risk element, so the evaluator wants a decision rather than a recitation. The 91.213(d) process determines whether the airplane is legal. 14 CFR 91.7(b) and 91.213(d)(4) then require an answer about safety. A pilot who answers only the legal question answers one of the two questions.

The Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge gives the three outcomes: "When inoperative equipment is found during a preflight inspection or prior to departure, the decision should be to cancel the flight, obtain maintenance prior to flight, or to defer the item or equipment" . Deferring is one of three choices and not the default. The same page also states: "Under 14 CFR, all aircraft instruments and installed equipment are required to be operative prior to each departure."

An inoperative item can be legal and still be unsafe for the planned flight. A landing light is not required for a private night flight. A pilot who lands at an unlit private strip has a different problem than a pilot who lands at a lit towered field. An alternator with a low reading can pass all four screens. The low reading is still a problem for the flight. The evaluator listens for the pilot to separate the legal question from the safety question and to answer both.

14 CFR 91.103 applies to the whole Task: "Each pilot in command shall, before beginning a flight, become familiar with all available information concerning that flight" . The maintenance records, the squawk sheet at the front desk, and a note from the last renter are all available information about this flight. A pilot who signs out an airplane without reading them does not meet 91.103. That pilot also cannot answer PA.I.B.S2.

The flight of N180LR

On May 5, 2023, a Piper PA-28-180 lost all engine power about 10 miles from Pitt-Greenville Airport in North Carolina . The private pilot glided it into a swamp about a quarter of a mile short of the runway. The pilot and his passenger suffered serious injuries, and the airplane sustained substantial damage. The airplane had a recent inspection and a complete set of certificates, and the pilot found nothing abnormal in the preflight inspection. No one checked the engine oil filter in the eight months before the accident.

The pilot was 24 years old and held a private pilot certificate with a single-engine land rating and no instrument rating. He had 61.3 total hours, all of them in this make and model, and 19.2 hours as pilot in command. He flew 1.3 hours in the previous 90 days and none in the previous 30. He rented the airplane from a flight school at Greensboro and planned an hour-long flight to Greenville with a passenger aboard.

The airplane was a 1962 PA-28-180 with a Lycoming O-360-A3A engine, on a utility category airworthiness certificate . Its last inspection was a 100-hour inspection, signed on April 26, 2023, nine days and 22 flight hours before the accident. The airframe had 5,362 hours. The paperwork a renter can see was complete and current.

The engine logbook holds three relevant entries.

The January 5 entry also recorded the work the mechanic did:

None of those four oil-change entries recorded opening the filter or checking the oil sump suction screen.

Two manufacturer documents applied to the engine, and neither one was an airworthiness directive. Lycoming Mandatory Service Bulletin 480F required a check of the oil filter and the oil sump suction screen after each oil change, to find metallic particles that wear produces . Lycoming Service Instruction 1009BE recommended overhaul at 2,000 hours or within 12 calendar years, "to mitigate engine deterioration that occurs with age, including corrosion of metallic components."

The engine was last overhauled on September 7, 2002. At the accident it had run 2,118.5 hours in almost 21 years. That total is 118 hours and 9 years beyond the manufacturer's figures.

The flight departed Greensboro at about 0800 in clear weather with 10 miles of visibility. The pilot reported a thorough preflight with nothing abnormal, full tanks in both wings, a normal start and a normal run-up . About 10 miles from Greenville at 4,000 feet he noticed a gradual loss of engine RPM. He advanced the throttle and saw no response. He applied carburetor heat and saw no discernible difference in RPM.

The engine then lost RPM rapidly and stopped producing power. The pilot trimmed for best glide and landed in a swamp a quarter of a mile short of runway 08. A few seconds before touchdown he saw the oil pressure light flashing on the panel .

Investigators tore down the engine and found the cause of the power loss. The teardown showed these conditions:

The NTSB Materials Laboratory found "damage consistent with the engine operating at high operating temperatures due to a lack of lubrication," and "no preexisting material failures" . The wear produced metal particles over a long period. The metal collected in the oil screen, the engine lost lubrication, the bearings and rods overheated, and the number 3 connecting rod broke.

