KCAA ATPL Theory cheat sheet

Chicago Convention 1944: Article 1 recognises complete and exclusive sovereignty of each State over the airspace above its territory; Article 5 covers non-scheduled flights and Article 6 scheduled air services.

ICAO Annex mapping: Annex 1 Personnel Licensing; Annex 2 Rules of the Air; Annex 6 Operation of Aircraft; Annex 8 Airworthiness; Annex 12 Search and Rescue; Annex 13 Accident Investigation; Annex 17 Security; Annex 19 Safety Management.

VFR meteorological minima (ICAO Annex 2, controlled airspace): 8 km flight visibility at or above 3 050 m (10 000 ft) AMSL; 5 km below 3 050 m; at or below 900 m (3 000 ft) AMSL remain clear of cloud and in sight of the surface.

Cloud separation for VFR in controlled airspace: 1 500 m horizontally and 300 m vertically from cloud; special VFR may be authorised by ATC with reduced minima.

Transponder codes: 7500 unlawful interference; 7600 radio-communication failure; 7700 general emergency. Code 2000 is the default when no code has been assigned.

Right-of-way: converging power-driven heavier-than-air aircraft give way to airships, gliders and balloons; an aircraft on final approach or landing has right-of-way over others in flight or on the ground.

Overtaking: the overtaking aircraft, whether climbing, descending or in level flight, passes to the right; head-on both aircraft alter heading to the right.

IFR cruising levels: magnetic track 000-179 degrees use odd flight levels (FL 290, 310...), 180-359 degrees use even flight levels (FL 280, 300...); RVSM applies between 29 000 ft and 41 000 ft.

Medical certificate validity under ICAO Annex 1: Class 1 12 months, Class 2 24 months; many States reduce validity to 6 or 12 months for holders aged 40 and over.

Steady straight-and-level flight: lift L = W = 1/2 rho V^2 S CL; induced drag Di = 1/2 rho V^2 S CL^2/(pi A e), so induced drag falls as speed rises while parasite drag rises with V^2.

Sweepback increases critical Mach number and improves high-speed performance, contributes to lateral and directional stability, but reduces lift at low speed and can cause pitch-up at stall.

Gas-turbine Brayton cycle: compressor raises pressure, fuel burns at approximately constant pressure, turbine extracts energy to drive the compressor and accessories, and remaining energy accelerates the exhaust to produce thrust.

Turbine engine thrust F = mass flow x (Vjet - V0) + (pjet - p0) x Ajet; N1 is fan or low-pressure spool speed, N2 is high-pressure spool speed, and EGT is a primary limit parameter.

Hydraulic system essentials: reservoir, pump, pressure relief valve, accumulator pre-charged with nitrogen, filters, selector valves and actuators; a check valve prevents reverse flow.

Pitot-static instruments: altimeter and VSI use static pressure only; ASI uses pitot (total) and static pressure; Machmeter uses both and indicates M = TAS/a.

Gyroscopic instruments: attitude indicator and heading indicator rely on rigidity in space; turn coordinator uses a rate gyro and indicates rate of turn and roll; power failure flags remove the display.

Electrical: typical transport aircraft use 28 V DC and 115 V AC at 400 Hz; TRUs convert AC to DC; the battery supplies essential DC; generators or IDGs are AC sources.

Pressurisation: cabin altitude is typically limited to 8 000 ft; differential pressure = cabin pressure - ambient pressure; the outflow valve controls cabin altitude and rate of change.

Mass and balance: CG position = total moment / total mass, where moment = mass x arm (station); moving a mass forward decreases CG, moving it aft increases CG.

MTOW = MZFW + take-off fuel; MLW = MZFW + landing fuel; MZFW = MTOW - take-off fuel, where MZFW is the maximum zero-fuel mass.

Take-off speeds: V1 is decision speed; Vr is rotation speed; V2 is take-off safety speed; Vapp is commonly 1.3 VSO for landing approach.

Density altitude DA = pressure altitude + 120 x (OAT - ISA temperature at that altitude); high DA reduces engine and airfoil performance and increases take-off and landing distances.

