ATPL Flight Planning study guide
ATPL Flight Planning · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The ATPL Flight Planning examination is one of the theoretical knowledge subjects that professional pilot candidates must pass while working toward an Airline Transport Pilot Licence. It suits aspiring airline first officers, cadet pilots and modular students who have already built a foundation in navigation, meteorology, mass and balance, and performance, since flight planning draws on all of them. The subject carries two equally weighted domains. The first, Flight Planning and Fuel Management, covers constructing a safe and efficient flight plan: route and level selection, wind and temperature effects on groundspeed and fuel burn, contingency and alternate fuel policy, holding, tankering decisions and in-flight replanning. Topics on this exam: Flight Planning and Fuel Management and Flight Planning Documentation and Operational Requirements. The ATPL Flight Planning study guide has 2 sections and about 731 words.
01Flight Planning and Fuel Management
Fuel planning rests on a hierarchy of reserves that must be understood as separate, additive quantities. Start with trip fuel (taxi-out to touchdown at destination), then add contingency (commonly 5% of trip fuel, or 3% with an approved en-route alternate), alternate fuel (destination to the nominated alternate), final reserve (typically 30 minutes holding at 1500 ft above the alternate in a turbine aircraft), and additional/extra fuel at the commander's discretion. Taxi fuel is accounted separately and is not part of trip fuel. Total fuel on board must never be less than taxi + trip + contingency + alternate + final reserve + additional.
386 words, about 2 min02Flight Planning Documentation and Operational Requirements
Operational flight planning is governed by a documented chain: the operational flight plan (OFP) , the load sheet , the fuel log , the ATS flight plan , and the navigation/performance logs . The OFS must be signed by the commander (or an authorised delegate) and retained. Candidates must know the content of the OFP: route, levels, alternates (take-off, en-route, destination), fuel figures with the breakdown, mass and balance summary, and the MEL/CDL status. You must understand operational approval concepts: ETOPS, low-visibility operations, RVSM, and the requirement to carry specific documents (certificate of registration, airworthiness, crew licences, operations manual, noise certificate, insurance).
345 words, about 2 min