Commercial Application Checklist Engineering: Fill & Download for Free

You have one propeller less. Multi engine aircraft can fly outstandingly well with a single engine. When one of the propellers fail, you will notice three things:A yaw towards the dead engine (due to the asymmetric thrust),A roll towards dead due to an imbalance in lift. The reduced prop wash on the dead side wing is the main reason for this,A nose down pitch moment. This happens due to the reduced prop wash on the horizontal stabilizer, which reduces the downward lift it produces to pitch the aircraft nose up.Now, all that mentioned above will happen if the pilot let go off the aircraft after an engine fails. In a real case scenario, none of them should happen. As soon as the engine fails, the pilot should apply rudder to the live engine, to prevent the yaw. He should then level the aircraft wings and pitch for the v[math]_yse[/math] speed (Best rate of climb with one engine). The aircraft should then be cleaned up. If the gear is down, it should be retracted. Same applies to flaps. If left unclean, the aircraft might not be able to perform at its best with one engine due to the extra drag. The application of rudder also serves as a confirmation to the pilot on which engine is dead. The phrase we use is ‘Dead Leg, Dead Engine.’ This means, the leg which is not putting an effort on the rudder (basically dead) is the engine which is out.Once the aircraft is in positive control, the pilot should attempt to restart the engine by following the appropriate aircraft checklist procedure. If the restart was a fail, the engine should be turned off and secured. Here is something special about propeller aircraft at this stage. The propeller though off, will continue to windmill as the air strikes it at an angle. We do not want that, as it creates unwanted drag. So, the propeller should be feathered by moving the propeller control lever fully back. When feathered, the propeller will be set parallel to the flow and it will stop spinning. In feathered mode, the propeller would not even budge.A P-3 Orion with left outboard engine feathered. They shut off engines on these aircraft sometimes knowingly to increase the range.Once the engine is secured, you could either continue the flight with the remaining engine or find an aerodrome to land. The latter is favorable, specially if you are doing a commercial flight with passengers. You want to minimize the risk factors because there is no guarantee the remaining engine will continue running. Besides, with one engine, your aircraft will be performance limited and would have to fly at a much lower altitude than your normal cruising altitude, which would increase the fuel consumption.

This is just my observation from my perch in the cockpit.I think it’s probably harder in the long run.First, in the U.S. it’s probably easier to be hired once you’ve reached the minimum requirements that the airline has established. There is a long history of discrimination against women and the correction is causing the airlines to prefer women applicants.But once a woman starts training, I’ve noticed they’re held to a subtly higher standard than men. I think there is still a lot of misogyny in the pilot corps and it shows in training. Women only make up about 5% of the airline pilots and they’re different enough to get everyone’s attention. If a woman makes a mistake or is involved in an incident, their gender is often observed and sometimes discussed among the pilots. The fact that women are preferentially hired is resented by the males and so they feel entitled to observe women more closely for problems. It’s not a terrible situation for women but I’m sure they’re more on guard than men in the same position. Women copilots are scrutinized more by the captains than men in my opinion.I’ve seen line checks and sim checks where the instructors were more demanding of women than men. Not in a huge way but they are more direct and more demanding.It’s not company policy but just a subtle culture in most airlines that makes it harder for women.My experience with women captains and copilots has been universally good. I find women to be excellent pilots and have very good skills and knowledge, just like the men. I think women are every bit as capable as any man. The female copilots I’ve worked with are outstanding to a person.In the U.S. military, women are eligible for every flying position. Here’s a good picture of a group of F-15 pilots walking back to base ops.They look so casual and harmless now but I’m going to guess that they’re taken much more seriously when diplomacy fails.Story Time:I was a new 727 engineer flying from Denver to New Orleans in the 80’s. We descended into the area and began the approach. When the flying pilot (female captain) called for flaps, they became “Split”. That means the inboard and outboard flap panels were not operating in parallel and one of them was extending while the other was stuck.This picture shows the two flap panels. The inboard aileron is between them.We went into a hold. I was the engineer so by procedure, the FO flew the hold and the captain and I worked the problem. We were kind of low on fuel and the weather wasn’t good. A thunderstorm was approaching the airport and it was important to all of us to get on the ground sooner rather than later.I got out the checklist which is a doozy. You have to do all kinds of trouble shooting