104 AUSTRALIAN AVIATION
Flight manuals are invaluable in
getting to know your aircraft’s
systems.TEXTRON AVIATION
In the flying game a pilot cannot
know enough. Having ready access
to technical information is a must
in order to know more, to learn and
to refresh.
As a flight instructor I have a small
library of how-to-fly type publications,
which gets added to on occasion. I also
have something in the order of over
two metres of flight manuals, owner’s
manuals, information manuals and
pilot’s operating handbooks.
The titles have changed over time.
The early ones were slim and the
later ones much thicker. Some are
paperback format while others are in
A4 size.
The one for the Piper Cub is all of
30 pages. A Beech A36 Bonanza flight
manual is a hefty book size.
Some of the manuals are pertinent
to the aircraft that I fly or have flown.
Others are for aircraft that I plan
to fly, while others again are simply
manuals that I tripped over and
acquired with the aircraft type being
on my wish list.
The manuals come from all sources- pilot shops, second-hand book sales
and of course vendors that sell aircraft
manuals or copies, typically via the
internet.
When I expect to fly a new aircraft
make or model I am keen to know as
much as I can about the aircraft before
I step into it. I will go on the net and
see if I can acquire a copy of the FAA
Type Certificate Data Sheet. This can
give me information about an aircraft
that may not be in the aircraft flight
manual. Then there is the aircraft
flight manual itself – or whatever is
the name given to it at the time the
model first took to the air.
One thing that a manual is good
for is to get to know the systems. The
electrical system, the hydraulic system,
weight and balance, the fuel system
and, if a retractable, the undercart
system. In particular how to get the
gear up and down normally and in an
emergency. For the fuel system how
many drain points are there?
I can recall the story of an ag pilot
with over 16,000 hours in a Cessna
Agwagon who had an engine failure
on takeoff, due to water in the fuel.
When asked did he check the reservoir
drain he said he did not know there
was one there.
For any complex aircraft it is vital
to have the aircraft manual close at
hand in case one has a problem and
needs to know more. It makes no
difference if the aircraft is a Beechcraft
or a Boeing.
In addition to the aircraft manual
collection I also have a collection of
manuals that cover such things as
trouble-shooting, engines, avionics,
weather, aviation medicine, CASA
publications, GPS, etc.And for most aircraft that I fly or
have flown I will also make up an
information card and keep it in a
semi-rigid clear plastic holder. On that
I record such things as the V speeds
and the usable fuel. On the reverse
face I note things of interest about the
aircraft model, things that do not get
mentioned in the aircraft manual and
are the sort of things that one learns
from flying the type or from a quality
endorsement or checkout of that
model aircraft.
For example in a Piper retract the
gear lights may be very dim to non-
existent during daytime with the panel
lights on. In a Cessna 205 30 degree
flaps is better to use than 40 degrees
due to the high sink rate. Beware the
mid windscreen-mounted compass
that can rake your head in a P.68 as
you clamber into the pilot’s seat. In a
low-wing aircraft you expect airframe
buffet at the stall as the turbulent air
over the wings spills over the tailplane.
In a high-wing Cessna you can also
get airframe buffet with the flaps full
down as the airflow spills off the flap
trailing edge and over the tailplane.
In a Cessna 172 the left tank fuel level
typically goes down at a faster rate
than the right tank. The left tank air
vent directs air into that tank only. In
a PA-22 Tripacer the master switch is
under the left seat.
These self-made information cards
are great to refresh what I need to
know about an aircraft, especially as
I get involved in ferry flights across
Australia of many different kinds of
GA types. For planning purposes it is
vital to know typical cruise speeds, fuel
burn rate and useable fuel quantities.
Another question is do I need flaps or
the fuel pump on for takeoff?
Having the information card to
hand – I usually stow it in my flight
bag – when I do not have access to the
paperwork in the aircraft has often
proven invaluable.
Knowledge when you need it takes
preparation and planning. And the
foundation of that knowledge is a
pilot’s tech library.Contact Dave: [email protected]‘It is vital
to have the
aircraft
manual close
at hand.’
Know your aircraft
The incalculable value of a pilot’s tech library
RIGHT HAND SEAT
DAVE PROSSOR