Increased management responsibilities

April 5, 2004 By Wally Miller

Are you ready to fly a complex aircraft?

The first thing many new private pilots want to do is get out of that workhorse training airplane and move into something that has a couple more seats, flies a little faster, gets there a little sooner, and has a little more performance. Every pilot I know-with the possible exception of my ultralight-flying friends-would like to fly a more capable airplane.

So why not just go jump in that bigger, faster, plusher airplane with all the new bells and whistles? An airplane's an airplane, right? If you've seen one, you've seen 'em all, right?

Wrong! There was a time when that might have been so, but no more. Those days are long gone.

Regulatory requirements for training aside, with the complications of controlled airspace, temporary flight restrictions, and the like, it's easier to get in trouble than it used to be. If you're flying a faster aircraft, you can get into trouble more quickly. Flying complex and high-performance aircraft amounts to increased opportunities for distraction, so we need to go out and get some training.

Discounting the dramatic improvements brought on by better technology, innovation, and modern production techniques, moving to a complex or high-performance airplane-even if it's 30 or 40 years old-requires thought, study, a one-time endorsement from an authorized instructor, and practice.

According to Part 61 of the federal aviation regulations, a high-performance aircraft has at least one engine that produces more than 200 horsepower. A complex airplane has retractable landing gear, flaps, and a controllable-pitch propeller (also called a constant speed prop, the pilot can change the angle of attack of its blades to increase efficiency; we'll discuss this later). Complex seaplanes, of course, are not required to have retractable gear to be classified as complex.

Separate logbook endorsements from your instructor are required for both complex and high performance, even if you earn both credentials in the same airplane-many, like a Cessna 182RG or Socata Trinidad, are both complex and high-performance. But other popular complex training aircraft, like the Cessna 172RG and Piper Arrow, do not meet the definition of high performance. And the fixed-gear Cessna 182, a high-performance aircraft with a controllable-pitch propeller, is not a complex aircraft because the gear does not retract.

Many things that we take for granted in "simple" airplanes need to be rethought and new habit patterns developed. Have you read many stories or accident reports about pilots who just had "too much airplane" on their hands and couldn't handle it? Have you known someone who fell victim to such a situation? Chances are you haven't. Current FAA regulations keep things like that from happening. Those "advanced flying" checks and balances force us to get the proper training as we move up the aviation ladder to more powerful and complicated aircraft.

High-performance flying

High-performance airplanes are those with lots of power; that power makes them capable of higher performance. Both complex and high-performance airplanes generally go faster, perform better, and offer more flexibility to set power efficiently than more basic airplanes.

Before the most recent major rewrite of Part 61, both complex and high-performance were included in a single logbook endorsement. They were made separate in 1997.

Most of us learn to fly in relatively low-horsepower trainers capable of only moderate airspeeds with "down and welded" landing gear, a simple fuel system with selector settings of just Both or On, and minimal radio equipment.

You might be surprised to learn that formal checkrides and knowledge tests-like the ones we have to take for new certificates and ratings-are seldom required to check out in complex and high-performance airplanes. The logbook endorsement of a flight instructor is usually sufficient. If you get your checkout at an FAR Part 141 school, however, an approved and published syllabus will need to be followed, and formal familiarization flights will probably be required.

Unless you have a waiver because of prior experience and/or qualification [see FAR 61.31(e) and (f)], a logbook endorsement from an authorized instructor is required to legally fly as PIC of either of these types of airplanes.

What makes an airplane complex?

The FAA lists three things: the propeller, the engine, and the landing gear. I think a fourth is in order: systems.

When you choose to fly a complex airplane you afford yourself the opportunity to land with the gear up. You could switch to an empty fuel tank and suffer fuel starvation-even though there's abundant fuel on board the aircraft. The additional capabilities are accompanied by opportunities for pilot error. That's why the FAA requires expanded understanding, demonstrated competence, and logbook endorsements for the operation of complex and high-performance aircraft and their systems.

Exactly what you have to do is less formally designed than you might think, but make sure your instructor-qualified and experienced in the airplane you are going to fly-follows a comprehensive syllabus. Make sure you understand what you're supposed to be able to do when the checkout is completed.

Propeller

Let's start with the propeller. In a "simple" airplane like a Cessna 172, propeller rpm is set with the throttle. In a complex airplane like a Piper Arrow, prop rpm is controlled by the propeller lever, which controls a governor that changes the pitch of the prop's blades; here, the throttle controls the engine's intake manifold pressure (mp). Manifold pressure is a new concept, and another gauge on your instrument panel to monitor and understand.

The throttle now must be moved in the correct sequence with respect to the propeller when power adjustments are made. Think of it like this: The throttle puts engine "power" into the cylinders, and the propeller lever controls rpm so you can use that power.

