ATPL Cheat Sheet: All 13 Subjects on One Page

EASA ATPL(A)13 papers257 key facts · 63 exam trapsUpdated Oct 2026

The must-know facts of every EASA ATPL paper on one page: formulas, numbers, limits and rules, then the traps the exams set. Every line comes from the explanations in our question banks and the v1prep Library, which cite the regulation or manual behind them. Use Test yourself to hide the answers and tap each one to check, or print a clean sheet for each paper. The first section of every paper is free to read; the rest is for v1prep members on any paid plan.

Printing gives one page per paper, answers shown.
010

Air Law

44 questions · 1 h 00

The international conventions and ICAO, licensing and medical rules, the rules of the air, airspace and air traffic services, and the PANS-OPS procedures.

Diagram: The class sets who is separated and who is only told: A and B separate everything, C separates VFR from IFR, D only IFR from IFR.Table of ICAO airspace classes A to G giving, for each class, the flight rules permitted, whether a clearance is needed, the separation ATC provides, the traffic information given and the 250 kt speed limit

ICAO and the conventions

Chicago Convention
Signed December 1944; created ICAO, Montreal; SARPs in 19 Annexes, Annex 19 being Safety Management
Key Annexes
1 Licensing, 2 Rules of the Air, 6 Operation, 7 Registration marks, 11 ATS, 13 Investigation, 14 Aerodromes, 17 Security, 18 Dangerous goods
Tokyo, Hague, Montreal
Tokyo 1963: offences on board, State of Registration has jurisdiction; Hague 1970: hijacking; Montreal 1971: unlawful acts against safety
The rest of Air Law is for v1prep members: 17 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Licences and medicals (Part-FCL, Part-MED)

Theory exams
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Recent experience
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Class 1 medical
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Ages
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Rules of the Air

VMC, classes A to E
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Right of way
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Semicircular rule
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IFR minimum level
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Airspace and air traffic services

Airspace classes
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Special squawks
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Alerting phases
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Vertical separation
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Wake turbulence
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Procedures (PANS-OPS)

Holding pattern
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Holding speeds
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Approach categories
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Gradients and clearances
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Exam traps

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021

Aircraft General Knowledge

80 questions · 2 h 00

Airframe structure and systems (hydraulics, pressurisation, oxygen, fire protection and fuel), aircraft electrics, and piston and gas turbine powerplants.

Diagram: The CSD or IDG holds 400 Hz, and four things must match before two alternators are paralleled: voltage, frequency, phase and phase sequence.Table of the aircraft AC generation chain: constant speed drive and IDG, rotating field alternator, three-phase star output, generator control unit, split bus and bus tie, transformer rectifier units, static inverter and frequency-wild alternator

Structure and hydraulics

Design philosophies
Safe-life: retired at a set life. Fail-safe: multiple load paths. Damage-tolerant: slow cracks found at normal inspections
Catastrophic failure (CS-25)
Must be extremely improbable: of the order of 1 × 10⁻⁹ per flight hour or less
Hydraulic fluids
Mineral DTD 585: red, neoprene seals. Skydrol phosphate ester: purple or green, butyl seals, fire resistant. Never mix
Transport hydraulic pressure
Typically 3,000 psi (some 4,000, A380 and A350 5,000) from constant-pressure, variable-volume pumps
Power transfer unit
Hydraulic motor driving a pump: moves power between two systems without transferring fluid
The rest of Aircraft General Knowledge is for v1prep members: 14 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Pressurisation, oxygen, fire and fuel

Cabin altitude
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Crew oxygen (CAT.OP.MPA.285)
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Engine fire protection
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Jet A-1
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Electrics

Ohm's law and power
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Resistors
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Battery cells (on load)
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Aircraft AC
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Paralleling alternators
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Engines

Jet thrust
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Compressor stall or surge
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Abnormal starts
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Bleed air extraction
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Constant-speed unit
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Exam traps

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022

Instrumentation

60 questions · 1 h 30

Pitot-static and air data instruments, magnetism and compasses, gyroscopes and inertial systems, the radio altimeter, warning systems and automatic flight.

