BDCA ATPL Knowledge Exam cheat sheet

ICAO Annex 2 classifies airspace as A to G; Class A permits IFR only, Class G is uncontrolled and permits both IFR and VFR with no ATC clearance.

Semicircular rule: for tracks 000-179 magnetic use odd flight levels (FL090, 110, 130...); for 180-359 use even flight levels (FL100, 120, 140...).

VMC minima in Class C-E airspace above 3050 m AMSL: 8 km flight visibility, 1500 m horizontal and 300 m (1000 ft) vertical distance from cloud.

VMC minima at and below 900 m AMSL: 5 km flight visibility, 1500 m horizontal and 300 m vertical cloud separation.

Aircraft must carry documents: certificate of registration, certificate of airworthiness, crew licences, journey log, and radio licence where applicable.

Position reporting points and mandatory IFR reporting: over reporting points, when changing frequency, and when starting or ending approach.

An ATC clearance does not relieve the pilot in command from responsibility for terrain clearance and wake turbulence separation under ICAO rules.

Transition altitude is the altitude above which flight levels are used; transition level is the lowest usable flight level above it, separated by the transition layer.

Four-stroke cycle: induction, compression, combustion (power), exhaust; in a horizontally opposed engine the crankshaft makes two revolutions per complete cycle.

Detonation is uncontrolled explosive combustion causing high cylinder pressures and temperatures; pre-ignition is ignition before the spark, often from a hot spot.

Mixture control: lean for high altitude to maintain the correct fuel/air ratio; rich mixture assists cooling at high power settings.

Constant-speed propeller: the governor adjusts blade angle to hold selected RPM; increasing blade angle increases load on the engine and lowers RPM.

Hydraulic systems use a reservoir, pump, pressure relief valve, selector valves and actuators; a pressure relief valve protects against overpressure.

Electrical: a generator or alternator driven by the engine supplies DC; the battery provides starting power and standby supply.

Landing gear: oleo strut uses compressed air/nitrogen plus hydraulic fluid to absorb landing loads and damp rebound oscillations.

Pitot-static system: pitot tube supplies dynamic pressure; static port supplies static pressure; blockage of the static port affects altimeter, VSI and ASI.

Density altitude rises with altitude, temperature and humidity; high density altitude degrades takeoff, climb and landing performance.

Takeoff distance increases approximately with the square of the increase in weight for a given configuration.

Landing distance is affected by weight, wind, runway slope, surface condition, temperature and pressure altitude.

Crosswind component = wind speed × sin(angle between wind and runway); headwind component = wind speed × cos(angle).

Balance: centre of gravity must remain within the forward and aft limits for all loading states; aft CG reduces stability, forward CG increases stall speed and elevator loads.

Fuel planning: trip fuel + contingency + alternate + final reserve + taxi fuel = minimum block fuel under commercial rules.

Rate of climb = (excess power × 33 000) / weight in pounds, giving feet per minute when excess power is in horsepower.

Endurance = usable fuel / fuel flow; range = endurance × true airspeed.

Hypoxia: insufficient oxygen to tissues; symptoms include euphoria, impaired judgement, cyanosis; time of useful consciousness drops sharply above FL350.

Hyperventilation produces dizziness, tingling and visual disturbance; treatment is controlled slow breathing and, if in doubt, oxygen.

Spatial disorientation: somatogravic illusion gives a false sensation of pitch during acceleration or deceleration; rely on instruments.

Coriolis illusion occurs when the head is moved while the aircraft is turning, causing a false tumbling sensation.

Night vision uses rod cells, which are most sensitive around 10-20 degrees off centre; avoid bright white light to preserve dark adaptation.

G-induced loss of consciousness results from sustained positive G reducing cerebral blood pressure; anti-G straining manoeuvres and G-suits help.

Circadian rhythm desynchronisation (jet lag) reduces alertness; eastward flights generally cause more disruption than westward.

Decompression: at high altitude the time of useful consciousness is short; immediate use of oxygen and emergency descent are required.

ISA: sea level temperature 15 °C, pressure 1013.25 hPa, lapse rate 1.98 °C per 1000 ft up to 36 090 ft (tropopause at -56.5 °C).

QNH is the pressure setting that makes the altimeter read altitude above mean sea level; QFE makes it read height above the reference point.

Standard pressure setting 1013.25 hPa is used above the transition altitude for flight levels.

Isobars closely spaced indicate strong wind; wind blows from high to low pressure, deflected to the right in the Northern Hemisphere.

