Performance, Aerodynamics and Maneuvers practice questions

Answer: D) Hold pitch and slowly roll out to wings level

• AIncorrect. The maneuver is a climbing turn.
• BIncorrect. Pitch is held while bank decreases.
• CIncorrect. Bank decreases in the second half.
• DCorrect. The airplane ends just above stall speed.

Answer: A) 30°

• ACorrect. Bank is held through the first 90°.
• BIncorrect. It's about 30°.
• CIncorrect. It's about 30°.
• DIncorrect. That's a knife edge.

Answer: A) Increase angle of attack with elevator back pressure and add power as needed to hold airspeed

In a steep turn the vertical component of lift drops. The pilot raises angle of attack with back pressure to hold altitude and adds power to offset the extra drag and hold airspeed.

• ACorrect. Banking tilts the lift vector, so the vertical component shrinks. More angle of attack restores enough vertical lift, and the extra induced drag calls for added power to hold airspeed.
• BIncorrect. Power alone does not replace the lost vertical component of lift. Without more angle of attack from back pressure, the airplane will descend in the steep bank.
• CIncorrect. Load factor is the result of the extra lift the pilot must create, not a source of lift. Relaxing back pressure lowers the nose and causes a descent.
• DIncorrect. Rudder is used for coordination, not to control pitch. Too much rudder creates a skid, and cutting power adds to the altitude loss.

Answer: A) Raises stall speed

• ACorrect. More lift is needed.
• BIncorrect. It raises it.
• CIncorrect. It lengthens it.
• DIncorrect. It reduces climb.

Answer: B) Nose moves left; apply right rudder pressure

With a clockwise propeller (seen from the cockpit), torque and P-factor pull the nose left on takeoff. The pilot holds right rudder pressure to keep the airplane on the centerline.

• AIncorrect. This is the opposite of the actual tendency. With a clockwise propeller, torque reaction and P-factor push the nose left, not right.
• BCorrect. Torque reaction pushes the left side down, which puts more load on the left main wheel. P-factor gives the descending right-side blade more thrust. Both pull the nose left, and the Airplane Flying Handbook says to hold right rudder to stay parallel to the centerline.
• CIncorrect. The direction is right, but left rudder would make the left yaw worse. The correction is rudder opposite the yaw, which is right rudder.
• DIncorrect. Both parts are wrong. The nose tends to move left, and right rudder would only make sense if the airplane were already moving left.

Answer: A) Shortly before the stall, as the wing approaches its critical angle of attack

Stall warning devices activate shortly before the critical angle of attack is reached. 14 CFR 23.2150 requires the warning to give enough margin to prevent an inadvertent stall, so the pilot has time to reduce the angle of attack.

• ACorrect. The warning is meant to alert the pilot before the stall happens. Under 14 CFR 23.2150(a), airplanes must have a clear and distinctive stall warning with enough margin to prevent an inadvertent stall. The older Part 23 standard set this margin at 5 knots or more above the stalling speed.
• BIncorrect. A warning that came only at the stall would give no margin to prevent it. The regulation requires the warning to give enough margin to prevent an inadvertent stall, so it has to come before the critical angle of attack.
• CIncorrect. A wing can stall at any airspeed if it exceeds the critical angle of attack. Common devices, such as a leading-edge reed or vane, sense the airflow change near the critical angle of attack, not a fixed airspeed.
• DIncorrect. The device is designed to warn before the stall, not after it. Natural buffet is a separate cue, and the stall warning is supposed to come before the airplane departs controlled flight.

Answer: D) To simplify large numbers into a moment index

• AIncorrect. Wind isn't part of weight and balance.
• BIncorrect. It doesn't convert units.
• CIncorrect. Unusable fuel is handled in empty weight.
• DCorrect. It doesn't change the results.

Answer: C) Shorter roll but a lower climb gradient

• AIncorrect. Flaps change lift and drag.
• BIncorrect. Flaps usually shorten the roll.
• CCorrect. Flaps add lift and drag.
• DIncorrect. They lower stall speed throughout.

Answer: A) A single abrupt, full control deflection will stall the wing before the limit load factor is exceeded.

At or below VA, a single full or abrupt control input stalls the wing before the limit load is exceeded. VA gets lower as weight decreases, and full inputs in more than one axis can still overstress the airplane below VA.

• ACorrect. VA is set so that at or below this speed, the wing reaches its critical angle of attack and stalls before the design limit load factor is reached. This applies to one full deflection in one axis.
• BIncorrect. 14 CFR 25.1583 says full control inputs in more than one axis at the same time, or rapid alternating inputs, may cause structural failure at any speed, including below maneuvering speed.
• CIncorrect. The airplane can stall at any airspeed. The protection at VA comes from the wing stalling before the structure is overloaded.
• DIncorrect. Maneuvering speed gets lower as weight decreases. A lighter airplane flown at the max-weight VA can therefore exceed its load limits before it stalls.

Answer: D) Rate of climb

• AIncorrect. That's a cruise setting.
• BIncorrect. That's Vx.
• CIncorrect. That's best glide.
• DCorrect. Most altitude per time.