Preflight Lesson on a Maneuver to be Performed in Flight
What the examiner is testing
This domain evaluates a preflight lesson for a maneuver you will then fly. The examiner is checking organization, ACS standards, risk controls, and transfer of control. A common task is to brief a power-off stall, steep turn, or engine-failure maneuver, then fly it with the examiner playing the learner.
Anatomy of the briefing
- State the objective in measurable terms and cite the ACS standard for the certificate sought.
- List prerequisites, materials, and the maneuver setup: altitude, airspeed, configuration, and clearing turns.
- Brief the sequence: entry, execution, recognition cues, recovery, and cleanup.
- Brief common errors and the correction for each.
- Brief risk controls: who has controls, who talks, sterile cockpit below a stated altitude, abort criteria, diversion airport, and emergency actions.
- State completion standards and the plan for postflight critique.
Worked example: power-off stall
Objective: recognize the first indication of a stall and recover with heading and altitude within ACS tolerances. Setup at a safe altitude, typically not below 1,500 feet AGL for training, with clearing turns completed. Reduce power to idle, maintain altitude with increasing back pressure, and announce the stall warning. At the first indication, reduce angle of attack, apply power, keep wings level, and clean up. The reasoning: the recovery must reduce AOA before adding power, because power alone may not break the stall and may worsen yaw if applied abruptly. The briefing should also state the abort condition: if the aircraft enters an unintended secondary stall or the altitude floor is reached, recover immediately and discontinue.
Traps that cost marks
- Giving the briefing after takeoff or omitting the transfer-of-control statement.
- Teaching to the old PTS tolerances instead of the current ACS standards.
- Omitting common errors; the examiner often asks what you will watch for and how you will correct it.
- Failing to brief clearing turns and the altitude floor.
- Demonstrating the maneuver without letting the learner practice, or practicing without a critique.