BR-ANAC-PCA-IFR cheat sheet

ICAO Annex 2 (Rules of the Air) applies to all aircraft; IFR flight requires ATC clearance and compliance with the notified IFR procedures of the state concerned.

Instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) are meteorological conditions expressed in terms of visibility, distance from cloud and ceiling, below the minima specified for visual meteorological conditions (VMC).

An IFR flight plan must be submitted at least 60 minutes before departure for flights needing ATS coordination, or as otherwise prescribed by the state of departure.

Aircraft operating under IFR must carry the radio, navigation and surveillance equipment required by the airspace; failure of required equipment invalidates the IFR clearance in controlled airspace.

The pilot-in-command is responsible for the safety of the flight; an ATC clearance does not relieve the PIC of responsibility for terrain clearance, wake turbulence separation or compliance with minima.

IFR flights in controlled airspace require a continuous two-way radio watch on the assigned frequency; loss of communication is handled under the prescribed lost-communication procedures.

Minimum fuel and emergency fuel are declared by the pilot; a 'MAYDAY FUEL' declaration entitles the aircraft to priority handling and must be reported to ATC.

Alternate aerodrome requirements: an IFR flight plan must nominate a destination alternate unless the destination has two usable runways and weather permits a visual approach and landing.

Trip fuel = fuel from brake release to touchdown at the destination; contingency fuel is typically 5% of trip fuel or the fuel for 5 minutes at holding speed at 1500 ft, whichever is greater (operator-specific).

Total fuel = taxi + trip + contingency + alternate + final reserve + additional crew/extra fuel; final reserve for turbine aircraft is normally 30 minutes holding at 1500 ft.

Minimum fuel is the fuel required to fly to the destination alternate plus final reserve; below this, the pilot must declare an emergency.

Equal-time point (ETP) and point of no return (PNR) are computed from fuel endurance, wind component and true airspeed; the PNR is where time to destination equals time back to base.

True altitude error: with a 1°C ISA deviation, altimeter error is approximately 4 ft per 1000 ft of altitude; cold temperatures cause the aircraft to be lower than indicated.

Wind correction: heading = track ± drift, where drift = arcsin((wind speed × sin(wind angle))/TAS); ground speed = TAS × cos(drift) ± wind component.

Monitoring: compare actual fuel burn and ground speed against the flight plan at each waypoint; a 5% or greater deviation requires re-planning of fuel and alternate strategy.

VOR provides magnetic bearing (radial) from the station; CDI deviation is 10° full scale, and TO/FROM is determined by the phase relationship of the 30 Hz reference and variable signals.

ILS localizer: 150 Hz/90 Hz modulation difference; full-scale deflection is typically 2.5° each side of centreline; the localizer is the most sensitive near the threshold.

ILS glide path: normally 3° (2.5°–3.5°); fly to keep the glide-path needle centred; the glide path is frequency-paired with the localizer.

Marker beacons: outer marker at approximately 4–7 NM from threshold (blue, 400 Hz, continuous dashes); middle marker at approximately 3500 ft from threshold (amber, 1300 Hz, alternating dots and dashes).

DME provides slant range in nautical miles; error is greatest directly overhead and decreases with increasing distance; DME frequency is paired with VOR/ILS.

GNSS: RAIM is required for standalone GPS approaches; RAIM prediction must be checked for the approach time and location; baro-aided receivers may permit lower RAIM availability.

NDB/ADF: the ADF needle points to the station; relative bearing + heading = magnetic bearing to the station; coastal refraction and night effect degrade accuracy.

ISA: sea-level temperature 15°C, pressure 1013.25 hPa, lapse rate 1.98°C per 1000 ft up to 36,090 ft (tropopause).

QNH is the altimeter setting to read altitude above mean sea level; QFE reads height above the aerodrome; QNE (1013.25 hPa) is used above the transition level.

Transition altitude is the altitude at which the altimeter is set to standard; transition level is the lowest flight level available above the transition altitude.

Icing: most severe in the 0°C to −20°C range; supercooled water is most common in stratiform clouds; freezing rain implies a warm front aloft and severe icing risk.

Thunderstorm: requires moisture, instability and a lifting mechanism; the mature stage has both up and downdrafts and produces the most severe hazards (hail, turbulence, wind shear, microburst).

Wind shear and microburst: a microburst can produce a 30–50 kt headwind-to-tailwind change over a short distance; escape by pitching to the go-around attitude and not retracting flaps until clear.

Mountain wave: forms with stable air and wind perpendicular to the ridge at 20–50 kt; expect severe turbulence, lenticular clouds and altimeter errors of several hundred feet.

