![]() ![]() Although it is possible to do pre-flight checks from memory, it is really not recommended. However, the chceklist should always be used. I have seen pilots boast that they don’t need to use the pre-flight checklist. Some of them think that this makes them appear more experienced and in some way better than newer PPLs. Sometimes private pilots decide that they don’t need to use a checklist any more, but can perform their pre-flight checks from memory. As stated above, even airline pilots and military pilots do so, although they may have flown the particular aircraft and performed the same actions hundreds if not thousands of times before. Do Experienced Pilots do Pre-Flight Checks?Īll pilots use checklists, however experienced they are and however well they know the particular aircraft they are flying. And of course, each aircraft type will have a slightly different checklist. Some of these items are obvious, and some will require explanation if they are new to the pilot. Looking at the actions in groups in this way makes the whole thing appear more logical, rather than as simply a series of disconnected actions, which is how it can seem for the novice pilot. Then, after taxi-ing, there are actually few more items to check before the actual takeoff. First there are items which are checked before you even think of starting the engine, then things you need to do as a part of engine start-up, and then ‘power checks’ which are done when you increase the power prior to takeoff. Oil pressure and temperature should be checked and be in the green.Īs you can see from this list, the checks fall into natural groupings.Throttle – advance smoothly to 1700 rpm (make sure you still have the brakes applied.).Mixture rich, assuming takeoff below 3000 feet.Elevator trim moves correctly and set in takeoff position.Flight controls free and moving correctly.Adjust rpm with throttle to 1000 or less.Propeller – area check and shout “Clear”.Seat belts and shoulder harnesses fastened.This is just summarised below as ‘Complete External Checks’, but on an actual checklist each item will be described separately and should be checked carefully. This is when the pilot walks carefully round the outside of the aircraft, checking everything from moving surfaces such as flaps and ailerons, to tyres to fuel. As an example, here is an example of a pre-flight checklist for the Cessna 152, a small aircraft commonly used in flying schools for PPL training.Īctually, the C152 checklist starts with the external ‘walk around’. The appearance and length of pre-flight checklist varies enormously, from relatively simple lists of actions for single engine planes such as most private pilots learn on and fly, to extremely long and detailed lists used by airline pilots. ![]() Eventually it was adopted throughout the aviation world. Both pilots in the aircraft were killed, and after investigation it was found that the pilots had forgotten to disengage the gust locks, devices which stop control surfaces moving in the wind while the plane is parked, prior to take-off.Īfter this Boeing decided to have a set list of actions to be undertaken pre-flight, so that such a thing could never occur again. It followed a fatal crash of the prototype Boeing B-17 Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio. History of Pre-Flight ChecklistsĪccording to one researcher and writer, the idea of a pre-flight checklist was first introduced by management and engineers at Boeing Corporation in 1935. And pre-flight checklists have been in use in aviation for many years. All pilots use them, from private pilots flying small single-engined aircraft, to military pilots, right up to airline pilots flying commercially. All good pilots use pre-flight checklists before every flight.Ī pre-flight checklist is a comprehensive list of actions that should be completed by the pilot on every flight, prior to takeoff. Perhaps he kicks the types, checks the fuel gauges to makes sure he has enough fuel, and then just departs. Some people think that before taking off in an airplane the pilot simply has a casual glance at it.
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