NCAA CPL Flight Performance & Planning study plan
NCAA CPL Flight Performance & Planning · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 6 hours per week
Mass and Balance
Define the mass and balance terms (empty mass, dry operating mass, take-off mass, zero-fuel mass, traffic load, useful load) and state which items belong in each
Compute a basic empty mass from a given equipment list by adding or removing optional items
Convert between mass units and load-sheet index/arm values using a simple arm-versus-mass table you build yourself
Explain why the centre of gravity must lie within the certified forward and aft limits and what handling effects occur at each extreme
Your checkpoint
A one-page glossary plus a worked unit-conversion sheet showing three mass/arm calculations checked against your own arithmetic
Mass and Balance
Calculate take-off and landing CG positions from a loading schedule with crew, passengers, baggage, and fuel
Determine maximum allowed traffic load for a given fuel state and CG limit
Identify how fuel burn and fuel loading shift the CG over the course of a flight
Solve at least five loading problems where the aircraft is out of limits and propose a legal remedy (ballast, reseating, offloading)
Your checkpoint
A completed set of five loading problems, each with CG computation, limit check, and a written remedy for any out-of-limit case
Performance - Aeroplanes
Define the pressure altitude and density altitude relationships and compute both from field elevation, QNH, and temperature
Interpret a take-off distance chart: enter with mass, pressure altitude, and temperature, and apply wind, slope, and surface corrections
Interpret a landing distance chart and apply the same correction chain
State the regulatory factors applied to take-off and landing distances and explain why they exist
Your checkpoint
A correction-chain worksheet with three take-off and three landing distance determinations, each showing every intermediate value
Performance - Aeroplanes
Compute climb gradient, rate of climb, and time, fuel, and distance to climb from a climb chart
Derive the maximum climb gradient speed and explain the trade-off between climb angle and climb rate
Calculate obstacle clearance during the take-off flight path using a published climb gradient
Explain how mass, altitude, temperature, and configuration degrade climb performance
Your checkpoint
A climb-performance sheet covering three scenarios: time/fuel/distance to climb, plus obstacle clearance at a specified distance from the reference point
Performance - Aeroplanes & Flight Planning and Monitoring
Determine maximum level-flight speed, cruise TAS, and endurance at specified power settings and altitudes
Compute still-air range and endurance and adjust for wind using the triangle-of-velocities method
Explain the difference between maximum range and maximum endurance conditions and which speed each requires
Plan a simple two-leg cross-country at a chosen cruise setting, showing heading, ground speed, and time en route for each leg
Your checkpoint
A two-leg navigation and cruise log with headings, ground speeds, leg times, and total fuel burned, plus a note on the range/endurance speed choice
Flight Planning and Monitoring
Build a full navigation log for a three-leg flight including wind correction, magnetic variation and deviation, and time/fuel per leg
Compute fuel required for taxi, trip, contingency, alternate, final reserve, and any additional fuel, and compare against usable capacity
Determine whether a planned flight is fuel-feasible and identify the shortfall if not
Interpret a simple point-of-no-return or equal-time-point calculation for a given wind condition
Your checkpoint
A complete three-leg operational navigation log with a fuel-feasibility verdict and a worked point-of-no-return calculation
Fuel Planning & Operational Flight Plan and Fuel Management
Define each fuel category (taxi, trip, contingency, alternate, final reserve, extra, discretionary) and state how each is computed
Calculate the minimum required fuel for a given route and compare it with the maximum fuel that can be carried for the planned mass
Explain in-flight fuel monitoring: how to check actual versus planned consumption at waypoints and what action to take when a discrepancy appears
Draft the fuel section of an operational flight plan, including the in-flight replanning trigger
Your checkpoint
A one-page fuel plan template with all categories filled for a sample flight, plus a written in-flight monitoring and decision rule
Mass and Balance & Performance - Aeroplanes & Flight Planning and Monitoring & Fuel Planning & Operational Flight Plan and Fuel Management
Assemble a complete operational flight plan for one flight, integrating mass and balance, take-off and landing performance, navigation, and fuel
Re-solve one problem from each domain under timed conditions to check recall and method
Review every calculation error from weeks 1 to 7 and rewrite the corrected method in your own words
State the operational limits that would cause you to reject the planned flight and justify each
Your checkpoint
A single integrated operational flight plan document with all calculations, limit checks, and a signed go/no-go justification
Milestones
Week 2: Complete a loading problem from an equipment list through to a CG-in-limits verdict without reference notes, in under 15 minutes
Week 4: Produce a take-off distance and a climb-performance result, each with full correction chains, with no arithmetic errors on a self-check
Week 6: Submit a three-leg navigation log whose fuel totals reconcile exactly against the category-by-category fuel computation
Week 8: Deliver the integrated operational flight plan with every domain represented and all limit checks passing or explicitly justified