PPL · illustrated course

PPL operational procedures course: 12 illustrated chapters

The PPL operational procedures course follows the syllabus in 12 chapters: 104 key points explained in a few paragraphs, often with a diagram, what to remember and, for many, the classic exam trap. The first chapter, « Checklists, briefings and threat management », can be read in full on this page.

Read chapter 1 The 141 questions of this subject

Each chapter explains, point by point, what the questions of the bank ask, with a « Remember » box and often the classic exam trap. The first chapter is free, below and in the app; the next ones are for PPL subscribers.

1.Checklists, briefings and threat management
Free
The tools that prevent omissions and prepare the reaction: checklists, take-off briefing, TEM, self-briefing and collision-avoidance lookout.
9 key points · 13 questions of the bank
2.Documents, equipment and reports
Subscribers
What must be on board, minimum equipment, oxygen, lights, then the journey log, maintenance and reports (accident, AIRPROX, complaint).
10 key points · 18 questions of the bank
3.Take-offs, landings and runway condition
Subscribers
Runway entry, crosswind, short or soft runway, types of climb, flaps, contaminated runway and go-around.
14 key points · 16 questions of the bank
4.Wake turbulence
Subscribers
Where wingtip vortices come from, when they are most dangerous, how long they last and how to avoid them, including behind a helicopter.
8 key points · 4 questions of the bank
5.Wind, wind shear and turbulence
Subscribers
Wind gradient on final, approach speed and increments, wind shear and microburst, mechanical turbulence, flying in a valley and crossing a ridge.
7 key points · 10 questions of the bank
6.Icing: carburettor, airframe and propeller
Subscribers
Why the carburettor can ice up even in mild weather, how to detect it and use carburettor heat, and the effects of icing on the airframe and propeller.
7 key points · 10 questions of the bank
7.Unusual situations and deteriorating weather
Subscribers
Stall, spin, stall in the final turn, unusual attitudes, inadvertent entry into IMC, deteriorating weather, approaching night and diversion.
8 key points · 8 questions of the bank
8.In-flight failures: engine and systems
Subscribers
Engine failure in cruise and on take-off, glide ratio and glide distance, fuel, alternator failure, vacuum pump failure, static port blockage, oil pressure and minimum fuel.
10 key points · 12 questions of the bank
9.Forced landing, precautionary landing and flight over water
Subscribers
Voluntary flight termination (IVV) and precautionary landing, forced landing procedure, choice and type of field, slope, after the landing, equipment for flight over water and ditching.
10 key points · 19 questions of the bank
10.Fire and smoke
Subscribers
Fire triangle, fire classes and extinguishers, refuelling, fire at engine start, engine fire on the ground and in flight, electrical fire and smoke in the cabin.
9 key points · 11 questions of the bank
11.Distress, urgency and search and rescue
Subscribers
MAYDAY and PAN PAN messages, transponder codes, radio failure, emergency locator beacon, the SAR service and its three phases, how to act when faced with a distress situation, and visual signals.
8 key points · 19 questions of the bank
12.Noise abatement
Subscribers
Where the noise of a light aircraft comes from, what makes it vary for a resident on the ground, and how the pilot reduces it in the climb and on approach.
4 key points · 3 questions of the bank

Chapter 1: Checklists, briefings and threat management

The tools that prevent omissions and prepare the reaction: checklists, take-off briefing, TEM, self-briefing and collision-avoidance lookout.

What a checklist is for

← Faites glisser le schéma →

The checklist guards against the causes of omission

A checklist is the list of actions to be checked and/or carried out before a given phase of flight (before engine start, before take-off, before landing…). It appears in the aircraft's flight manual (AFM) or is derived from it.

It is not meant only for students: it is a safety net against omission, which the memory of an experienced pilot does not replace. Workload, stress, a radio call or a passenger interrupting: a moment is all it takes to skip a line.

in normal flight: you read, then do;
in an emergency: the vital actions are done from memory, and the checklist is then used to confirm that nothing has been forgotten.

Remember

Checklist = list of actions to check or carry out before a given phase of flight, for all pilots.

Exam trap

It is not “recited” from memory and is not reserved for students or two-crew aircraft: you read it, every time.

The before take-off checklist

← Faites glisser le schéma →

The before take-off checklist checks the configuration, not the calculations

It is done at the holding point, just before lining up. Its purpose: to confirm that the aircraft is configured and ready for take-off.

controls free and moving in the correct sense;
trim and flaps in the take-off position;
fuel tank selected, pump, mixture;
engine parameters, carburettor heat off;
instruments set, doors and seat belts, transponder, lights.

It checks a state: calculations (mass and balance, take-off distances) belong to flight preparation, done beforehand.

Exam trap

Mass and balance or take-off distance are not the purpose of the before take-off checklist: they are calculated during flight preparation.

The take-off briefing

← Faites glisser le schéma →

The “Abnormalities” part of the briefing, according to the phase of take-off

Even when alone on board, the pilot gives themselves a spoken briefing before lining up. It does not replace the checklist: it serves to mentally anticipate what you will do if something goes wrong, at the moment when you will have the least time to think.