The NTSB probable cause names no pilot error: "Inadequate maintenance by the operator and maintenance personnel, which resulted in a loss of engine power due to oil starvation" . The findings list the owner and the maintenance personnel under scheduled or routine maintenance, and add "(general) - Inadequate inspection."

Where the accident chain could have been broken

A pilot cannot find this failure in a preflight inspection. The pilot did a thorough preflight inspection and reported nothing abnormal, and his report was accurate. Metal in an oil filter is invisible from outside the cowling. An engine that produces metal particles can run normally until the moment it fails. Some airworthiness questions have no answer on the ramp.

A renter can read the maintenance records in ten minutes. Three facts appear in them:

Any one of those facts is a question a renter can ask at the desk. None of the three facts makes the airplane illegal, and PA.I.B.R1 covers that situation. A service bulletin is not an airworthiness directive, so the missed filter checks broke no regulation a pilot can cite. 14 CFR 91.7(b) still assigns the determination to the pilot in command.

Mechanics completed and signed the annual and the 100-hour inspections. 14 CFR 43.9(a) says what those signatures mean: "The signature constitutes the approval for return to service only for the work performed" . The entries said "Changed oil and filter," and the signatures approved only that work. A signature on those entries is not a statement about the whole engine.

Task G also applies to this flight, at about 4,000 feet. The RPM fell gradually, the throttle movement changed nothing, and carburetor heat made no difference. Carburetor ice produces a falling RPM that recovers after the pilot applies heat . No change after carburetor heat means a different cause. The oil pressure light on the panel came on seconds before touchdown, and it indicated a failure of the oil system.

The forced landing was survivable. The pilot trimmed for best glide and landed the airplane in the swamp rather than stretching the glide toward the runway. Both occupants lived. The PIC controls the part of this accident that happens before engine start.

PA.I.G.K1a is primary flight controls and PA.I.G.K1b is secondary flight controls . The Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge defines both systems: "The ailerons, elevator (or stabilator), and rudder constitute the primary control system and are required to control an aircraft safely during flight. Wing flaps, leading edge devices, spoilers, and trim systems constitute the secondary control system and improve the performance characteristics of the airplane or relieve the pilot of excessive control forces" . Three primary controls move the airplane about three axes:

The Warrior pitches with a stabilator. The whole horizontal tail moves as one surface, and the POH calls it "of the flying tail design with a trim tab mounted on the trailing edge" . The tab has two functions, and the POH names both: "This tab serves the dual function of providing trim control and pitch control forces." The handbook names the second function an antiservo tab. The tab deflects in the same direction as the stabilator and increases the force needed to move it. That force makes the stabilator "less prone to pilot-induced overcontrolling" .

Flaps increase both lift and induced drag at a given angle of attack. The airplane can then fly a steeper approach at a lower speed without accelerating . The handbook states the effect: flaps "allow a compromise between high cruising speed and low landing speed because they may be extended when needed and retracted into the wing's structure when not needed." The Warrior's flaps are manual, and a lever between the seats moves them . An evaluator asks about flaps more than about any other secondary control.

PA.I.G.K1c is "Powerplant and propeller" . The Warrior's engine is a Lycoming O-320-E3D. The POH gives the numbers :

The POH describes the engine as "four cylinder, direct drive, horizontally opposed," with dual magnetos, a vacuum pump drive and a fuel pump . The engine is air-cooled and carbureted, and its induction air comes through a filter in a chin scoop on the lower right cowling.

The propeller is fixed-pitch. The handbook defines the term: "A propeller with fixed blade angles is a fixed-pitch propeller. The pitch of this propeller is set by the manufacturer and cannot be changed" . The tachometer is therefore the power instrument, because the throttle sets RPM. The Warrior carries a McCauley or a Sensenich fixed pitch propeller as standard equipment .

Two magnetos drive two spark plugs in each cylinder, and neither magneto needs the electrical system. The handbook: "A magneto uses a permanent magnet to generate an electrical current completely independent of the aircraft's electrical system... It continues to operate whenever the crankshaft is rotating" . The engine keeps running with the master switch off. A propeller moved by hand can start the engine when a magneto is live, even with no one in the airplane.