Take-off and landing distances increase with higher mass, higher altitude, higher temperature, tailwind, uphill slope, and wet or contaminated runway; they decrease with headwind and downhill slope.

Fuel planning: trip fuel + contingency fuel + alternate fuel + final reserve fuel + taxi fuel; final reserve is commonly 30 minutes holding at 1 500 ft above the alternate.

ICAO flight plan: complete all applicable items; for IFR submit before departure as required by ATS; in-flight changes to route, speed or level must be notified to ATC.

Load factor n = L/W = 1/cos(bank); in a level 60-degree bank n = 2, and stall speed increases by the square root of n (VSnew = VS x sqrt(n)).

Maximum range is achieved near L/Dmax; maximum endurance is achieved at minimum power required, which is a lower speed; headwind increases range speed and tailwind decreases it.

Time of useful consciousness: approximately 30-60 s at FL 350, 15-20 s at FL 400, and 9-15 s at FL 450; rapid decompression reduces these times.

Hypoxia symptoms: euphoria, confusion, impaired judgement, cyanosis, headache and visual disturbance; hyperventilation can mimic hypoxia and causes dizziness, tingling and muscle spasms.

Spatial disorientation: somatogravic illusion causes a false sensation of climb during acceleration; somatogyral illusion follows sustained rotation; leans occur after vestibular adaptation.

Night vision: rods are most sensitive to low light and are concentrated off-centre; dark adaptation takes about 30 minutes; avoid bright light, smoking and low oxygen.

Fatigue: circadian low points occur around 02:00-06:00 and 14:00-16:00; sleep debt accumulates and cannot be fully reversed by one long sleep.

Arousal and performance follow an inverted-U curve: low arousal causes underload, high arousal causes narrowed attention and errors, and moderate arousal is optimal.

Alcohol: elimination is about 0.015 percent blood alcohol per hour; the common rule is no alcohol within 8 hours of flight and no residual impairment; altitude increases impairment.

Decompression sickness: nitrogen bubbles form after rapid pressure reduction; symptoms include joint pain, chest pain and neurological signs; treatment is 100 percent oxygen and descent.

Empty-field myopia causes the eye to focus at about 1 m in a featureless sky, making distant aircraft hard to see; a black-hole approach creates a false low approach.

ISA: sea-level temperature 15 C, pressure 1013.25 hPa, density 1.225 kg/m3; tropospheric lapse rate 1.98 C per 1 000 ft; tropopause at 36 090 ft (11 km) with about -56.5 C.

Altimetry: QNH makes the altimeter read elevation at the surface; QFE reads height above the reference point; QNE (1013.25 hPa) is used above the transition level.

Pressure change: 1 hPa is about 27 ft near sea level; flying from high to low pressure with the altimeter unchanged, the aircraft is lower than indicated; from low to high, higher.

Wind: geostrophic wind flows parallel to isobars aloft; surface friction causes the wind to cross isobars toward low pressure and to back anticlockwise; Buys Ballot: back to wind in the Northern Hemisphere puts low pressure on the left.

Thunderstorm life cycle: cumulus (updrafts), mature (updrafts and downdrafts, rain, lightning, hail), dissipating (downdrafts); hazards include microbursts, wind shear, icing and hail.

Aircraft icing: most likely at 0 C to -20 C in supercooled water clouds; rime ice forms in stratiform clouds, clear ice in large supercooled drops; freezing rain is especially hazardous.

Radiation fog forms under clear skies, light winds and high relative humidity after sunset; advection fog forms when warm moist air moves over a cold surface.

METAR wind 24015G25KT = 240 degrees true at 15 kt gusting 25 kt; cloud amounts FEW (1-2 oktas), SCT (3-4), BKN (5-7), OVC (8); Q1013 is QNH in hPa.

In East Africa, the ITCZ brings the long rains (March-May) and short rains (October-December); easterly waves and tropical cyclones also affect the region.

A great-circle route is the shortest distance between two points on a sphere; a rhumb line maintains constant track but is longer except along the equator or a meridian.

1 minute of latitude = 1 NM; distance along a parallel = 60 x cos(latitude) NM per degree of longitude; 1 degree of latitude = 60 NM.