Hypoxia: symptoms begin at cabin altitude around 10,000 ft; time of useful consciousness at 25,000 ft is approximately 3–5 minutes, at 35,000 ft approximately 30–60 seconds.

Hyperventilation produces symptoms similar to hypoxia; treatment is to slow the breathing rate and, if in doubt, use 100% oxygen.

Spatial disorientation: the somatogyral illusion (leans) results from prolonged rotation; the somatogravic illusion (false climb) occurs during rapid acceleration.

Crew resource management: assertiveness, situational awareness, workload management and communication are the core non-technical skills for IFR crews.

Fatigue: circadian low points are approximately 03:00–05:00 and 15:00–17:00 local; sleep loss of 2 hours per night accumulates as a sleep debt.

Decision making: the DECIDE model (Detect, Estimate, Choose, Identify, Do, Evaluate) is a structured tool for in-flight decision making.

Vision: the fovea is responsible for detail and colour; rod vision is used in low light and is poorest at the fovea, so off-centre viewing improves night vision.

Pitot-static system: the airspeed indicator uses dynamic pressure (total minus static); the altimeter uses static pressure; the VSI uses a calibrated leak to measure the rate of change of static pressure.

Blocked pitot: the airspeed indicator behaves like an altimeter (climbs in descent, descends in climb); use pitch and power and the alternate static source.

Gyroscopic instruments: attitude indicator and heading indicator are usually vacuum or electrically driven; the turn coordinator is electrically driven and is the backup for bank information.

Attitude indicator: the gyro is rigid in space; precession causes errors during prolonged turns and acceleration; erect the gyro before flight.

Heading indicator: precession causes drift; realign to the magnetic compass periodically in straight and level flight.

Autopilot: the flight director provides command bars; the autopilot follows them; an autopilot disconnect must be announced and the aircraft manually flown.

EFIS: the primary flight display shows attitude, airspeed, altitude and heading; the navigation display shows the flight plan, weather radar and terrain.

Procedure turn: remain within the protected area; the standard is a 45° turn outbound followed by a 180° turn inbound, or a holding pattern in lieu of a procedure turn.

Holding pattern: standard turns are right; the outbound leg is flown for 1 minute below 14,000 ft and 1.5 minutes above; the entry is direct, parallel or teardrop.

Approach minima: DA/DH for precision approaches; MDA for non-precision approaches; the missed approach point is where the missed approach must be initiated if the runway is not in sight.

ILS approach: the decision altitude is the point at which a missed approach must be initiated if the required visual reference is not established.

RNAV (GNSS) approaches: LNAV minima are non-precision; LNAV/VNAV and LPV provide vertical guidance; LPV minima may be as low as 200 ft.

Missed approach: climb on the published track and gradient; the standard gradient is 2.5% (approximately 200 ft/NM); do not turn before the published turning point.

Circling approach: the aircraft must remain within the circling protected area; the MDA is higher than for straight-in approaches and the visibility requirement is greater.

Read-back is mandatory for clearances, runway assignments, altitude instructions, headings and frequency changes; the full clearance must be read back.

Standard phraseology: 'ROGER' means the message was received; 'WILCO' means it will be complied with; 'STANDBY' means wait and I will call you.

Position report: aircraft identification, position, time, flight level, next position and estimated time, and the following significant point.

Emergency: 'MAYDAY' for distress, 'PAN PAN' for urgency; the distress message includes callsign, nature of distress, position, altitude, heading and intentions.

Frequency: 121.5 MHz is the emergency frequency; 243.0 MHz is the military emergency frequency; both are monitored by ATC and overflying aircraft.

Clearance delivery: an IFR clearance contains the clearance limit, route, altitude, and any departure/arrival procedures, plus the transponder code.

Lost communication: squawk 7600, continue under the last acknowledged clearance, and follow the published lost-communication procedures.

Engine failure: maintain control, pitch for best glide speed, select a suitable landing area, attempt restart, and declare an emergency with ATC.

Fire: shut off fuel and electrical supply to the affected engine, use the fire extinguisher, and land as soon as possible; do not restart the engine.

Pressurisation failure: don oxygen masks, initiate an emergency descent to 10,000 ft or the minimum safe altitude, and declare an emergency.

Emergency descent: use speed brakes and idle power; the standard descent is to 10,000 ft or MSA, whichever is higher; advise ATC of the descent rate and level-off.

Go-around: apply power, pitch to the go-around attitude, retract flaps in stages, and follow the published missed approach; announce 'GOING AROUND' to ATC.

Upset recovery: unload the wing, roll to level, then recover from the pitch upset; do not use abrupt control inputs.

Emergency checklist use: use the appropriate checklist for the phase of flight; memory items are for time-critical situations only.

