CAA NZ CPL Aircraft Technical Knowledge flashcards
CAA NZ CPL Aircraft Technical Knowledge · Build recall with a focused review session.
32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Critical angle of attack
- The angle of attack at which the wing reaches maximum lift coefficient and any further increase causes a stall, regardless of airspeed or weight.
- Load factor in level turn
- In a coordinated level turn, load factor n equals 1 divided by cos of bank angle; at 60 degrees bank n is 2 and stall speed rises by about 41 percent.
- Adverse yaw
- Yaw opposite to the intended roll, caused mainly by higher induced drag on the wing with the up-deflected aileron; coordinated rudder is used to counteract it.
- Dihedral effect
- Lateral stability from wing dihedral: a sideslip gives the lower wing a higher effective angle of attack, producing a roll away from the direction of slip.
- Induced drag
- Drag caused by lift, proportional to lift coefficient squared and inversely proportional to speed squared; it is largest at high angle of attack and low airspeed.
- Trim tab purpose
- A small hinged surface that creates a moment to hold a larger control surface in position, reducing the steady stick or pedal force needed by the pilot.
- Semi-monocoque structure
- A stressed-skin structure in which the skin carries tension and shear while frames, formers and stringers stiffen it and prevent buckling; spars carry major bending loads.
- Fail-safe design
- A design philosophy that provides alternate load paths so that a crack or single component failure does not cause immediate structural collapse before inspection.
- Honeycomb sandwich
- A panel with thin face sheets bonded to a low-density core; the faces carry tension and compression while the core carries shear, giving high stiffness for low weight.
- Mass balance
- Weight placed ahead of a control surface hinge to keep its centre of gravity near or ahead of the hinge, preventing flutter and reducing hinge moment.
- Exfoliation corrosion
- Layered corrosion that lifts metal along grain boundaries, often seen as blistering or lifted layers near rivet rows and edges in wrought aluminium alloys.
- Four-stroke cycle
- Intake, compression, power and exhaust strokes complete one cycle in two crankshaft revolutions; each cylinder produces one power stroke per two revolutions.
- Detonation
- Uncontrolled rapid combustion of the fuel-air charge after normal spark ignition, causing high cylinder pressure and temperature, knock and possible piston damage.
- Constant-speed propeller
- A propeller whose governor changes blade angle to maintain a selected RPM as power or airspeed changes, using flyweights and engine oil pressure.
- Propeller slip
- The difference between geometric pitch, the theoretical forward distance in one revolution, and effective pitch, the actual forward distance advanced.
- Carburettor icing
- Ice formation in the carburettor due to fuel vaporisation and pressure drop, possible at outside air temperatures from about minus 10 to plus 25 Celsius with high humidity.
- Usable fuel
- Fuel that can be supplied to the engine in all normal flight attitudes; unusable fuel remains trapped in tanks and lines and is included in empty weight.
- Wet-sump oil system
- An engine oil system that stores oil in the crankcase sump, from which the oil pump draws it and returns it after passing through the cooler and filter.
- Loadmeter
- An instrument that indicates the current or percentage output produced by the alternator or generator, allowing the pilot to monitor electrical system load.
- Hydraulic accumulator
- A pressure vessel with a gas charge that stores hydraulic energy, damps pressure pulses and provides a limited reserve of pressure if the pump fails.
- Pneumatic de-ice boots
- Inflatable rubber boots on wing and tail leading edges that periodically inflate to crack and shed ice; they do not prevent ice formation.
- Fire triangle
- The three requirements for fire: fuel, oxygen and heat; removing any one, by shutting off fuel, excluding oxygen or cooling, extinguishes the fire.
- Pitot-static system
- A system supplying pitot pressure and static pressure to the airspeed indicator, altimeter and vertical speed indicator; blockage causes false or frozen indications.
- Altimeter subscale
- The pressure setting window used to set the altimeter datum; changing it shifts the indicated altitude by about 1000 feet per inch of mercury near sea level.
- Standard-rate turn
- A turn of 3 degrees per second, which completes 180 degrees in one minute and 360 degrees in two minutes; shown by the turn coordinator at the standard-rate mark.
- Heading indicator drift
- Apparent drift of a gyroscopic heading indicator caused by Earth's rotation and gyro imperfections; the pilot realigns it periodically with the magnetic compass.
- RAIM
- Receiver Autonomous Integrity Monitoring, a GPS function that checks satellite signals for consistency and warns when navigation integrity is inadequate for the intended operation.
- Datum
- An arbitrary reference plane or point from which arms and stations are measured for weight and balance; it may be ahead of, behind or inside the aircraft.
- Useful load
- Maximum takeoff weight minus empty weight; it includes pilots, passengers, baggage, usable fuel and any removable equipment, and limits payload plus fuel.
- Density altitude
- Pressure altitude corrected for temperature; high temperature or low pressure increases density altitude, reducing engine power, lift and propeller efficiency.
- Manoeuvring speed Va
- The maximum speed at which full deflection of one primary control will not overstress the structure; it decreases as aircraft weight decreases.
- Best angle of climb Vx
- The speed that gives the greatest height gain for a given horizontal distance, used to clear obstacles; it is lower than best rate of climb speed.