Checkride-ready
See how you measure up to FAA standards with these questions from the AOPA Pilot Information Center.
- Which color identifies the never-exceed speed on an airspeed indicator?
A. The red radial line.
B. Lower limit of the yellow arc.
C. Upper limit of the white arc. - What minimum radio equipment is required for operation within Class C airspace?
A. Two-way radio communications equipment, a 4096-code transponder, an encoding altimeter, and ADS-B Out.
B. Two-way radio communications equipment, a 4096-code transponder, and an encoding altimeter.
C. Two-way radio communications equipment, a 4096-code transponder, and distance measuring equipment (DME). - If an alteration or repair substantially affects an aircraft’s operation in flight, that aircraft must be test flown by an appropriately rated pilot and approved for return to service prior to being operated
A. with passengers aboard.
B. for compensation or hire.
C. by any private pilot. - What is the specific fuel requirement for flight under VFR at night in an airplane?
A. Enough to complete the flight at normal cruising speed with adverse wind conditions.
B. Enough to fly to the first point of intended landing and to fly after that for 45 minutes at normal cruising speed.
C. Enough to fly to the first point of intended landing and to fly after that for 30 minutes at normal cruising speed. - The pilot in command is required to hold a type rating in which aircraft?
A. Turbojet-powered airplane.
B. Aircraft having a gross weight of more than 12,500 pounds.
C. Both A and B.
Ace
Can you correctly answer these questions from retired TWA captain and 28,000-hour pilot Barry Schiff?
- Many pilots use the terms “chop” and “turbulence” interchangeably, but they are not the same. What is the difference between them?
- A pilot decides to fly a typical single-engine airplane without its propeller spinner. The most adverse result of this is
A. engine overheating.
B. excessive drag.
C. an adverse effect on weight and balance.
D. hazardous aerodynamic buffeting. - When using a VASI (visual approach slope indicator), a pilot is assured safe obstruction clearance only when he is within _____ degrees of the extended runway centerline and is no more than _____ nm from the runway threshold.
- True or false? It is legal for an instrument-rated private pilot to take off in a single-engine airplane at night when the ceiling and visibility are zero.
- True or false? The “stick” in the term “dead-stick landing” refers to the control stick (or wheel).
Illustrations by John Holm
Final Exam Answers
- The answer is A. VNE is defined as the never-exceed speed. It is the speed denoted by the red radial line on an airspeed indicator, and a speed not to be exceeded under any circumstances.
(FAR 1.2) - The answer is A. Class C airspace requires the ability to communicate with ATC, to be seen and positively identified by ATC, and the capability to broadcast out certain flight parameters using automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast. (FARs 91.215[b] and 91.225[b] and [d])
- The answer is A. No person may carry any person (other than crewmembers) in an aircraft that has been maintained, rebuilt, or altered in a manner that may have appreciably changed its flight characteristics or substantially affected its operation in flight, until an appropriately rated pilot with at least a private pilot certificate flies the aircraft, makes an operational check of the maintenance performed or alteration made, and logs the flight in the aircraft records. (FAR 91.407[b])
- The answer is B. Fuel required for a VFR flight at night in an airplane would be enough to get you to your first point of intended landing, and then an additional 45 minutes based on normal cruising speed. Pilots may elect to carry more fuel, of course, as the regulation only provides for the minimum amount that must be carried.
(FAR 91.151[a]) - The answer is C. A type rating is an authorization on a pilot’s certificate, and must be received to act as PIC on any turbojet-powered airplane or on any large aircraft, which is defined as having a gross weight of more than 12,500 pounds. (FAR 61.31[a]).
- Light or moderate chop is a form of light or moderate turbulence that is characterized by rapid and rhythmic bumpiness that does not appreciably affect attitude, altitude, or airspeed. Other forms of turbulence produce sporadic jolts.
- The answer is A. A spinner smoothly diverts the oncoming airflow into the cowling inlets, which optimizes engine cooling.
- 10 degrees and 4 nautical miles.
- True. This proves that what is legal is not necessarily safe.
- False. The expression originated before World War I and refers to the propeller, which—when failing to produce thrust—has no more utility than a stick.
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