ICAO Annex 2 (Rules of the Air) applies to all aircraft; IFR flight requires ATC clearance and compliance with the notified IFR procedures of the state concerned.

Instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) are meteorological conditions expressed in terms of visibility, distance from cloud and ceiling, below the minima specified for visual meteorological conditions (VMC).

An IFR flight plan must be submitted at least 60 minutes before departure for flights needing ATS coordination, or as otherwise prescribed by the state of departure.

Aircraft operating under IFR must carry the radio, navigation and surveillance equipment required by the airspace; failure of required equipment invalidates the IFR clearance in controlled airspace.

The pilot-in-command is responsible for the safety of the flight; an ATC clearance does not relieve the PIC of responsibility for terrain clearance, wake turbulence separation or compliance with minima.

IFR flights in controlled airspace require a continuous two-way radio watch on the assigned frequency; loss of communication is handled under the prescribed lost-communication procedures.

Minimum fuel and emergency fuel are declared by the pilot; a 'MAYDAY FUEL' declaration entitles the aircraft to priority handling and must be reported to ATC.

Alternate aerodrome requirements: an IFR flight plan must nominate a destination alternate unless the destination has two usable runways and weather permits a visual approach and landing.

Trip fuel = fuel from brake release to touchdown at the destination; contingency fuel is typically 5% of trip fuel or the fuel for 5 minutes at holding speed at 1500 ft, whichever is greater (operator-specific).

Total fuel = taxi + trip + contingency + alternate + final reserve + additional crew/extra fuel; final reserve for turbine aircraft is normally 30 minutes holding at 1500 ft.

Minimum fuel is the fuel required to fly to the destination alternate plus final reserve; below this, the pilot must declare an emergency.

Equal-time point (ETP) and point of no return (PNR) are computed from fuel endurance, wind component and true airspeed; the PNR is where time to destination equals time back to base.

True altitude error: with a 1°C ISA deviation, altimeter error is approximately 4 ft per 1000 ft of altitude; cold temperatures cause the aircraft to be lower than indicated.

Wind correction: heading = track ± drift, where drift = arcsin((wind speed × sin(wind angle))/TAS); ground speed = TAS × cos(drift) ± wind component.

Monitoring: compare actual fuel burn and ground speed against the flight plan at each waypoint; a 5% or greater deviation requires re-planning of fuel and alternate strategy.

VOR provides magnetic bearing (radial) from the station; CDI deviation is 10° full scale, and TO/FROM is determined by the phase relationship of the 30 Hz reference and variable signals.

ILS localizer: 150 Hz/90 Hz modulation difference; full-scale deflection is typically 2.5° each side of centreline; the localizer is the most sensitive near the threshold.

ILS glide path: normally 3° (2.5°–3.5°); fly to keep the glide-path needle centred; the glide path is frequency-paired with the localizer.

Marker beacons: outer marker at approximately 4–7 NM from threshold (blue, 400 Hz, continuous dashes); middle marker at approximately 3500 ft from threshold (amber, 1300 Hz, alternating dots and dashes).

DME provides slant range in nautical miles; error is greatest directly overhead and decreases with increasing distance; DME frequency is paired with VOR/ILS.

GNSS: RAIM is required for standalone GPS approaches; RAIM prediction must be checked for the approach time and location; baro-aided receivers may permit lower RAIM availability.

NDB/ADF: the ADF needle points to the station; relative bearing + heading = magnetic bearing to the station; coastal refraction and night effect degrade accuracy.

ISA: sea-level temperature 15°C, pressure 1013.25 hPa, lapse rate 1.98°C per 1000 ft up to 36,090 ft (tropopause).

QNH is the altimeter setting to read altitude above mean sea level; QFE reads height above the aerodrome; QNE (1013.25 hPa) is used above the transition level.

Transition altitude is the altitude at which the altimeter is set to standard; transition level is the lowest flight level available above the transition altitude.

Icing: most severe in the 0°C to −20°C range; supercooled water is most common in stratiform clouds; freezing rain implies a warm front aloft and severe icing risk.

Thunderstorm: requires moisture, instability and a lifting mechanism; the mature stage has both up and downdrafts and produces the most severe hazards (hail, turbulence, wind shear, microburst).

Wind shear and microburst: a microburst can produce a 30–50 kt headwind-to-tailwind change over a short distance; escape by pitching to the go-around attitude and not retracting flaps until clear.

Mountain wave: forms with stable air and wind perpendicular to the ridge at 20–50 kt; expect severe turbulence, lenticular clouds and altimeter errors of several hundred feet.

