ATPL Performance (Australian CASA Pilot Theory Exams) study guide
ATPL Performance · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
This page introduces an independent study resource for the ATPL Performance examination, one of the technical knowledge subjects that airline transport pilot candidates must master. Performance is a calculation-heavy discipline: it asks you to extract certified figures from aircraft flight manuals, apply corrections for mass, altitude, temperature, wind, runway slope, surface condition and contamination, and then decide whether the result is legal and safe. The ATPL Performance study guide has 5 sections and about 1,638 words.
01Take-off performance
Take-off performance is a chain of limiting speeds and distances. V1 is the decision speed: a failure before V1 means stopping within the accelerate-stop distance available; after V1 you must be able to continue and climb.
328 words, about 2 min02Climb performance
Climb performance separates two ideas: climb rate (feet per minute, affected by excess power) and climb gradient (height gained per unit horizontal distance, affected by excess thrust). Certification requires a take-off climb segment structure: the first segment to 35 ft at V2, the second segment to at least 400 ft with take-off flap and gear up, the transition segment, and the final segment to 1,500 ft.
332 words, about 2 min03Cruise performance
Cruise performance answers: how far, how fast, how much fuel. Key speeds are maximum range speed (best specific range, the tangent from the origin to the power-required curve) and maximum endurance speed (minimum power required, lower speed).
313 words, about 2 min04Landing performance
Landing performance starts at the 50 ft screen height and ends at a full stop. The landing distance available (LDA) must cover the landing distance required; the manual figure is the demonstrated distance multiplied by a factor of 1.67 for a dry runway (or 1.92 for a wet runway in older rules).
325 words, about 2 min05Flight planning and fuel
A flight plan builds fuel from several blocks: taxi fuel, trip fuel, contingency fuel (often 5% of trip fuel), alternate fuel, final reserve (typically 30 minutes holding at 1,500 ft), and extra fuel. The sum of taxi, trip, contingency and alternate fuel plus final reserve gives the minimum required fuel; extra fuel is added at the commander's discretion.
340 words, about 2 min