Diagram: Pitot gives total pressure (static + dynamic) to the ASI and Machmeter only; static feeds all four instruments.Diagram of a pitot-static system: a heated pitot head with drain hole feeding total pressure to the airspeed indicator and Machmeter, cross-coupled static vents and an alternate static source feeding the airspeed indicator, Machmeter, altimeter and VSI, with water traps, the VSI calibrated choke and an independent standby system

Air data

Dynamic pressure
Pitot (total) − static = ½ρV²; the ASI measures it, calibrated for ISA sea-level density (1225 g/m³)
IAS to TAS
IAS → CAS (instrument and position error) → EAS (compressibility) → TAS (density)
Climb schedules
Constant CAS: TAS and Mach rise. Constant Mach: CAS and TAS fall in the troposphere; TAS constant in an isothermal layer
Speed of sound
LSS = 38.95 × √T (kelvin): 661 kt at ISA sea level; Mach = TAS ÷ LSS
Air temperatures
TAT = SAT + full ram rise. From the probe reading: SAT = reading ÷ (1 + 0.2 Kr M²), in kelvin (Kr = recovery factor)
Altimeter errors
About 30 ft per hPa; subscale unchanged, flying towards lower pressure or colder air it over-reads: the aircraft is lower than shown
The rest of Instrumentation is for v1prep members: 14 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Compass and gyroscopes

Acceleration errors (N hemisphere)
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Turning errors (N hemisphere)
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Gyro rigidity
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Earth rate
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Rate 1 turn
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Inertial and radio altimeter

INS principle
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Ring laser gyro
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Radio altimeter
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Warnings and automatic flight

GPWS modes
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Stall warning margin
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TCAS II
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Aural priority
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Autoland status
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EFIS colours
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Exam traps

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031

Mass and Balance

25 questions · 1 h 15

Mass definitions and structural limits, standard masses and weighing, and how the centre of gravity is found, moved and kept within limits.

Diagram: The lowest limit wins: take-off mass is capped by MTOM, the performance limit, MZFM + take-off fuel and MLM + trip fuel.Table of the mass chain from basic empty mass through dry operating, zero fuel, ramp, take-off and landing mass to traffic load, giving what each step adds, the limit that caps it and the reason for the limit, with notes on the datum, %MAC and loading indices

Mass definitions

Basic empty mass
Airframe, engines, fixed equipment, unusable fuel and full operating fluids; no crew, usable fuel or load
Dry operating mass
BEM + crew and their baggage, catering and passenger service equipment, potable water, lavatory chemicals
Operating mass
DOM + take-off fuel
Zero fuel mass and traffic load
ZFM = DOM + traffic load; traffic load = TOM − operating mass
Useful load (EASA)
Traffic load + take-off fuel = TOM − DOM
Ramp and landing mass
Ramp mass = TOM + start-up and taxi fuel; landing mass = TOM − trip fuel
The rest of Mass and Balance is for v1prep members: 14 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Limits

Maximum zero fuel mass
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Regulated take-off mass
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Take-off mass for a flight
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Maximum traffic load
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Centre of gravity

CG position
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CG in %MAC
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Moving mass
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Adding or removing mass
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Forward CG
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Aft CG
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Standard masses, weighing and fuel

Standard passenger masses
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Which table
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Weighing
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Fuel mass
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Exam traps

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032

Performance

45 questions · 2 h 00

Performance classes and runway conditions, take-off speeds and field lengths, the take-off climb and obstacle clearance, climb, cruise and en-route performance, and landing.

Diagram: Twin, one engine out: segment 1 positive, segment 2 2.4%, segment 4 1.2%; the net path is 0.8% lower and must clear obstacles by 35 ft.Profile and table of the four take-off climb segments of a twin with one engine inoperative, showing the gross and net flight paths, configuration, speed and minimum gross gradient of each segment and the 35 ft obstacle margin

Classes and dispatch

Performance class A
All multi-engine turbojets; multi-engine turboprops with more than 9 seats or MTOM above 5,700 kg
Wind for dispatch
Take-off and landing data: no more than 50% of the reported headwind, at least 150% of the reported tailwind
Class B field length
No stopway or clearway: gross take-off distance × 1.25 ≤ TORA
The rest of Performance is for v1prep members: 17 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Take-off

V1 limits
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V2 (Class A)
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Balanced field
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Field length (Class A)
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Wet runway (Class A)
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Reduced thrust (assumed temperature)
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Take-off climb and en route

Climb segments
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Gross gradients, twin OEI
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Net flight path
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En route, one engine out
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Climb gradient
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Cruise and landing

Range and endurance speeds
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Jet landing distance
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Class B landing distance
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Go-around gradients (Class A)
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VREF
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Hydroplaning speed
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Exam traps

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033

Flight Planning and Monitoring

42 questions · 2 h 00

Fuel planning under the EASA fuel scheme, air and ground distance, the point of equal time and point of safe return, the ICAO flight plan, ETOPS and chart minimum altitudes.