Hypoxia: symptoms begin at cabin altitude around 10,000 ft; time of useful consciousness at 25,000 ft is approximately 3–5 minutes, at 35,000 ft approximately 30–60 seconds.

Hyperventilation produces symptoms similar to hypoxia; treatment is to slow the breathing rate and, if in doubt, use 100% oxygen.

Spatial disorientation: the somatogyral illusion (leans) results from prolonged rotation; the somatogravic illusion (false climb) occurs during rapid acceleration.

Crew resource management: assertiveness, situational awareness, workload management and communication are the core non-technical skills for IFR crews.

Fatigue: circadian low points are approximately 03:00–05:00 and 15:00–17:00 local; sleep loss of 2 hours per night accumulates as a sleep debt.

Decision making: the DECIDE model (Detect, Estimate, Choose, Identify, Do, Evaluate) is a structured tool for in-flight decision making.

Vision: the fovea is responsible for detail and colour; rod vision is used in low light and is poorest at the fovea, so off-centre viewing improves night vision.

Pitot-static system: the airspeed indicator uses dynamic pressure (total minus static); the altimeter uses static pressure; the VSI uses a calibrated leak to measure the rate of change of static pressure.

Blocked pitot: the airspeed indicator behaves like an altimeter (climbs in descent, descends in climb); use pitch and power and the alternate static source.

Gyroscopic instruments: attitude indicator and heading indicator are usually vacuum or electrically driven; the turn coordinator is electrically driven and is the backup for bank information.

Attitude indicator: the gyro is rigid in space; precession causes errors during prolonged turns and acceleration; erect the gyro before flight.

Heading indicator: precession causes drift; realign to the magnetic compass periodically in straight and level flight.

Autopilot: the flight director provides command bars; the autopilot follows them; an autopilot disconnect must be announced and the aircraft manually flown.

EFIS: the primary flight display shows attitude, airspeed, altitude and heading; the navigation display shows the flight plan, weather radar and terrain.

Procedure turn: remain within the protected area; the standard is a 45° turn outbound followed by a 180° turn inbound, or a holding pattern in lieu of a procedure turn.

Holding pattern: standard turns are right; the outbound leg is flown for 1 minute below 14,000 ft and 1.5 minutes above; the entry is direct, parallel or teardrop.

Approach minima: DA/DH for precision approaches; MDA for non-precision approaches; the missed approach point is where the missed approach must be initiated if the runway is not in sight.

ILS approach: the decision altitude is the point at which a missed approach must be initiated if the required visual reference is not established.

RNAV (GNSS) approaches: LNAV minima are non-precision; LNAV/VNAV and LPV provide vertical guidance; LPV minima may be as low as 200 ft.

Missed approach: climb on the published track and gradient; the standard gradient is 2.5% (approximately 200 ft/NM); do not turn before the published turning point.

Circling approach: the aircraft must remain within the circling protected area; the MDA is higher than for straight-in approaches and the visibility requirement is greater.

Read-back is mandatory for clearances, runway assignments, altitude instructions, headings and frequency changes; the full clearance must be read back.

Standard phraseology: 'ROGER' means the message was received; 'WILCO' means it will be complied with; 'STANDBY' means wait and I will call you.

Position report: aircraft identification, position, time, flight level, next position and estimated time, and the following significant point.

Emergency: 'MAYDAY' for distress, 'PAN PAN' for urgency; the distress message includes callsign, nature of distress, position, altitude, heading and intentions.

Frequency: 121.5 MHz is the emergency frequency; 243.0 MHz is the military emergency frequency; both are monitored by ATC and overflying aircraft.

Clearance delivery: an IFR clearance contains the clearance limit, route, altitude, and any departure/arrival procedures, plus the transponder code.

Lost communication: squawk 7600, continue under the last acknowledged clearance, and follow the published lost-communication procedures.

Engine failure: maintain control, pitch for best glide speed, select a suitable landing area, attempt restart, and declare an emergency with ATC.

Fire: shut off fuel and electrical supply to the affected engine, use the fire extinguisher, and land as soon as possible; do not restart the engine.

Pressurisation failure: don oxygen masks, initiate an emergency descent to 10,000 ft or the minimum safe altitude, and declare an emergency.

Emergency descent: use speed brakes and idle power; the standard descent is to 10,000 ft or MSA, whichever is higher; advise ATC of the descent rate and level-off.

Go-around: apply power, pitch to the go-around attitude, retract flaps in stages, and follow the published missed approach; announce 'GOING AROUND' to ATC.

Upset recovery: unload the wing, roll to level, then recover from the pitch upset; do not use abrupt control inputs.

Emergency checklist use: use the appropriate checklist for the phase of flight; memory items are for time-critical situations only.