NCAA CPL Meteorology study plan

Memorise the ISA baseline values (1013.25 hPa, 15 °C at MSL, 1.98 °C per 1000 ft to 36,090 ft, then isothermal) and apply them to 15 pressure-altitude and density-altitude calculations.

Distinguish QNH, QFE, QNE and pressure altitude, and compute the altimeter indication change produced by each setting on 10 worked aerodrome examples.

Quantify the four altimeter errors (pressure, temperature, instrument/position, lag) and state the direction and magnitude of the error for at least 8 'flying from high to low / warm to cold' scenarios.

Decode 40 METAR/SPECI reports unaided, correctly converting wind, visibility, RVR, present weather, cloud amount/height, temperature/dewpoint and pressure groups into plain language.

Produce a written definition of every METAR/SPECI group in the order it appears, including CAVOK, NSC, VV/// and trend indicators.

Decode 15 full TAFs, correctly separating validity period, wind, visibility, weather, cloud and all BECMG/TEMPO/FM change groups, and state the worst conditions expected in each.

Interpret trend forecasts attached to METAR/SPECI (BECMG, TEMPO, NOSIG) and decide whether a trend justifies an amended forecast.

Classify SIGMET, AIRMET, GAMET and aerodrome warnings by phenomenon, area, validity and addressee, and draft one SIGMET text for a specified thunderstorm and one for severe icing using correct ICAO ordering.

Read the surface chart, 850/700/500 hPa upper-air charts and the significant weather chart: locate highs, lows, troughs, ridges, fronts, jet streams, CAT and CB areas, and state what each implies for a flight.

Decode 20 plotted station models, extracting temperature, dewpoint, pressure tendency, wind direction/speed, cloud cover and present weather from the plotted symbols.

Compute dewpoint, relative humidity, mixing ratio and saturation mixing ratio for 10 given dry-bulb/dewpoint/pressure combinations without a calculator aid other than the supplied tables.

Derive the stability of a layer in 20 cases by comparing the environmental lapse rate with the DALR and SALR, and label each case absolutely stable, conditionally unstable or absolutely unstable.

Convert between the lifting condensation level, cloud base and the spread, and state the cloud base for 10 temperature/dewpoint pairs.

Classify the ten cloud genera by height and shape, and link each to its formation mechanism and typical precipitation.

Explain the formation of rain, drizzle, snow, hail, freezing rain and sleet in terms of the vertical temperature profile, and identify which produces the greatest airframe icing risk.

Apply the pressure gradient force, Coriolis force and friction to draw geostrophic, gradient and surface wind vectors for 10 hemispheric cases, including flow around highs, lows and straight isobars.

Compute geostrophic wind speed from isobar spacing at a stated latitude and density, and state the effect of changing latitude or air density on the result.

Describe the global circulation cells and the trade wind, westerly and polar easterly belts, and locate the ITCZ, subtropical highs and jet streams on a blank world map.

Explain six local wind systems (sea/land breeze, mountain/valley, katabatic, foehn, monsoon, Harmattan) and the diurnal timing and aviation effect of each.

Classify the four wind-shear types (horizontal, vertical, convective/microburst, low-level jet) and state for each how it is reported and the recovery technique.

Classify the five air-mass types by source region and temperature/moisture characteristics, and predict the weather produced when each moves over West Africa.

Draw and label the vertical cross-section of a mid-latitude depression: warm, cold and occluded fronts, warm and cold sectors, cloud sequences, precipitation belts and the passage sequence at a fixed station.

Trace the life cycle of a frontal depression through wave, mature, occlusion and decay stages, and state the wind shifts and pressure changes a pilot would experience.

Explain the ITCZ: its seasonal migration, the weather associated with it over West Africa, and the difference between the ITCZ and the meteorological equator.

Describe easterly waves, squall lines and tropical cyclones as tropical weather systems, including their formation regions, tracks, seasonal timing and the hazards each brings to West African aviation.

Describe the three thunderstorm stages, distinguish single-cell, multi-cell, supercell and squall-line storms, and list the hazards of each stage (updraughts, downdraughts, hail, lightning, microburst, tornado).

Identify the conditions favouring airframe icing (temperature range, supercooled water, freezing rain, large droplets) and state the icing intensity classification and the pilot action for each.

Classify turbulence as mechanical, thermal, frontal, clear-air or wake, and specify the reportable intensity categories and what each means for the aircraft.

List the visibility-reducing phenomena (radiation fog, advection fog, frontal fog, haze, dust, sandstorm, Harmattan dust, precipitation) with their formation conditions and diurnal behaviour.

Map each hazardous phenomenon to the correct warning product (SIGMET, AIRMET, GAMET, aerodrome warning, wind shear warning) and the threshold that triggers it.

Interpret a full set of flight documentation (surface chart, upper-air charts, significant weather chart, TAFs, METARs) for a specified route and state the expected conditions at departure, en route and destination.

Reproduce the station-model plotting conventions from memory, including temperature, dewpoint, pressure and tendency, wind barb, cloud cover, present and past weather.

Outline the West African climatic zones from the coast to the Sahel, including the double rainfall maximum in the south, the single wet season in the north, and the Harmattan season.

Explain how the seasonal movement of the ITCZ and the subtropical high drive the wet and dry seasons, and how this affects visibility, convective activity and aerodrome operating minima in Nigeria.

State the local climatological hazards for Nigerian operations: Harmattan dust reducing visibility, line squalls, afternoon thunderstorms, low stratus and morning fog.

Re-work every question missed in weeks 1-7 and rewrite the underlying rule or definition for each, until the error log contains no unexplained item.

Time-box 60 METAR/SPECI/TAF decoding items to an average of 60 seconds each, with 90% accuracy.

Sit two full-length timed mock exams under exam conditions and compare per-domain scores against the published domain weightings.

Drill the memory items that fail most often in practice: ISA values, ICAO abbreviation list, SIGMET/AIRMET criteria and the altimetry error rules.

Target the two weakest domains from the mock analysis with 40 focused questions each.