Two independent systems exist for two reasons. The handbook names both: reliability, and better combustion from two plugs firing at once . The run-up magneto check verifies that redundancy on the ground.

The mixture control sets the fuel-air ratio. The handbook states the reason: "Leaning the mixture decreases fuel flow, which compensates for the decreased air density at high altitude." The pilot enriches the mixture during a descent, because "an overly lean mixture causes detonation, which may result in rough engine operation, overheating, and/or a loss of power" . At a low field elevation full rich is the takeoff and landing setting.

The carburetor mixes fuel and air, and the same process forms ice. The handbook explains the mechanism: "Carburetor ice occurs due to the effect of fuel vaporization and the decrease in air pressure in the venturi, which causes a sharp temperature drop in the carburetor" . Ice forms near the throttle valve and in the venturi throat and restricts the fuel-air mixture.

Carburetor heat routes warm unfiltered air to the carburetor, and it reduces engine power. "The use of carburetor heat causes a decrease in engine power, sometimes up to 15 percent, because the heated air is less dense than the outside air that had been entering the engine. This enriches the mixture" . The RPM response shows whether ice was present. In a fixed-pitch airplane with ice present, RPM drops and then rises as the ice melts. With no ice present, RPM drops and stays low.

PA.I.G.K1d is "Landing gear" . The Warrior's gear is fixed tricycle on air-oil struts. The POH gives the static extensions: "The three struts are of the air-oil type with the normal static load extension being 3.25 inches for the nose gear and 4.50 inches for the main gear" . A flat strut is a preflight finding, because the number is published and measurable. The nose gear steers "through a 30 degree arc each side of center by the use of the rudder pedals and toe brakes."

The handbook gives three advantages of tricycle gear :

The brakes are the airplane's only hydraulic system, which is the hydraulic part of PA.I.G.K1e. The POH describes the layout :

The same master cylinder holds the parking brake. The fluid is MIL-H-5606, a petroleum base fluid, and the POH puts the level check at each 50 hour inspection .

PA.I.G.K1e is "Fuel, oil, and hydraulic" . The Warrior holds fuel in two wing tanks, and the POH gives four numbers: "Fuel is stored in two twenty-five gallon (24 gallons usable) fuel tanks, giving the airplane a total capacity of fifty U.S. gallons (48 gallons usable)" . Two gallons are unusable. Unusable fuel is not a reserve, and it does not appear in any flight plan.

The fuel selector has three positions and none of them is BOTH. LEFT, RIGHT and OFF are the choices, and the POH notes that the pilot must hold down a button on the selector cover to reach OFF . The pilot therefore switches tanks on a schedule. The POH recommends one tank for one hour after takeoff, then the other tank for two hours, then the first tank again. The POH adds "Do not run tanks completely dry in flight" .

The electric fuel pump backs up the engine-driven pump. The POH states when it runs: "An auxiliary electric fuel pump is provided in case of the failure of the engine driven pump. The electric pump should be ON for all takeoffs and landings and when switching tanks" . The handbook gives the same arrangement in general terms, with the main pump engine driven and the auxiliary pump electric .

A higher fuel grade is an acceptable substitute, and a lower grade is not. The POH sets the minimum for this airplane: "The minimum aviation grade fuel for the PA-28-151 is 80/87. Since the use of lower grades can cause serious engine damage in a short period of time, the engine warranty is invalidated by the use of lower octanes. Whenever 80/87 is not available, the lowest lead 100 grade should be used" . The handbook states the general rule the same way: "If the proper grade of fuel is not available, use the next higher grade as a substitute. Never use a grade lower than recommended" . Aviation gasoline is dyed by grade, and 100LL is blue.

Oil has five functions in a reciprocating engine. The handbook lists them: "Lubrication of the engine's moving parts · Cooling of the engine by reducing friction · Removing heat from the cylinders · Providing a seal between the cylinder walls and pistons · Carrying away contaminants" . The Warrior uses a wet-sump system, where the oil sits in a sump that is part of the engine. The POH gives the quantities: "The oil capacity of the Lycoming O-320-E3D series engines is 8 quarts and the minimum safe quantity is 2 quarts" .