True/magnetic/compass: True + Variation = Magnetic; Magnetic + Deviation = Compass (east variation or deviation is negative, west positive); use 'east is least'.

VOR gives magnetic bearing from the station (radial); CDI centred with TO/FROM; DME measures slant range, so indicated distance is greater than horizontal distance and error increases with altitude.

ILS: localizer 108-112 MHz gives lateral guidance; glideslope 329.15-335 MHz gives vertical guidance; marker beacons or DME provide range; decision altitude depends on category.

GNSS: GPS nominal constellation is 24 satellites; RAIM detects and isolates faulty signals; SBAS/WAAS improves integrity and accuracy; RNP requires on-board performance monitoring and alerting.

Wind triangle: heading + drift = track; TAS and wind give groundspeed; drift is the angle between heading and track; use a flight computer or E6B.

Altimetry: transition altitude is where climb changes from local QNH to standard; transition level is where descent changes from standard to QNH; the transition layer lies between them.

Distress MAYDAY (grave and imminent danger) on 121.5 MHz; urgency PAN PAN (urgent but not immediate danger); emergency squawk 7700, radio failure 7600, unlawful interference 7500.

Sterile flight deck: no non-essential conversation or activity below 10 000 ft, or as operator specifies, during taxi, take-off, approach and landing.

Low-visibility approaches: CAT I decision height 200 ft and RVR 550 m; CAT II decision height 100 ft and RVR 300 m; CAT III minima depend on fail-passive or fail-operational status and RVR.

Engine fire: isolate fuel, ignition and bleed, discharge extinguisher, consider diversion; do not restart unless prescribed by the checklist.

Decompression: don oxygen masks, establish communication, initiate emergency descent to FL 100 or minimum safe altitude, turn away from traffic; cabin crew and passengers secure.

Runway incursion: hold short of runway holding position markings; ILS critical area must be protected in low visibility; read back runway clearances.

Cold weather: remove snow, ice and frost before take-off; use approved de-icing or anti-icing fluids and observe holdover time; check control surfaces are free.

Accident or incident: preserve evidence, notify ATS and the authority, file a report; SMS uses hazard identification, risk assessment and mitigation.

Lift L = 1/2 rho V^2 S CL; CL increases with angle of attack up to the critical angle (about 15-18 degrees), then decreases with stall.

Induced drag varies as CL^2/(pi A e) and decreases with speed; parasite drag increases with V^2; total drag is minimum at L/Dmax, the best glide and maximum range speed.

Static stability: positive static stability tends to return the aircraft to equilibrium; longitudinal stability is reduced by an aft CG; dynamic stability describes the motion over time.

Adverse yaw: down-deflection of the aileron increases lift and induced drag on the rising wing, yawing the aircraft away from the turn; coordinated rudder is required.

Critical Mach number is the free-stream Mach at which airflow somewhere on the wing first reaches Mach 1; sweepback raises critical Mach and delays shock stall.

Load factor n = L/W; stall speed increases with the square root of n; an accelerated stall occurs at higher speed in turns or abrupt manoeuvres.

Ground effect reduces induced drag and increases lift when the aircraft is within about one wingspan of the ground; it can cause float on landing.

Winglets reduce tip vortices and induced drag; vortex generators delay flow separation; washout (wing twist) delays tip stall.

VHF aeronautical band 118.000-136.975 MHz; 121.5 MHz is the emergency frequency; 8.33 kHz spacing is used in Europe and 25 kHz elsewhere.

Standard readback: clearance limit, runway, altitude, heading, speed, frequency and transponder code must be read back; 'roger' does not mean compliance.

IFR clearance CRAFT: Clearance limit, Route, Altitude, Frequency, Transponder; the initial call includes aircraft identification and position.

Radio failure: squawk 7600 and follow published lost-communication procedures; in VMC land as soon as practicable; in IMC continue according to clearance or route.

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.

Position report: identification, position, time, altitude or level, next position and ETA; use UTC and maintain a listening watch.

ICAO language proficiency: Level 4 is the minimum for international operations and requires re-evaluation; plain language may be used when standard phraseology is inadequate.