and then you try to drive the flaps down with the electric motors manually and then the leading edge devices become stuck down (which increases drag on the wing). Once that was done, we had to jump to other checklists for approach to landing with partial flaps and compute different approach speeds. There were a lot of “IF/THEN” statements on the checklists which sometimes lead crews astray.Anyway, we jumped into the checklist and it quickly became clear that the outboard panel wasn’t going to move hydraulically, the captain didn’t want to go any further in the checklist. The controller was getting busy as airplanes were anxiously trying to get onto the approach before the weather closed the airport. Every time we turned toward the airport in the hold, she checked the radar which showed the storm getting closer.She then told me to set the approach speed to 150 kts and we would fly the approach at that speed with the flaps fully extended on the inboard flaps and let the outboards remain in their stuck position.I was upset with her because I thought we should do the checklist by procedure or divert now. I was judging her for the decision and I thought she was taking a cavalier attitude toward the safety of the aircraft and not following the procedures I’d learned in training. I thought she should have at least had me set an approach speed for our weight and flap configuration from the book. We were deeply into the approach procedure as I continued to second guess her. I was in my first year as an airline engineer and I was focused on my job of being the guy who was worried about the mechanics of the airplane.So we fly the approach and land with no problems.That night, I read the checklists carefully and found that at the very end, if the flaps wouldn’t move, the checklist called for a 150kt approach. My 26 year old mind reeled.She had done the exactly right thing in the circumstances. She was up against bad weather, low fuel and an inexperienced engineer. Completing the checklist would have taken time. The time it would have taken me to slog through a long checklist would burn fuel and reduce her options. The thunderstorm was approaching, there could have been a wind shift or gusts that caused the airport to change runways which takes even more time. She didn’t have that luxury because an old 727 burns a lot of fuel at low altitude. She needed to make a decision quickly in light of the threats.She minimized the risks by knowing the system, knowing the checklist and using that knowledge to make the best and safest decision. She didn’t complete the abnormal checklist but she knew enough about it to know that if the flap panel didn’t move, to make a 150kt approach. She also knew that if the panel moved, she would be able to fly a slower approach but she would have stuck flaps for a possible diversion and with the flap panel stuck, may have had too much additional drag to fly to the diversion airport with the available fuel.Now that I’m in the captains seat myself, I would have done precisely the same thing (If I am a sharp as she is).The next morning, I talked about it with her on the crew van from the hotel. She said she knew I wasn’t happy with her decision but that she didn’t have the time to explain what she was thinking in the low fuel/approaching storms scenario. She told me about some experiences she’d had earlier in her career that molded her decision and was very candid with me about decision making and the gray areas that develop in the heat of battle.She remains among the best captains I’ve flown with. I respect her.

Have you ever had an encounter with an angel? Did it scare you?I once owned an airline. Being the Boss, I was able to crawl aboard any flight, anytime and fly what is called right hand seat which is co-pilot and relieve the pilot in command from time to time on really long flights inter-continental.Flights across country or to Canada were really quite desirable and I had thirty-five pilots working for me who all wanted these long flights. They were trying to build hours of experience where they could go to a major airline and advance their careers by working for TWA, KLM or United who flew “heavies”. A long flight would get them closer to the 1,000 hours they needed as commercial experience. So I guess a certain amount of jealousy had developed from some of my pilots that thought they needed the flight time more than I did since I had no dreams of ever flying with a major carrier.I usually follow my instincts and listen to advice of others. Due to this jealousy of long flights, I did not listen when one of my pilots came to me with a warning about a flight that I was getting ready to take.He was a senior pilot, really didn't need the hours and I should have listened to his warning. An old guy had developed bone cancer down here in Phoenix while on Winter Vacation and could not fly home by commercial airliner. TWA will not allow a gurney or stretcher on a passenger flight. So his wife had contacted my company and chartered a plane to fly him home to die. He wanted to be close to friends and family and not die in a strange place. My senior pilot had walked up to me upon hearing I was taking the flight to Canada and said; "Bill...I've got a really bad feeling about this flight and suggest you stay home." I kind of blew off the warning as I had just received a brand new Cessna Twin Engine 402 and she was beautiful. I couldn't