You, the pilot, must be in possession of your pilot certificate and a current medical certificate, and you must not be under the influence of drugs or alcohol or have consumed alcohol within the previous eight hours. You must have performed a flight review within the past 24 months, and your logbook must contain the appropriate CFI endorsement. A flight review is not required if, during the past 24 months, you have passed a proficiency check (practical test) for a pilot certificate or rating or accomplished one or more phases of an FAA-sponsored pilot proficiency award (Wings) program.
If you plan to carry passengers during the day, you must have completed three touch-and-go landings within the last 90 days. Those landings must be to a full stop if the passengers will be carried at night. You cannot taxi, takeoff, or land unless you have told your passengers to fasten their seat belts and shoulder harnesses (if your airplane has them), and you cannot take off until you have explained to your passengers how to fasten and unfasten those devices.
The aircraft must be airworthy. To confirm this you must conduct a walk-around inspection as listed in the (POH) and inspect the aircraft's on-board paperwork: airworthiness certificate, registration certificate, operating limitations, and weight and balance data. (The mnemonic AROW can help you remember what to look for.)
You must inspect the aircraft's logbooks for maintenance inspections, compliance with airworthiness directives, and, if the airplane or engine has been modified, the supplemental type certificate that authorized the modification. An annual inspection must have been completed within the previous 12 calendar months. A 100-hour inspection must have been completed within the previous 100 hours of flight time if the airplane is used for hire-this requirement can be extended up to 10 hours if that's necessary to reach a maintenance facility.
The emergency locator transmitter (ELT) must have been inspected within the preceding 12 calendar months, and if the ELT has been used for more than one cumulative hour or 50 percent of the battery's useful life has expired, the battery must be replaced. The transponder and the static pressure system, altimeter, and altitude reporting system must have been tested and inspected within the preceding 24 calendar months.
Airworthiness directives (ADs) can be an aircraft owner's nightmare, and airworthiness means total compliance. ADs are sent to registered aircraft owners, and in the past, nonowners had to subscribe to the ADs or trust the integrity of the aircraft's owner/operator. Today, you can review ADs on the FAA's Web site ( www.faa.gov ).
Inoperative equipment is your last check. If something is not working you must refer to FAR 91.205 to determine if that item is required. You must also refer to the aircraft's POH equipment list (in 1979 or later airplanes), and if the item number is suffixed by the letter R, it is required for aircraft certification. If the item is not required by either reference and you determine that it does not constitute a hazard under the anticipated operating conditions, you can placard it inoperative and continue. Otherwise, you must consult a mechanic.
I requested a three-word answer to my question about preflight action. Pilot examiners frequently use a similar approach, asking a simple question with a simple answer. But don't be surprised if you're asked to explain just what "all available information" means. Now you can.
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