The basic rule in most cases is to advance the propeller before the throttle is increased, and reduce the throttle before rpm is decreased. Advancing the throttle to maximum before moving the rpm (propeller) control to accept increased power could damage the engine. Usually this gives you a logical right-to-left flow across the engine controls to increase power, and a left-to-right sequence for power reductions. (Don't overlook the mixture.)

"Squaring up" your power settings is a time-tested rule of thumb that means if, for instance, you select 25 inches of manifold pressure for power, you should set at least 2,500 rpm-before you advance the throttle to 25 inches. Not all engines require this, however, and the rule of thumb should never substitute for your aircraft's operating manual.

Higher rpm generally means more power. When the propeller control is full forward at high rpm, such as at takeoff or on short final when a go-around may be needed, it's like low gear in an automobile. You can accelerate faster.

Reduced propeller rpm is like driving in high gear on the highway. At reduced rpm, the propeller blade's pitch increases and takes a bigger "bite" of the air, moving you forward more efficiently.

Engine

Next comes the engine itself. You're probably used to a carburetor but aren't likely to find one on most complex airplanes. The carburetor has been replaced by fuel injection, which is more efficient and not prone to icing.

If your engine is turbocharged, exhaust gas is routed back into the engine, manifold pressure is increased, and the overall performance of the engine boosted to allow operation at higher altitudes. As air density decreases with altitude, the turbocharger compensates, maintaining the engine's ability to generate power at higher altitudes than normally aspirated engines.

Although turbocharger operation does not require management by the pilot in most aircraft, mistakes in operating procedures can result in engine damage. Following prescribed procedures is essential. Don't forget the cowl flaps, which you'll probably encounter for the first time in a high-performance aircraft. These allow proper cooling of that larger high-horsepower engine and do require pilot operation-open for takeoff, climb, and other high-power operations, but closed in cruise flight to reduce drag and increase your airspeed.

Landing gear

It's pretty hard to land gear-up in a fixed-gear airplane. But failure to lower and check the landing gear in a retractable-gear airplane will give you a dramatic, unexpected, and costly short-field landing.

Be particular about following proper procedure and thoroughly understand the landing gear system, and all the other new systems explained in your pilot's operating handbook (POH). Make sure you really know how the landing gear works. Is it hydraulic, mechanical, or electrically powered? Know what malfunctions you can encounter, and what to do about them.

Many pilots learn to perform the GUMP check from the beginning of training. It stands for gas, undercarriage, mixture, and prop. Now you'll have to do all four steps, instead of two or three.

Another subject too often ignored is an especially thorough preflight focused on the landing gear, flaps, and propeller. Here's where you catch and prevent the discrepancies that later would have become emergencies. If the gear doesn't extend normally, how are you going to get it down? Is there a manual hand crank as a backup system? If so, how are you going to handle cranking down the gear while you're flying the airplane? Do you have an air bottle to "blow" a reluctant gear into the down-and-locked position? If not, how do you get it down? There may be limiting airspeeds for emergency extension of the gear.

There are gear and flap operating speeds to know, relays, check and selector valves, circuit breakers, warning and position lights and indicators, and other things that should be included in a good complex aircraft checkout. Discuss them all with your instructor. If these subjects don't come up in normal instruction bring them up yourself, based on your study of the POH for your specific airplane.

The guiding principle here is to gain familiarity and understanding of what you're working with so you are comfortable operating the airplane-under both normal and not so normal conditions.

Systems

Now we come to the last factor that makes a complex airplane complex: its systems.

By mere virtue of the fact that an airplane has a controllable-pitch propeller, flaps, and retractable landing gear, it's more complicated than your basic trainer. Chances are that there are other systems added, too. The addition of all of these to an airplane-and the need to competently manipulate all of them for successful operation of the airplane-intensifies the already demanding requirements of flying.

The fuel system in a complex airplane may differ considerably from what you're used to. There could be several fuel tanks, and a specific sequence in which you use them-some tanks might not be able to feed the engine directly. It's hard to say which would be more embarrassing, a forced landing because you ran out of fuel or a forced landing when you still had ample fuel onboard but could not feed it to the engine.

And we haven't even considered the advancements that have put complex avionics and navigation systems on our instrument panels. According to some sources, GPS alone has increased pilot cockpit workload three to five times. Adding an instrument panel full of modern avionics can make the checkout even more challenging.

But the challenge is one of the reasons you learned to fly. So form a cooperative partnership with a good instructor and master a more advanced aircraft.

Then, when you're done, you will be able to confidently-and safely-enjoy the speed, range, utility, and other advantages provided by a high-performance, complex aircraft.

Wally Miller is president of an aviation training, consulting, and marketing firm in Monument, Colorado. He is a Gold Seal CFI who has been instructing for more than 30 years and flying for more than 40.