FAA MEI cheat sheet

Learning is a change in behavior resulting from experience; it is best measured by a change in performance, not by the instructor's opinion of the lesson.

Four levels of learning in ascending order: rote, understanding, application, correlation. A certificate applicant must reach application and correlation, not rote recall.

Laws of learning: readiness, exercise, effect, primacy, recency, intensity, and disuse. Recency and primacy mean the first and last items in a lesson are remembered best.

Maslow's hierarchy places physical needs at the base and self-actualization at the top; physiological or safety threats block higher learning, so address fatigue, hunger, and anxiety first.

The teaching process sequence is preparation, presentation, application, and review/evaluation. Application and review are what convert explanation into retained skill.

Assessment types: written tests measure knowledge, performance tests measure skill against a standard, and oral quizzes check understanding in flight. Norm-referenced grading compares students; criterion-referenced grades against a fixed standard.

Characteristics of a good test: validity, reliability, usability, objectivity, comprehensiveness, and discrimination. A test that consistently measures what it claims is valid; one that repeats the same result is reliable.

Flight instructor responsibilities include making endorsements only for training given, providing clear standards, and evaluating without bias. Endorsements are legal records and must be accurate and current.

Effective critique rules: be objective, be specific, be timely, and focus on the performance, not the person; criticize in private and praise in public where feasible.

Stability: static stability is the initial tendency to return to equilibrium; dynamic stability is the behavior over time. Positive dynamic stability requires positive static stability.

Longitudinal stability is provided mainly by the horizontal tail, and it depends on the center of gravity being forward of the neutral point.

Dihedral provides lateral stability through a sideslip-induced roll toward the lower wing; sweepback and keel area contribute directional stability.

Load factor n = lift/weight; in a level turn, n = 1/cos(bank angle). At 60 degrees bank, load factor is 2.0 and stall speed rises by the square root of 2, about 41 percent.

Induced drag varies inversely with the square of airspeed, so it dominates at low speed and high angle of attack; parasite drag varies with the square of airspeed.

The Vg diagram plots load factor versus airspeed; the corner speed is the lowest speed at which limit load factor can be reached, and it is the point of maximum load-factor margin.

Adverse yaw is produced by aileron drag; use coordinated rudder to counter it. Ailerons near the stall can produce wingtip stall because the descending aileron increases angle of attack on that wing.

Gyroscopic instruments: attitude indicator and heading indicator are usually vacuum-driven; turn coordinator is electric. The turn coordinator's inclinometer shows coordination, not rate of turn.

Pitot-static instruments: airspeed indicator, altimeter, and vertical speed indicator. Blocked pitot with open static causes the airspeed indicator to behave like an altimeter.

VFR weather minimums for Class B airspace are 3 statute miles visibility and clear of clouds; Class C and D use 3 SM and 1,000 feet above, 500 feet below, and 2,000 feet horizontal.

Class E below 10,000 feet MSL: 3 SM visibility and 1,000 feet above, 500 feet below, and 2,000 feet horizontal. At or above 10,000 feet MSL: 5 SM and 1,000/1,000/1 statute mile.

Class G below 1,200 feet day: 1 SM visibility and clear of clouds. Class G at night below 10,000 feet MSL: 3 SM and 1,000/500/2,000.

Oxygen requirements: no supplemental oxygen required below 12,500 feet MSL; 12,500 to 14,000 feet requires oxygen for crew after 30 minutes; above 14,000 feet MSL oxygen is required for crew at all times.

Flight review is required every 24 calendar months; three takeoffs and three landings within the preceding 90 days are required to carry passengers, and at night for night currency.

Weight and balance: compute empty weight and moment, add fuel at 6 pounds per gallon for avgas, then add occupants and baggage. Check both maximum weight and center of gravity limits.

Density altitude increases with high elevation, high temperature, high humidity, and low pressure. High density altitude reduces both takeoff and climb performance.

Weather: a cold front typically produces the most rapid and violent weather; a warm front produces widespread low ceilings and steady precipitation.

NOTAMs and TFRs must be checked before flight; a TFR is a temporary restriction on flight in a defined area and time, and violating it is a violation of the regulations.

A preflight lesson on a maneuver must state the maneuver's objective, the standard to which it is performed, and the completion criteria before flight begins.

The lesson plan format is objective, content, and completion standards; the instructor states the maneuver, demonstrates it, and then has the student perform it.

Before flight, the maneuver must be described with reference to the airplane's systems and configuration: power setting, airspeed, flap setting, and gear position.

A maneuver's completion standard should be observable and measurable, such as altitude within 100 feet and heading within 10 degrees.

The preflight briefing should include the maneuver's purpose, the risks, the division of attention, and the decision to abort if conditions exceed limits.

The instructor must ensure the student knows the maneuver's entry airspeed and configuration before flight; wrong entry configuration is a common cause of failure.