Oil pressure must reach the lower limit within 30 seconds after start. The Airplane Flying Handbook: "In most conditions, oil pressure should rise to at least the lower limit within 30 seconds. To prevent damage, the engine should be shut down immediately if the oil pressure does not rise to the AFM/POH values within the required time" . The Warrior's green arc runs from 60 to 90 PSI with a red line minimum of 25 PSI . A pilot who waits for the needle to rise later runs an engine without lubrication.

The before-takeoff check is a systematic procedure with a purpose for each line. The Airplane Flying Handbook defines it as "the systematic AFM/POH procedure for checking the engine, controls, systems, instruments, and avionics prior to flight" . The pilot normally does the check at a run-up position near the takeoff end of the runway. Each line exists to detect one specific failure while the airplane is still on the ground. An evaluator can point at any line and ask what it is for.

The magneto check has three numbers in the Warrior's POH. "Check the magnetos at 2000 RPM by switching from BOTH to RIGHT, then back to BOTH before switching to LEFT. The drop on either magneto should not exceed 175 RPM, and each magneto should read within 50 RPM of the other" . Three results fail the check:

A drop of zero fails because the switch probably does not ground that magneto, and the engine can start with the ignition key off.

The pilot checks two more systems during the same run-up. The POH puts the vacuum gauge at 5 inches of mercury, plus or minus 0.1, at 2,000 RPM. The POH also asks for a check of oil temperature and oil pressure . The pilot checks carburetor heat before takeoff "to be sure that the control is operating properly and to clear any ice that may have formed during taxiing." The POH warns against prolonged operation with carburetor heat on, because the air is unfiltered.

PA.I.G.K1f is "Electrical" . The Warrior's system is 14 volt with an alternator and a battery. The POH lists the parts: "a 14 volt 60 ampere alternator, voltage regulator, overvoltage relay, battery contactor and a standard 12 volt 25 ampere hour or an optional 12 volt 35 ampere hour battery" . Primary power comes from the alternator. Secondary power comes from the battery, which is the reserve and the starting source.

The ammeter shows the state of the electrical system, and its reading depends on the installation. The Warrior's POH is specific: "Unlike previous generator systems, the ammeter as installed does not show battery discharge; rather, it indicates the electrical load on the alternator" . The handbook describes the center-zero type found in other airplanes, where a plus reading is the battery charging and a full-scale minus deflection "indicates a malfunction of the alternator/generator" . A pilot answers this question for the airplane in front of the evaluator, not for airplanes in general.

The master switch is a split rocker with two halves. The POH: "One side of the switch is the battery side ('BAT') and the other is the alternator side ('ALT')" . The handbook adds what the switch does and does not reach: turning it on "provides electrical energy to all the electrical equipment circuits except the ignition system" .

Circuit breakers protect each circuit, and the POH sets the reset rule: "Before attempting to reset any circuit breaker, allow a two to five minute cooling off period" . The pilot resets a breaker once at most, and never holds a breaker in.

PA.I.G.K1g is "Avionics" . The radios and the navigation equipment run off the electrical bus, and the starter draws enough current to drop the bus voltage. Many airplanes fit an avionics master switch to hold that load off the radios. The 1974 Warrior's manual describes no such switch, and its POH states the same protection as a procedure: "Before starting the engine, check that all radio switches, light switches and the pitot heat switch are in the off position to prevent an overloaded condition when the starter is engaged" . Avionics go off before start and off before shutdown.

PA.I.G.K1h is "Pitot-static, vacuum/pressure, and associated flight instruments" . The handbook names the system and its three instruments: "The pitot-static system is a combined system that utilizes the static air pressure and the dynamic pressure due to the motion of the aircraft through the air. These combined pressures are utilized for the operation of the airspeed indicator (ASI), altimeter, and vertical speed indicator (VSI)" . Ram air from the pitot tube feeds the airspeed indicator only. Static pressure feeds all three.