Cumulonimbus formation requires instability, moisture and a lifting trigger; hazards include icing, hail, turbulence and lightning.

Fog types: radiation fog forms on clear calm nights; advection fog forms when warm moist air moves over a cold surface.

Wind shear: a sudden change in wind speed or direction over a short distance; low-level shear is hazardous on approach and departure.

Icing: airframe icing occurs between 0 °C and about -20 °C in visible moisture; clear ice forms in large supercooled droplets, rime ice in small ones.

Great circle is the shortest path between two points on a sphere; rhumb line maintains a constant track but is longer except along the equator or meridians.

Variation is the angle between true and magnetic north; deviation is the error caused by aircraft magnetic fields.

True bearing = magnetic bearing + variation (east positive); compass heading = magnetic heading - deviation.

1 minute of latitude equals 1 nautical mile; 1 minute of longitude equals 1 NM × cos(latitude).

Track is the intended path over the ground; heading is the direction the aircraft points; drift is the angle between heading and track.

Wind triangle: ground speed and drift are found from true airspeed, wind speed and wind direction using vector addition.

Mercator projection: rhumb lines are straight but great circles curve poleward; scale increases with latitude.

Dead reckoning position is computed from known heading, speed and time; fixes correct accumulated error.

V1 is decision speed; below V1 a rejected takeoff is normally possible, above V1 the takeoff should be continued.

V2 is takeoff safety speed; Vref is a landing reference speed, typically 1.3 × the stall speed in the landing configuration.

Go-around decision: apply power, establish climb, retract flaps in stages, and follow the published missed approach procedure.

Emergency descent: use maximum descent rate, turn off course as required, set transponder to 7700, and advise ATC.

Fire: shut off fuel, electrical supply and bleed air to the affected engine; discharge the extinguisher and land as soon as practicable.

Ditching: approach with minimum rate of descent, land parallel to swell, and evacuate after the aircraft comes to rest.

Emergency equipment: fire extinguishers, first aid kit, oxygen, life jackets and survival equipment must be serviceable before flight.

Passenger briefing must cover seat belts, emergency exits, oxygen use and smoking prohibition.

Lift = ½ × ρ × V² × S × CL; lift increases with the square of airspeed.

Induced drag decreases with increasing airspeed; parasite drag increases with the square of airspeed.

Total drag is minimum at the speed where induced drag equals parasite drag, giving maximum range.

Critical angle of attack is the angle at which the wing stalls; stall speed increases with weight and load factor.

Load factor n = 1/cos(bank angle) in a level turn; stall speed increases by the square root of the load factor.

Stability: positive static stability means the aircraft tends to return to its original attitude after a disturbance.

Dihedral increases lateral stability; sweepback increases lateral stability and delays the onset of compressibility effects.

Flaps increase lift and drag; they lower the stall speed and allow a steeper approach without increasing speed.

Standard readback includes clearances, runway assignments, altimeter settings, headings and frequencies.

Phonetic alphabet: Alfa, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo, Foxtrot, Golf, Hotel, India, Juliett, Kilo, Lima, Mike, November, Oscar, Papa, Quebec, Romeo, Sierra, Tango, Uniform, Victor, Whiskey, X-ray, Yankee, Zulu.

Distress call is MAYDAY (three times), urgency call is PAN PAN (three times).

Transponder codes: 7700 emergency, 7600 radio failure, 7500 unlawful interference.

Position report format: aircraft identification, position, time, altitude or flight level, next position and ETA.

Radio failure in IMC: maintain last assigned speed and level for a specified period, then follow the published lost-communication procedure.

VFR flight requires maintaining VMC and remaining clear of cloud; IFR flight requires an instrument rating and ATC clearance.

Frequency change: pilots should not change frequency until instructed or until the current communication is complete.

VOR provides magnetic bearing from the station; the CDI shows the selected radial, and TO/FROM indicates whether the aircraft is flying toward or away from the station.

NDB/ADF indicates the bearing of the station relative to the aircraft; ADF is subject to night effect and coastal refraction.

ILS localiser gives lateral guidance on the runway centreline; glide path gives vertical guidance, normally at 3 degrees.

DME measures slant range in nautical miles; indicated distance exceeds ground distance at high altitude.

GPS/GNSS position accuracy is degraded by ionospheric and multipath errors; RAIM detects faults in the satellite signals.

RNAV allows navigation along any desired path using ground or satellite-based aids.

Radar: primary radar uses reflected pulses; secondary radar uses transponder replies for identification and altitude.

Marker beacons indicate distance from the threshold on an ILS approach: outer, middle and inner markers.