Use the airplane's POH/AFM to confirm maneuver airspeeds and limitations; the lesson must be consistent with the approved flight manual.

A preflight lesson should identify the common errors and how they will be corrected, so the student can self-correct in flight.

The instructor should brief the maneuver's clearing procedure and the sterile cockpit concept before takeoff.

The traffic pattern is a rectangular course with legs: upwind, crosswind, downwind, base, and final. Entry at pattern altitude is normally at 45 degrees to the downwind midpoint.

Standard pattern turns are left unless otherwise published; right traffic is published for specific runways and must be followed.

Pattern altitude is typically 1,000 feet AGL; the downwind leg is flown parallel to the runway at a distance that allows a normal approach.

Use the CTAF or tower frequency as published; announce position and intentions on the CTAF at nontowered fields.

Runway incursion avoidance: read back hold-short instructions, verify the runway assignment, and clear the approach path before crossing a runway.

Wake turbulence: fly at or above the preceding aircraft's flight path and land beyond its touchdown point; stay upwind on departure. Heavy aircraft generate the strongest wake.

At a towered airport, the tower controls the sequence; at a nontowered airport, use the standard pattern and right-of-way rules to sequence.

Right-of-way: converging aircraft at the same altitude, the one on the right has the right of way; an aircraft on final approach or landing has the right of way over other aircraft.

Slow flight: configure with flaps and gear as appropriate, reduce power, and maintain altitude while flying just above the stall. The standard is altitude within 100 feet and heading within 10 degrees.

Power-off stalls are entered from a landing configuration; power-on stalls from a takeoff configuration. Recover by reducing angle of attack, adding power, and leveling the wings.

Steep turns: at 45 to 50 degrees bank, add power and back pressure; the standard is altitude within 100 feet and bank within 5 degrees.

Chandelles: a maximum-performance climbing turn through 180 degrees, entered at maneuvering speed, with the bank reaching about 30 degrees at the 90-degree point and the pitch decreasing near the end.

Lazy eights: a climbing and descending turn through 180 degrees with the bank increasing to about 30 degrees and the pitch reaching its maximum at the 45-degree points.

Eights on pylons: a ground-reference maneuver flown at the pivotal altitude, where the line of sight to the pylon remains constant. Pivotal altitude depends on groundspeed.

Forward slips: use to lose altitude rapidly; the standard is a stabilized approach and a proper touchdown. Slips are not permitted with flaps extended in some airplanes.

Go-around: apply full power, reduce angle of attack, establish a climb, and retract flaps in increments. It is the correct response to an unstable approach.

Emergency descent: use a descending turn with power reduced and speed at or below the airplane's maneuvering speed.

The five hazardous attitudes are anti-authority, impulsivity, invulnerability, macho, and resignation; each has an antidote, such as "follow the rules" or "it could happen to me."

The IMSAFE checklist covers illness, medication, stress, alcohol, fatigue, and emotion. It is a preflight self-assessment, not a one-time check.

The DECIDE model: detect, estimate, choose, identify, do, and evaluate. It is a decision-making loop, not a single decision.

Task management: prioritize aviate, navigate, communicate. Automation should reduce workload, not replace situational awareness.

Situational awareness is degraded by fixation, channelized attention, and task saturation. Use the "sterile cockpit" concept below 10,000 feet or during critical phases.

Risk assessment uses the PA VE checklist: pilot, aircraft, en route, and environment, plus external pressures.

External pressures include get-there-itis, passenger expectations, and schedule; they are a common factor in poor decisions.

Automation management: know the autopilot's modes and limitations; an autopilot can mask an impending stall or a deviation if not monitored.

Crew resource management in a single-pilot operation means using all available resources: ATC, passengers, weather services, and automation.

Vmc is the minimum control speed with the critical engine inoperative; it is determined with the airplane at maximum weight, aft center of gravity, and takeoff power.

The critical engine is the engine whose failure most adversely affects performance; in a conventional twin with both propellers turning clockwise, the left engine is critical.

On engine failure, the airplane yaws toward the dead engine; the pilot must apply rudder toward the operating engine to maintain control.

Single-engine service ceiling is the altitude at which the airplane can climb at 50 feet per minute with one engine inoperative.

Accelerate-stop distance is the runway length required to accelerate to V1 and stop; accelerate-go distance is the runway length to accelerate to V1, lose an engine, and climb to 50 feet.

V1 is the decision speed; below V1 the takeoff should be aborted, at or above V1 the takeoff is continued.

Single-engine best rate of climb speed (Vyse) is marked with a blue line; best single-engine angle of climb is Vxse.

Drag reduction on one engine: feather the propeller, retract flaps and gear as appropriate, and maintain Vyse.

Multiengine training must include Vmc demonstration, engine failure during takeoff, and single-engine approach and landing; the instructor must be current and qualified.