The gyroscopic instruments run on two power sources on purpose. The handbook: "vacuum or pressure systems provide the power for the heading and attitude indicators, while the electrical system provides the power for the turn coordinator. Most aircraft have at least two sources of power to ensure at least one source of bank information is available if one power source fails" . The Warrior's vacuum system is an engine-driven dry pump with a regulator, a filter and a gauge . The pump has a shear drive, and the POH notes the consequence: "If the drive shears, the gyros will become inoperative."

PA.I.G.K1i is "Environmental" . The Warrior heats the cabin with ram air warmed by a shroud around the muffler, and the same shroud supplies the carburetor heat air . One muffler wall separates cabin air from exhaust gas. The AIM states the failure mode for that design: "Most heaters in light aircraft work by air flowing over the manifold. Use of these heaters while exhaust fumes are escaping through manifold cracks and seals is responsible every year for several nonfatal and fatal aircraft accidents from carbon monoxide poisoning" . A cracked muffler puts carbon monoxide into the heated air, and the response has three steps:

PA.I.G.K1j is "Deicing and anti-icing." The Warrior has no ice protection system, and it must not fly into known icing. Pitot heat, if the airplane has it, and carburetor heat are the only heated items. An evaluator who asks how the airplane handles ice asks whether the applicant knows that the airplane has no ice protection.

Structural ice needs two conditions at the same time. AIM 7-1-19: "A pilot can expect icing when flying in visible precipitation, such as rain or cloud droplets, and the temperature is between +02 and −10 degrees Celsius" . The Aviation Weather Handbook gives the mechanism: "Structural icing is the ice that sticks to the outside of the airplane. It occurs when supercooled water droplets strike the airframe and freeze" . The pilot responds with an immediate change of altitude, course or direction. The AIM notes that 2 to 3 inches of ice can form on a leading edge in less than 5 minutes .

PA.I.G.K1l is "Oxygen system" . The Warrior carries no oxygen system. 14 CFR 91.211(a) sets three cabin pressure altitudes :

The verbs differ between the first two rules and the third. Crew members use oxygen. Occupants are provided with it, and the rule does not require them to put it on. An evaluator listens for that difference, because most applicants state it incorrectly.

PA.I.G.K2 is "Indications of and procedures for managing system abnormalities or failures," and PA.I.G.R1 is "Detection of system malfunctions or failures" . The two elements cover the same subject. PA.I.G.R1 asks what a failure looks like to the pilot. PA.I.G.K2 asks what the pilot does about the failure.

A total electrical failure does not stop the engine. The magnetos are self-powered, so the engine keeps running . The failure stops four items:

A pilot who knows that fact flies an airplane with a communication problem rather than an engine problem.

The pilot detects alternator failure on the ammeter and confirms it before treating it. The Warrior's POH: "Loss of alternator output is detected through a zero reading on the ammeter. Before executing the following procedure, insure that the reading is zero and not merely low by actuating an electrically powered device, such as the landing light. If no increase in the ammeter reading is noted, alternator failure can be assumed" . The procedure then has three steps:

If output does not return, the POH gives three actions:

A blocked pitot tube makes the airspeed indicator behave like an altimeter. The handbook states the result: if the pitot opening and the drain hole both clog, the blockage traps the pressure, and "no change is noted on the airspeed indication should the airspeed increase or decrease" . With the static port clear, the indication then rises as the airplane climbs and falls as it descends. The common causes are an insect nest and ice.

A blocked static system leaves the airspeed indicator working and wrong. The handbook: "The airspeed indicates lower than the actual airspeed when the aircraft is operated above the altitude where the static ports became blocked... When operating at a lower altitude, a faster than actual airspeed is displayed" . The altimeter freezes at the blockage altitude and the vertical speed indicator reads zero.

Vacuum failure produces no warning. The attitude indicator does not stop. It drifts, tilting by degrees over minutes, and a pilot who flies it follows it into a bank. The Warrior's POH names the gauge that shows the failure. A vacuum gauge on the far right instrument panel provides the pilot check, and zero pressure indicates a sheared pump drive or a defective pump . The second indication is disagreement between the instruments, because the turn coordinator is electric and keeps working .