resist taking her for a spin and punching a hole in the sky.So I ignored his advice but thought about it later. The take off was normal except every time we hit a pocket of air...a thermal, the poor guy in the back cringed with pain. We had a registered Nurse aboard whose job was to medicate the patient with morphine, but I noticed that she was giving this guy so many shots that I thought he would surely die of an overdose.Normal medication of this strength is probably about once every four hours but she shooting this guy up every fifteen minutes and he was still screaming with pain. We normally fly at Ten Thousand feet AGL (above Ground Level) but the currents of air was so strong that I made a decision to increase the altitude and see if we could not find a smoother place to fly.The closer you fly to the ground or mountain terrain, the greater the chance that air currents will be directed upwards by mountains or obstacles that makes your flight less comfortable. Since it was the dead of winter and there had been reports of known icing at higher levels, I took a risk by taking her up. Half the reason of course was indeed to make the flight smoother but the other half of the reason was hopefully to quiet the guy down in back a little. His screaming made me nervous and I could not concentrate on flying the airplane properly. This may also have influenced my decision to take her up.The pilot in Command was a guy called Jeff and he was a graduate of our Air Force Academy and was one of the top pilots in the United States. He was a little nervous about increasing our chances of icing about a thousand percent but I guess since he was flying with the "Boss" he did not voice his concerns to loudly. Beside, we had a new airplane, equipped with the latest foul weather gear including de-icing, boots on the Wings and what is called Hot Props which prevented ice from accumulating on the leading edges of things that should be smooth. Everything went fine for awhile.About the time we had reached 20AGL and was starting to fly as clear as a lake, all hell broke loose. Our worst fears had come to haunt us and we started taking on Ice somewhere over the Colorado Rocky Mountains. The wings and props were not a problem because of State of the Art de-icing equipment. Ice really isn't the problem as much as the weight that ice takes on. One gallon of water weights in close to 8 1/3 lbs. A gallon of ice would then weigh 9% less than a gallon of water. 8.34 minus approximately 9% = approximately 7.59 pounds..You can end up with thousands of gallons of ice in a matter of minutes and that much weight makes a plane fall from the sky like a rock. Also, the shape of the wing controls lift of an airplane and ice changes the airfoil to a different shape and size that sometimes does not want to fly. All of these factors came into play and few others we had not even thought about.Ice developed and closed the air intake opening which is what makes an engine run. Fuel and Oxygen causes an explosion in the cylinders. Av Gas by itself in a closed container will not burn, only the fumes and oxygen with it makes it fire.The ice clogged the air to the engine and Number Two Engine right quit. Usually, this is not a problem as all twins or larger airplanes are designed by their makers to stay in the air at level flight with the loss of one engine. They were not designed to fly however covered in Ice. Not to mention, the other engine was starting to sputter and you knew in moments, it was about to shut down also. All forward thrust stopped.A combination of loss of power, added weight and change of the configuration of the wing caused the plane to fall like an elevator going straight downto the ground. We were falling like a rock from the heavens and the question was not if we were going to crash but where we were going to crash. We were flying over the Rocky Mountains over pitch black darkness and no place to set her down.In the event of crash, the manuals basically say to shut everything down. Shut the fuel off to the engines, pull all of the circuit breakers to prevent sparks and fire when impact occurs (impact is just another nice word for when you crash into the ground). The other pilot and I both knew that we had less than a few short minutes and it is amazing just how calm you get when you are about to come face to face with your maker.Jeff started shutting down fuel to the tanks while I flipped off switches and kept the plane straight and level as best I could. I lowered the nose over to gain as much speed as possible in the event I had a window of opportunity or a chance to keep her in the air for a few seconds longer at the end. So I built air speed and continued to fly towards the ground. We were getting very close to the point that it was time to say goodbye and start and make your peace with your maker or say one last final prayer.Jeff had his back towards me and was reaching over behind his seat to turn off the fuel flow valve at precisely the moment I first heard her voice. It was faint in the beginning, not very loud. Soothing and calm like a summer's breeze but a female voice none the less. She had an air of authority with her as it sounded more like she was giving me a direct order for me to follow. She simply told me to drop the landing gear, level the plane out, and at my command, flare while you brace for a landing...I was not sure that my ears believed her as we were