Air Safety Institute Safety Quiz
Transitioning to High-Performance / Complex Aircraft
As you move on to bigger and faster aircraft, you will need to know more about the complex systems
those aircraft carry. Find out how well you’ll do as you transition to other aircraft with this safety quiz.
1. Your flying club has a Cessna 206 that you would like to rent for a family vacation flight. You’ve been a
single-engine pilot for 10 years, so you don’t legally need any further endorsements to fly the 206.
(Select the correct answer, then click Submit)
False
Correct!/Sorry. The Cessna 206 is considered a high-performance aircraft. A high-performance aircraft, as
defined by FAR 61.31(f)(1), is an aircraft with an engine of more than 200 horsepower. To fly as pilot in
command, you must have an endorsement from an authorized instructor certifying you are proficient in
high-performance aircraft. There is an exception to this rule that if you’ve logged PIC time in a highperformance aircraft before August 4, 1997, you don’t need the endorsement.
2. You and several friends are flying a Piper Malibu Mirage from Cuyahoga County airport (KCGF) to
Indianapolis Executive airport (KTYQ). You depart VFR from KCGF and will be flying low to avoid strong
headwinds at altitude. ATC tells you to remain clear of the Class B airspace for Cleveland-Hopkins
International and fly your best forward speed due to traffic on approach into Cleveland. The maximum
cruise speed for this aircraft is 220 knots indicated. At what speed should you fly while you remain under
the Class B shelf? (Select the correct answer, then click Submit)
200 KIAS
Correct! /Sorry. Your route of flight takes you around Cleveland-Hopkins airport under one of the shelves
of the Class B airspace. Though the maximum cruise speed of the Mirage is around 220 knots, and the
high speed cruise is around 210 knots, FAR 91.117(c) states that if you’re flying in airspace underlying
Class B airspace, you may not fly faster than 200 knots. In this instance you should fly at 200 knots to give
ATC your best forward speed until you are clear of the airspace.
3. In an airplane with retractable landing gear, if you have exhausted all of your options of getting the
landing gear down and locked as you approach to land, and you are forced to make a gear-up landing,
your best course of action is to ______________________________. (Drag the correct response to the
answer box, then click Submit)
Continue landing on the runway you originally intended to land on.
Correct! / Sorry. If you’ve arrived at your destination to find your gear won’t come down, in most cases
it’s best to continue landing on the runway you originally intended to land on. A gear-up landing in the
grass may cause you to lose directional control, and uneven terrain may cause the propeller to dig into
the ground causing the airplane to flip over. Fortunately, however, most off-airport and off-runway
landings are survivable. Landing on the runway with gear retracted gives you greater directional control
since you won’t slide as much, and will allow you to come to a complete stop faster.
4. Generally speaking, cowl flaps should be _____________________________. (Drag the correct
response to the answer box, then click Submit)
Open for climbs, closed during descents
Correct! / Sorry. Cowl flaps are installed on most high-performance airplanes to help with engine
temperature control since the engine produces more power than smaller engines, thus creating more
heat. Cowl flaps are a means of regulating this heat based upon engine temperature readings. A general
rule of thumb is to open your cowl flaps during high output phases of flight (climbs) and close them the
throttle is pulled back (descents). Keep an eye on your engine temperature gauges (oil temperature
gauge or cylinder heat temperature gauge), and refer to the POH for more specific information on using
cowl flaps.
5. You’re flying a Beech Bonanza VFR into Richmond International airport (KRIC) and you’re 40 miles
southwest of the field. You are currently at 9500’ msl and your groundspeed is 140 knots. How many
nautical miles out should you start your descent to maintain a 500 feet-per-minute descent to reach the
traffic pattern altitude of 1200’ msl by the time you enter the pattern? (Select the correct answer, then
click Submit)
38 miles
Correct! / Sorry. High performance aircraft tend to fly higher and faster than typical trainer aircraft, and
proper descent planning is important since these aircraft also have a tendency to be more sensitive to
shock cooling caused by steep descents. Based upon your current altitude and traffic pattern altitude,
you need to lose 8300 feet of altitude, and with a groundspeed of 140 knots, you will need a little more
than 38 miles to reach traffic pattern altitude using a 500 fpm descent. Checking the math, it will take
you about 16.6 minutes to descend 8,300 feet (8,300 divided by 500 fpm). A groundspeed of 140 knots
equals about a 2.33 mile-per-minute rate (140 divided by 60). So if you’re traveling 2.33 miles per minute
and it takes you 16.6 minutes to descend, you will travel about 38 miles in that 16.6 miles (2.33 times
16.6).