It includes in particular an “Abnormalities” part:

before take-off (on the ground): any abnormality, you reject (throttle closed, braking);
after take-off, minor incident: continue the climb, fly a circuit and land;
after take-off, engine failure: land straight ahead within a limited sector.

To this you add the runway, the wind, performance and the departure path.

Remember

Briefing when alone on board = mentally anticipating a failure at take-off. Abnormalities: before take-off / after take-off (minor incident or engine failure).

Three checks during the take-off roll

← Faites glisser le schéma →

The order of the checks called out during the take-off roll

During the acceleration, the pilot calls out three checks from memory, in this order:

Power available: RPM and manifold pressure normal as soon as power is applied;
No alarm: no light, no alarm, engine parameters in the green;
Airspeed alive: the airspeed indicator “wakes up” and the needle rises.

If even one of these checks fails, you reject the take-off: throttle fully closed, braking, maintaining the centreline. As long as the aircraft is on the ground, it is always safer to stop on the runway than to fly with a doubt.

Remember

Power available, No alarm, Airspeed alive. A single fault: take-off rejected.

Exam trap

The order follows the chronology: power is noted first, the airspeed indicator only comes alive with speed.

Long wait before take-off

You have done your engine run-up, then you wait a quarter of an hour at the holding point before being cleared. During this time:

short-term memory has “forgotten” the briefing: repeat the take-off briefing (it takes a few seconds);
in cool, humid air, carburettor icing may have formed at idle: a few seconds of carburettor heat, then back to cold before applying power (see the icing chapter).

There is no need, however, to redo all the engine checks or the passenger briefing if nothing has changed. The take-off clearance does not exempt you from these few seconds of refreshing.

Remember

After a long wait: refreshed take-off briefing, and carburettor heat for a few seconds if the air is humid.

Threat and error management (TEM)

← Faites glisser le schéma →

Threat, strategy, error and undesired state

TEM (Threat and Error Management) is a method for keeping the flight under control.

a threat is an external element that complicates the flight: short runway, crosswind, marginal weather, fatigue, unfamiliar aircraft…;
an error is an action or omission by the pilot;
an undesired state is the resulting situation (too high, too fast, wrong configuration…).

The rule: for each identified threat, you match a strategy. Listing threats without planning anything is not TEM. An error detected and corrected in time has no consequence.

Remember

TEM: one identified threat = one matching strategy.

Exam trap

Waiting for the threat to materialise, or merely noting it in a list, is not threat management.

When to discuss threats

← Faites glisser le schéma →

The four moments when you take stock of threats

TEM is systematically discussed at four key moments, each associated with a briefing:

at flight preparation;
before take-off;
before arrival (before starting the descent);
before landing.

Example: threat “short runway”. Possible strategies: check the distances in the flight manual, lighten the aircraft, take off with the flaps specified by the manual and apply full power with the brakes held before releasing them, set a take-off abort point.

Remember

TEM: flight preparation, before take-off, before arrival, before landing.

Weather and NOTAM self-briefing: on every flight

Even for a single circuit at your usual aerodrome, check the weather and the NOTAM before every flight.

A "routine" flight can be called into question by recent information: a runway shortened by works, a restricted area activated, an air display, a thunderstorm developing earlier than forecast.

This is not an administrative formality: it is the first step in identifying threats. Experience shows that many accidents occur on short, familiar flights, precisely because the pilot thought they knew everything.

Exam trap

The briefing does not validate a flight plan and does not calculate mass and balance: it serves to detect what has changed.

See and avoid: looking for reported traffic

The "10 o'clock" sector to scan, aircraft nose at 12 o'clock

In VFR, collision avoidance relies on the see and avoid principle. When control announces "traffic at your 10 o'clock, left to right, 1,000 ft above", the position is given like a clock face, with 12 o'clock straight ahead of the nose.

Scan the announced sector in short jumps, pausing briefly at each stop: the eye only sees well during the pauses, and it mainly detects movement. Staring at a single point, or looking for "a patch of colour", is ineffective.

Beware: an aircraft on a collision course remains motionless in the windscreen; it only grows larger. So scan the whole sector, not just what moves.

Remember

Traffic information: scan the announced sector to detect movement.

Exam trap

Traffic on a collision course does not move in the field of view: it only grows larger. Hence the value of scanning methodically.

The course goes on with chapter 2, « Documents, equipment and reports ». It is read in the Course tab of the app with a PPL subscription, and each chapter ends with the questions of the bank about it. See pricing

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Contents

Chapter 1: Checklists, briefings and threat management

What a checklist is for

The before take-off checklist

The take-off briefing

Three checks during the take-off roll

Long wait before take-off

Threat and error management (TEM)

When to discuss threats

Weather and NOTAM self-briefing: on every flight

See and avoid: looking for reported traffic

How ForAllPilots trains you

The other PPL courses