Diagram: Each fuel block answers a different question: contingency is the higher of 5% of trip fuel and 5 min holding, final reserve 30 min at 1,500 ft for turbines.Table of the blocks of a commercial fuel plan (taxi, trip, contingency, alternate, final reserve, additional, extra or discretionary) with what each covers, how it is derived and the point often missed, plus the difference between MINIMUM FUEL and MAYDAY FUEL

Fuel planning (EASA basic fuel scheme)

Fuel blocks
Taxi, trip, contingency, alternate, final reserve, additional (if required), extra; take-off fuel = block fuel − taxi fuel
Contingency fuel
Higher of 5% of trip fuel and 5 min holding at 1,500 ft above the destination, ISA
Alternate fuel
From a missed approach at the destination to a landing at the alternate; no contingency is added to it
Final reserve fuel
Turbine: 30 min holding at 1,500 ft above aerodrome elevation, ISA. Piston: 45 min
Additional fuel
If the other blocks fall short: engine failure or depressurisation at the critical point, divert, hold 15 min at 1,500 ft above the alternate, land
Isolated aerodrome (turbine)
Additional + final reserve fuel = 2 h at normal cruise consumption above the destination
MINIMUM FUEL and MAYDAY FUEL
MINIMUM FUEL: committed to one aerodrome, any change may mean landing below final reserve; no priority. MAYDAY FUEL: predicted landing below final reserve
The rest of Flight Planning and Monitoring is for v1prep members: 13 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Air distance, PET and PSR

Air and ground miles
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PET distance
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PET and wind
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Engine-failure PET
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PSR time
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PSR and wind
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ATC flight plan

Filing and delay
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Item 8
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Item 9 wake category
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Item 10 equipment
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Item 15 speed and level
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ETOPS and minimum altitudes

ETOPS threshold
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Grid MORA
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Exam traps

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040

Human Performance and Limitations

48 questions · 1 h 30

The body at altitude, the senses and their illusions, health, sleep and fatigue, and the psychology of error, decision-making and crew cooperation.

Diagram: Classify an error by the intention: slips, lapses and mistakes are honest errors, violations deliberate departures from the rules.Table of error types (slip, lapse, rule-based mistake, knowledge-based mistake, violation, mode error) giving what failed, a typical example and what catches it, with notes on the SHELL model, threat and error management, and situational awareness and automation

Respiration and altitude

Gas laws
Boyle: at constant temperature, volume inversely proportional to pressure. Dalton: total = sum of partial pressures. Henry: dissolved gas ∝ pressure
Types of hypoxia
Hypoxic (altitude), anaemic (blood cannot carry oxygen, e.g. CO), stagnant (poor blood flow), histotoxic (cells cannot use it)
Oxygen thresholds
Air up to 10,000 ft; oxygen and air mix to 33,700 ft; 100% oxygen to 40,000 ft; pressure breathing above
Hyperventilation
Washes out CO₂ and raises blood pH; slow the breathing, but at altitude treat it as hypoxia first
Decompression sickness
Nitrogen bubbles (Henry's law): bends, creeps, chokes, staggers; likelier the higher and longer above 18,000 ft
The rest of Human Performance and Limitations is for v1prep members: 15 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Senses and illusions

Vestibular organs
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Somatogravic illusion
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Runway illusions
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The eye
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Collision risk
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Health, sleep and fatigue

Alcohol
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Carbon monoxide
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Circadian rhythm
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Sleep
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Cognition, error and CRM

Arousal and performance
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Short-term memory
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Error types (Reason)
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SHELL model
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Threat and error management
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Hazardous attitudes
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Exam traps

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050

Meteorology

84 questions · 2 h 00

The atmosphere and altimetry, stability and cloud, wind, weather hazards such as icing, thunderstorms and fog, and the METAR and TAF codes.