6. What are the reasons for cycling the propeller during the ground runup in an airplane with a constantspeed prop? (Select all responses that apply, then click Submit)
To move warmed oil into the prop governing control mechanism
To verify an appropriate drop in RPM
To verify an appropriate drop in manifold pressure
To verify an appropriate drop in oil pressure
To verify there are no leaks from the prop governor or hub
Correct! / Sorry. While opinions vary on how many times you should cycle a constant-speed prop during
the runup, most agree that the reason for cycling it is to send warmed engine oil into the governing
mechanism. Many pilots also use this opportunity to verify that the manifold pressure and oil pressure
also react properly when they reduce the RPM on the ground, and to watch for any oil that may spray
onto the windshield which would indicate a problem with the prop governor or hub.
7. You're flying in the right seat of a Cessna 208 Caravan and the pilot asks you to preflight the airplane.
As you sump the tanks, you notice the fluid in the fuel tester is clear. What should you do? (Select the
correct answer, then click Submit)
Verify the fuel is jet fuel and continue with the preflight
Correct! / Sorry. The Cessna Caravan is turboprop airplane powered by a PT6 turbine engine. These
engines are fueled by jet fuel, not the normal avgas found in most single-engine general aviation aircraft.
Avgas fuels are dyed different colors to differentiate the various octane levels, but jet fuel isn’t. It
remains clear or has a straw-colored hue to it. However it will emit a distinct kerosene-like odor which
should tip you off that it truly is jet fuel and not water.
8. On many aircraft with retractable landing gear, the gear warning horn will go off under which
condition(s)? (Select all answers that apply, then click Submit)
Manifold pressure below a certain level with the gear selector in the “up” position
Aircraft is on the ground and the gear selector lever is set to the “up” position
Flaps are fully extended with the gear selector in the “up” position
Correct! / Sorry. While the situations may vary, the gear warning horn is meant to alert the pilot that the
landing gear is still in the up position during phases of flight when it really needs to be down. In many
aircraft, when the gear selector lever is in the “up” position and the manifold pressure is reduced below
a certain threshold, the airspeed drops below or certain speed, or the flaps are fully extended the horn
will sound. Some aircraft, such as the Piper Arrow, have a squat switch which, when activated, sounds
the gear warning horn when the aircraft is on the ground and the gear selector switch is moved to the
Up position.
9. Match the parts of a turbocharger with its function. (Drag the correct function to its associated engine
part, then click Submit)
Air intake
=
Ducts outside air into the turbocharger
Waste gate
=
Directs exhaust gas to the impeller, or discharges unused exhaust
Impeller
=
Compresses inducted air
Intake manifold
=
Directs high-pressure air to the cylinders
Correct! / Sorry. Basically, a turbocharger compresses induction air and feeds that air into the cylinders.
By mixing denser, compressed air with the fuel, the aircraft can fly higher (within limitations) without
losing power as happens with normally aspirated engines as it climbs into the thinner atmosphere. In a
turbocharged engine, exhaust gases, regulated by a waste gate, drive a small turbine wheel which in turn
drives an impeller. The impeller compresses inducted air and feeds it to the intake manifold for
distribution to the cylinders.
10. A(n) __________________ oxygen system requires you to manually adjust the oxygen flow rates to
the mask, while a(n) ________________ oxygen system uses barometric pressure to automatically adjust
the flow rate. (Select the appropriate responses in the order they are used in the question, then click
Submit)
Adjustable-flow ; altitude-compensated
Correct! / sorry. Adjustable-flow systems and altitude-compensated systems are two types of oxygen
delivery systems that provide the user a constant flow of oxygen mixed with ambient air. The adjustableflow system is completely manual whereby the user dials in the amount of oxygen flowing to the mask,
and an altitude-compensated system adjusts the flow automatically based upon ambient pressure.
Diluter-demand and pressure-demand systems provide oxygen to the user only upon inhalation and are
used at higher altitudes that constant-flow systems are used.