flying in the black of night, in a snowstorm, a blizzard and had zero visibility. Even the landing lights were unplugged. The odds of me landing an airplane in complete blackness were a million to one. Especially on the side of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Wasn't going to happen in this lifetime but the voice had left no room for discussion.I followed her orders. I reached over, took hold of the yolk and waited for her signal, I gently pulled backwards and leveled the plane out and flared for landing. Out of the blackness, out of the snowstorm and straight ahead of me was a tiny small dirt landing field. I was coming in without power, I had to slam the landing gear down and I bounced the plane five times up and down like a wheelbarrow going from first one side of the strip to the other. It was the worst landing I had ever done in my life and it was at an enormous speed faster than you would ever consider driving one on.But there she was roaring down a landing strip and we were on the ground. This little dirt strip was not on any flight sectionals (maps)...it didn't belong on a side of the mountain, but there it was without any reason. In the dead blackness of night...I found a landing strip or should I say.... It found me. Later I discovered it was built by the Forrest Service for fighting fires. It was a STOL field and I violated every single rule of the check list:Short Field Landing Common Errors• Required landing distance exceeds available runway length • Poor airspeed control • Landing configuration established late • Power control and monitoring inadequate • Unstable approach • Improper use of flaps • Failure to trim properly • Ignoring checklist • Hard impact or bounce at touchdown • Excessive brake application • Go-around situation not recognized.In other words boys and girls, I fucked the pooch. Jeff however had spend his career in the Air Force teaching Fighter Drivers how to fly. He walked up to me and said afterward…That’s something we can’t teach. You are born with it. It’s called Survival.I always worried about flying airplanes with a man whose number was up and the angel's were going to call him home. He might just take an innocent victim with him if you were to close to one that was headed home. We knew the guy in back had a date with the big man upstairs and was hoping he wasn't going to take anyone with him. We thought he would die from cancer.In the dead of that winter's night, somewhere over the Rockies, I had a visitor. She came to see me. I heard her voice that night and I will always remember it. She only spoke to me once and that was to give me landing instructions. I couldn't see her face, it was too dark. I swear I heard her voice but others don't seem to believe me. I think she led me away from Destiny that day or maybe she was destiny after all leading me to a place I do not know where.Whenever I feel a little down...whenever I feel a little sorry for myself...I recall that night when fate smiled on me. Yes, there are a lot of people that do not believe in Angels and yes, there are a few that probably think I imagined all of this. But for one brief shinning moment in time...I flew with an Angel. . I never saw her before that brief moment in time, have not heard from her since. But she was there...I felt her presence that day sitting beside me and I felt her hand resting on my shoulder.Some say it must have just been a cold wind blowing from somewhere out in the Rockies, not her hand. But her hand touching me made me feel warm and safe. I am not a drinking man. I don't go to bars anymore and hoist a few in memory of some forgotten soul. But if she ever decides to visit me again, I will drink a toast to her as I feel she was sent to look over me. To keep me out of harm's way and to give me some direction in my life.I never realized at the time just how significant that visit was. For the next morning, with the coming of dawn, I could see that this little strip in the middle of nowhere was a one in a million shot. Ten feet to the right and we would have crashed into the rocks. Twenty feet to the left and we would have crashed into a ravine and rolled half way down a mountainside. One second more on either side and we would be history.She saved my life that night and I owe her. I owe her the courtesy of living my life as if it were a gift. And it was. I was given the gift of life that cold dark December night somewhere in the middle of a snowstorm.Somewhere, some forgotten poet once wrote; "I shall pass through this world but once. Therefore, if there is any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do, let me do it now, for I shall not pass this way again....." I remember those words and I remember a soft voice that once spoke to me. In honor of an Angel, I will try to live my life in a manner of respect.Bill "who once flew with an Angel"Willie Nelson and Angel flying to close to the groundEdit: Several asked me about the old man in the back. We had to Air Evac him out the next morning. The field was not long enough to take off. I flew it out empty after draining most of the gas. The Nurse said in all of her years in Hospice Care, she had never seen anyone sleep so soundly during the night with bone cancer. She had a little ball point pen with the head and wings of an angel on it. She told me she clutched it to her chest all night long. I sometimes wonder if she heard or saw the Angel too.