The pilot works an abnormal indication with the checklist. The Warrior's emergency section states the limits of its own procedures: the procedures "are suggested as the best course of action for coping with the particular condition described, but are not a substitute for sound judgment and common sense," and emergencies are "usually unexpected, and the best corrective action may not always be obvious" . A pilot under stress recalls steps that are not in the POH. PA.I.G.S2 asks the applicant to complete the appropriate checklists, and the evaluator watches whether the applicant uses the checklist.

The pilot answers an engine fire in flight by cutting off the fuel and air to the engine. The Warrior's POH gives the order :

Each step removes fuel or air from the fire. The flight becomes a forced landing at the moment the mixture goes to idle cut off.

The pilot answers an electrical fire by removing the electrical source first. The POH: "a. Electrical Fire (Smoke in Cabin): (1) Master Switch - Off (2) Vents - Open (3) Cabin Heat - Off (4) Land as soon as practicable" . The Airplane Flying Handbook describes the first indication as "the distinct odor of burning insulation" . The handbook says to turn off the battery master and alternator switches when the pilot cannot find and isolate the faulty circuit. Materials already burning keep burning after the power is off.

An emergency descent is a maneuver with a defined purpose. The Airplane Flying Handbook: "An emergency descent is a maneuver for descending as rapidly as possible to a lower altitude or to the ground for an emergency landing... The objective is to descend the airplane as soon and as rapidly as possible while not exceeding any structural limitations of the airplane" . The ACS names the situations: "depressurization, smoke, or engine fire" . The handbook gives the entry bank and its reason: "When initiating the descent, a bank of approximately 30 to 45° should be established to maintain positive load factors (G forces) on the airplane" . A separate sentence covers practice: "Simulated emergency descents should be made in a turn to check for other air traffic below and to look around for a possible emergency landing area."

PA.IX.D is Emergency Equipment and Survival Gear, and its first element is the emergency locator transmitter . The AIM describes three operating frequencies and two technologies: "These operating frequencies are 121.5 MHz, 243.0 MHz, and the newer 406 MHz. ELTs operating on 121.5 MHz and 243.0 MHz are analog devices. The newer 406 MHz ELT is a digital transmitter that can be encoded with the owner's contact information or aircraft data" . A 406 MHz unit is satellite monitored and transmits a stronger signal. The transmitter activates on impact forces. The pilot can also arm, test or switch it on by hand at the unit or at a panel remote.

An analog ELT test has a time window and a length limit. The AIM: "Analog 121.5/243 MHz ELTs should only be tested during the first 5 minutes after any hour... Tests should be no longer than three audible sweeps" . The same paragraph names inadvertent activation from hard landings and ground handling, and asks pilots to monitor 121.5 before engine shutdown.

The fire extinguisher is a preflight item and a four-step procedure. The pilot checks that the extinguisher is charged and secured in a bracket within reach of the seat. PASS is the sequence:

Ventilation comes after the extinguisher, not before. The Airplane Flying Handbook: "In many cases, smoke may be removed from the cabin by opening the cabin air vents. This should be done only after the fire extinguisher (if available) is used" . Opening the vents first supplies air to the fire.

The pilot packs survival gear for the terrain and the season under the route. PA.IX.D.K3 asks for the equipment and gear needed for "Climate extremes (hot/cold)," "Mountainous terrain" and "Overwater operations" . PA.IX.D.R1 reads "Survival gear (water, clothing, shelter) for 48 to 72 hours." The three items the ACS names are:

The weather at the departure airport is not the planning input.

Sources for this module

You are not asked to read these end to end. Have them, and know where in them this module lives. On the checkride you may open the handbook and you may not open this site. Each one links to where you get it. Reading a full chapter is worth it, and it is not required to pass this module.

Your study guide and quiz

The facts to remember are:

Study guide — Module 4-2 (PDF)

Task B asks whether the airplane is legal, and Task G asks how the airplane works. The Greenville PA-28 met the first requirement on paper and failed it in the maintenance records. At 4,000 feet the throttle had no effect on the engine.