Know your systems

These days’ aircraft are more sophisticated than ever. They will give better range and performance but in part that comes at a cost. To get those advantages they require systems, systems that a pilot needs to know, both in the normal and abnormal modes.

If one is working with aircraft above 5700 kg it is usual to have a well planned ground and flight endorsement on a new aircraft type. That includes big thick manuals and maybe even a good sim check ride.

For pilots flying aircraft below 5700 kg, the endo may not be quite as well organised. In the small aeroplane department one only has to see Piper fixed gear aircraft being taxied around with the nav lights turned on during daylight. You have to ask is the instructor trying to set the student up for a fall when he gets into a Piper retractable. In the retract the gear lights are linked to the nav lights. Nav lights on results in no gear lights visible during the daytime. The retract Pilots Operating Handbook (POH) makes mention of this but some habits die hard.

Fuel. What a subject. It is the stuff that keeps the prop turning but to do so it needs to get into the engine. In the days of the Tiger Moth and Auster there was a simple on/off tap. Later aircraft had two tanks and a left/right selector tap and maybe even a both tap. As we move into bigger, faster, heavier singles and twins the tank system may have four or even six tanks.

This is where the fun starts.

The pilot needs to have a good working knowledge of how to get the fuel to engine. Are there any wing bending moments to consider for tank selection? Any weight and balance considerations? Does a fuel transfer rely on the electrical system being operative? Do electric fuel pumps need to be on or off for take-off and landing? What is the technique to get the engine(s) restarted when the selected tank is exhausted and another tank is selected? When the engine starts to surge is that a possible warning that there may be a fuel supply issue? All these and more are the systems that a good instructor will educate a pilot on when conducting an endorsement on a new type.

Some years ago CASA created an aircraft engineering paper, for singles and twins, available online. Those papers are in effect a self-education program but they do encourage a pilot to explore the Pilot’s Operating Handbook and any other information available to get a working knowledge of a new aircraft.

And having an endorsement on a type does not mean that you know it all. There was the case where an aircraft had a temporary ferry tank aboard. It would appear that fuel was vented overboard because of an incorrect fuel tank selection. The aircraft came down short of the destination due to a lack of fuel and was lost. The pilot was experienced and endorsed on type. Again the subject of fuel system knowledge comes to the fore.

Another lack of systems knowledge example was where a pilot could not get the gear down in a light twin. He eventually did a gear-up landing. When asked why he did not use the back-up CO2 bottle to blow the gear down he replied ‘What CO2 bottle?’ A lack of systems knowledge. The punch line was that the CO2 bottle was empty anyway!

It pays to have a good current POH on board. If in a systems abnormal situation the POH may have just the information needed to assist in getting the aircraft safely back on the ground, time allowing to thumb through it. A POH is vital in the case of a gear problem. Use the checklist.

For any pilot contemplating an endorsement on a new type he should ask if he is going to get an endorsement based on knowledge, not cost, and the endo to be given by an instructor experienced on type.

A good working knowledge of the systems in an aircraft can mean the difference between just another flight and one that gives rise to a higher pulse rate when things do not work as advertised.

Contact Dave by email at [email protected]