Diagram: The ISA in one table: +15 °C and 1013.25 hPa at sea level, 1.98 °C less per 1,000 ft to 36,090 ft, then a constant −56.5 °C.Table of the atmosphere's layers from mean sea level to about 60 km, giving the ISA temperature, pressure and density and the practical point for each layer

ISA and altimetry

ISA at mean sea level
+15 °C, 1013.25 hPa, density 1225 g/m³
ISA lapse rate
1.98 °C per 1,000 ft (0.65 °C per 100 m) up to 11 km (36,090 ft)
ISA above 11 km
Constant −56.5 °C from 11 km up to 20 km (65,617 ft)
Height per hPa
27 ft per hPa at MSL; about 50 ft at 20,000 ft and 100 ft at 40,000 ft
Temperature error
4 ft per °C of ISA deviation per 1,000 ft above the pressure datum
The rest of Meteorology is for v1prep members: 15 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Stability and cloud

DALR and SALR
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Absolute stability or instability
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Conditional instability
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Cumulus base estimate
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Wind

Buys Ballot's law
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Surface wind (northern hemisphere)
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Jet stream
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Hazards

Clear and rime ice
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Thunderstorm mature stage
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Microburst
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Radiation fog
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METAR and TAF

CAVOK
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Cloud amounts
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TEMPO
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Wind reference
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Exam traps

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061

General Navigation

55 questions · 2 h 15

The Earth, distance and direction, magnetism and the compass, chart projections, time, airspeeds and dead reckoning.

Diagram: On a Lambert chart a straight line is very nearly a great circle; on a Mercator it is a rhumb line. The great circle always lies on the polar side.A Lambert conformal conic chart and a Mercator chart side by side, each showing the great circle and the rhumb line between the same two points

The Earth and distance

Shape of the Earth
Oblate spheroid, flattening about 1/298; WGS-84 is the reference model for aviation
Nautical mile
1 NM = 1,852 m (about 6,076 ft); 1° of latitude ≈ 60 NM
Departure
Departure (NM) = ch.long (minutes) × cos latitude
Convergency
Earth convergency = ch.long × sin mean latitude; conversion angle = ½ convergency
Great circle and rhumb line
The great circle lies on the polar side of the rhumb line in both hemispheres
The rest of General Navigation is for v1prep members: 15 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Direction and the compass

Variation and deviation
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True to magnetic
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Turning errors (northern hemisphere)
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Acceleration errors (northern hemisphere)
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Charts

Mercator
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Lambert conformal conic
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Polar stereographic
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Orthomorphic (conformal)
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Time

Arc to time
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International Date Line
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Civil twilight
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Speeds and dead reckoning

Airspeed chain
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Speed of sound
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Climbing at constant CAS or Mach
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1 in 60 rule
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Exam traps

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062

Radio Navigation

66 questions · 1 h 30

Radio waves and propagation, NDB and ADF, VOR, ILS, DME, radar and SSR, GNSS and performance-based navigation.

Diagram: Three satellites fix the position, the fourth the receiver clock; RAIM needs a fifth to detect a fault and a sixth to exclude it.Table of GNSS error sources with their typical size and what reduces each, with notes on the GPS constellation, augmentation and RAIM

Radio waves and NDB

Frequency and wavelength
λ (m) = 300 ÷ f (MHz); radio waves travel at 300,000,000 m/s
VHF line-of-sight range
Range (NM) = 1.23 × (√h1 + √h2), heights in ft
NDB
190 to 1,750 kHz (LF and MF), surface wave; ADF accuracy ±5° within the DOC by day
ADF bearing to the beacon
QDM = magnetic heading + relative bearing (subtract 360 if needed)
Night effect
Sky wave returns at night and distorts ADF bearings; worst at dusk and dawn
The rest of Radio Navigation is for v1prep members: 14 more facts and 4 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

VOR and ILS

VOR
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CDI sensitivity
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ILS frequencies
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ILS coverage
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False glide paths
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Marker beacons
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DME and SSR

DME
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DME accuracy and capacity
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SSR
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GNSS and PBN

GPS constellation
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Satellites needed
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Largest GPS error
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RNAV and RNP
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Accuracy figures
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Exam traps

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070

Operational Procedures

42 questions · 1 h 15

Operating rules for commercial air transport: minima, alternates, crew limits, wake turbulence, windshear, contaminated runways, emergencies and dangerous goods.

Diagram: The wake sinks below the path that made it: stay above that path and land beyond that touchdown point.Table of wake turbulence situations showing where the wake lies, the geometry that clears it and the trap in each case, with the ICAO wake categories and radar spacing

Minima and alternates

Approach categories (VAT)
A below 91 kt; B 91-120 kt; C 121-140 kt; D 141-165 kt
Lowest circling minima
Cat C: MDH 600 ft, visibility 2,400 m; Cat D: MDH 700 ft, 3,600 m
CAT I
DH not below 200 ft; RVR not below 550 m
Take-off alternate distance
Two engines: within 1 hour at OEI cruise speed in still air; three or four engines: within 2 hours
The rest of Operational Procedures is for v1prep members: 16 more facts and 4 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Crew limits (Part-CAT, ORO.FTL)

Alcohol
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Cumulative duty
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Cumulative flight time
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Minimum rest
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WOCL
magna nostrud amet tempor aliqua exercitation consectetur incididunt eni

Wake turbulence and windshear

Wake categories (MTOM)
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Radar spacing on approach
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Departure spacing
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Microburst on approach
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Contaminated runways

Wet or contaminated
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Runway condition codes
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Take-off depth guide
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Aquaplaning speed
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Emergencies and dangerous goods

Ditching
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Evacuation demonstration
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Dangerous goods rules
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Exam traps

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081

Principles of Flight

46 questions · 1 h 30

Lift and drag, the stall and high-lift devices, stability, climb, glide and turning flight, and high-speed flight.

Diagram: A wing stalls at an angle, never at a speed: weight and load factor move the stall speed with their square root, the angle stays put.Airflow over an aerofoil at increasing angle of attack beside a lift curve peaking at CLmax, with a table of how weight, bank, flaps, slats and ice change the stall angle and the stall speed

Lift and drag

Lift equation
L = ½ ρ V² × CL × S, with V the TAS and ½ ρ V² the dynamic pressure
Drag and speed
Parasite drag varies as V², induced drag as 1/V²; CDi = CL² ÷ (π × AR)
VMD
Minimum total drag where induced drag = parasite drag; maximum L/D; VMP is slower
The rest of Principles of Flight is for v1prep members: 17 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Stall and high-lift devices

Stall speed and mass
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Stall speed in a turn
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Trailing-edge flaps
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Leading-edge slats
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CS-25 speed margins
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Stability

Centre of gravity limits
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Static margin
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Dutch roll and spiral
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Phugoid
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Climb, glide and turns

Climb gradient
incididunt enim ull
VX and VY
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Best glide
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Turn radius and rate
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High-speed flight

MCRIT
exercitation consectetur incididunt enim ullamco adipiscing
What moves MCRIT
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Mach tuck
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Climb at constant IAS
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Exam traps

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090

Communications

34 questions · 1 h 00

VFR and IFR radiotelephony: transmitting technique, standard words, readback, call signs, distress and urgency, communication failure, position reports and VHF.

Diagram: MAYDAY buys silence, PAN PAN buys priority: the message order, frequency and squawk all follow from that one choice.Table comparing MAYDAY distress and PAN PAN urgency calls by threshold, message order, frequency, transponder code, ATC action and how each is ended

Transmitting technique

Numbers
3 TREE, 4 FOW-ER, 5 FIFE, 8 AIT, 9 NIN-ER; decimal DAY-SEE-MAL
Hundreds and thousands
Whole hundreds and thousands of altitude, height, visibility and RVR: 11,000 ft is WUN WUN TOUSAND
Frequencies
All six digits are spoken; only the first four if the last two are zeros
Readability scale
1 unreadable, 2 readable now and then, 3 readable with difficulty, 4 readable, 5 perfectly readable
Time
UTC; normally the minutes only; time checks to the nearest half minute
The rest of Communications is for v1prep members: 14 more facts and 5 exam traps. Any paid plan unlocks all 13 papers: PRO, Lifetime, Ground School or the Interview Pass.See plans Sign in

Standard words and readback

AFFIRM, NEGATIVE, WILCO
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Mandatory readback
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TAKE OFF
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Abbreviated call signs
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Distress and urgency

Message priority
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MAYDAY and PAN PAN
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Distress message order
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Silence and its end
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Squawks and frequency
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Communication failure

In VMC
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IFR in IMC: level and speed
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IFR in IMC: landing
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Reports and VHF

Position report
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VHF voice band
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Exam traps

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