FAA Airline Transport Pilot (ATM) flashcards

Per 14 CFR 91.129, a pilot must establish two-way radio communication with ATC before entering Class D airspace, meaning the controller must respond using the aircraft's specific call sign.

• A generic reply like "standby" does not count as established communication
• If the controller replies with the call sign but says to remain clear, the pilot must still remain clear
• This requirement applies to Class D surface areas around towered airports

Memory trick: "Call sign or stall outside" — no call sign reply, no entry.

A landing conducted above maximum structural landing weight when circumstances (no jettison system, insufficient time/fuel) prevent reducing weight, requiring AFM-specified technique and a post-flight structural inspection.

• Some aircraft have fuel jettison systems to quickly reduce weight; many do not.
• If time/fuel permits, holding to burn down fuel is preferred.
• Overweight landings often require longer runway and gentler touchdown.
• A maintenance inspection is required after any overweight landing.

Memory trick: Dump if you can, burn if you have time, otherwise land heavy and get checked.

The minimum age to hold an unrestricted ATP certificate is 23 years.

• Restricted ATP allowed at age 21 (61.160)
• Unrestricted ATP requires age 23
• Age requirement is separate from total time requirements

Memory trick: 23 candles before the full ATP cake.

The tendency of an aircraft to require increasing back pressure as speed increases above trim and increasing forward pressure as speed decreases below trim, providing tactile cues and a self-correcting tendency toward trim speed.

• Measured as stick force per knot
• Positive stability means force increases with speed deviation from trim
• Important for pilot workload and handling qualities certification

Memory trick: Push away, pull back — the stick fights to bring you home to trim.

A communication technique in which the receiver repeats back the message to the sender, who then confirms it was understood correctly, ensuring accurate information transfer.

• Reduces risk of miscommunication in high-workload, high-stakes environments
• Commonly used in ATC readbacks and cockpit checklist callouts
• Sender must acknowledge the readback to fully close the loop
• Contrasts with one-way or assumed communication, a common CRM failure point

Memory trick: Say it, read it back, confirm it — close the loop before moving on

A Part 25 certification requirement demonstrating a minimum climb gradient with one engine inoperative, gear up, approach flaps, and go-around thrust, simulating a missed approach.

• One engine inoperative, gear retracted, approach flap setting
• Minimum gradient for two-engine airplanes is 2.1%
• Often the limiting factor for landing weight at high/hot/high-terrain airports

Memory trick: Approach climb = 'Almost landed, one Alive engine, gear still up.'

A recovery technique for nose-high upsets emphasizing appropriate thrust management, reducing angle of attack, and using bank if needed to unload the wing and lower the nose toward the horizon.

• Underslung engines add nose-up pitch moment with thrust increase
• Priority is reducing AOA (unloading the wing), not holding pitch
• Bank angle can be used purposefully to help lower the nose

Memory trick: Nose too high? Unload the wing, don't just gun the engines.

A personal self-assessment checklist pilots use before flight to evaluate physical and mental fitness to fly safely.

• I = Illness
• M = Medication
• S = Stress
• A = Alcohol

Memory trick: I'M SAFE to fly only if I check every letter.

The most hazardous stage of a thunderstorm's life cycle, marked by simultaneous strong updrafts and downdrafts, heavy rain, hail, lightning, and gusty surface winds.

• Begins when precipitation starts reaching the surface
• Contains the greatest turbulence, wind shear, and lightning hazard
• Followed by the dissipating stage as downdrafts dominate

Memory trick: Cumulus builds, Mature explodes, Dissipating fades

The minimum time off duty required before a flightcrew member may begin a flight duty period.

• Minimum 10 consecutive hours before FDP begins
• Must include opportunity for 8 hours uninterrupted sleep
• Rest period begins when free from all duty and transportation to lodging

Memory trick: "10 to rest, 8 to sleep."

Pressure altitude corrected for nonstandard temperature; it represents the altitude the aircraft 'feels' it is performing at.

• Higher temperature than standard increases density altitude
• Standard temperature decreases 2°C per 1,000 ft
• High density altitude degrades aircraft and engine performance

Memory trick: Hot and high means density altitude flies sky-high

The TO/FROM flag on a VOR indicator shows whether the selected course, if flown, will take the aircraft toward or away from the station.

• TO means the station is ahead on the selected course
• FROM means the aircraft has passed the station
• The flag reverses as the aircraft crosses the station

Memory trick: TO means 'toward,' FROM means 'flew past'

Allows pilots under 1,500 total hours to hold a restricted-privileges ATP for Part 121 SIC duty, based on qualifying education/military background.

• 750 hrs: military pilots
• 1,000 hrs: bachelor's degree, aviation major
• 1,250 hrs: associate degree, aviation major
• Restricted ATP allows SIC only, not PIC, until standard 1,500-hour ATP is earned

Memory trick: 'Military 750, Bachelor's grand (1000), Associate 1250' — degrees buy down hours.

A statement of the lateral navigation accuracy (in NM) an aircraft's system must maintain for 95% of flight time, combined with onboard monitoring and alerting of that performance.

• Lower RNP values (e.g., RNP 0.30) mean tighter accuracy requirements
• Includes onboard performance monitoring and alerting (unlike basic RNAV)
• RNP AR approaches may require RNP as low as 0.10 to 0.30
• RNP defines a total system error budget, not just GPS signal accuracy

Memory trick: 'RNP = Really Narrow Path, with a Watchdog' (monitoring/alerting)

Indicated stall speed remains essentially constant with altitude (absent compressibility effects), but true airspeed at the stall increases with altitude because TAS = IAS/√σ, where σ decreases with altitude.

• TAS = IAS / √(density ratio σ)
• σ decreases as altitude increases
• Indicated stall speed stays roughly constant
• True stall speed increases significantly at altitude

Memory trick: Thin air means you must go 'true-ly' faster to feel the same push

Fog that forms over land on clear, calm nights due to radiational cooling of the surface, which cools the adjacent air to saturation.

• Requires clear skies for radiational cooling
• Requires light or calm wind (light wind can help mix a thin fog layer)
• Typically dissipates after sunrise as the ground warms

Memory trick: Clear night, calm air, ground gets cold — radiation fog takes hold

Minimum time or distance intervals ATC applies between successive departures from the same runway to avoid wake turbulence encounters.

• Heavy behind heavy: minimum 2 minutes (nonradar)
• Small/large behind heavy or B757: minimum 3 minutes
• Radar separation (typically 4-6 NM) may be substituted for time intervals
• Applies to departures from the same runway or a parallel runway less than 2,500 ft apart

Memory trick: 'Heavy-Heavy = 2, Everyone else = 3' behind a Heavy

Weather associated with a rapidly advancing cold front, characterized by a narrow band of intense showers/thunderstorms, cumuliform clouds, and gusty winds, followed by quick clearing.

• Steep frontal slope produces intense, narrow weather band
• Wind shifts abruptly to the northwest (northern hemisphere) after passage
• Temperature and dew point drop noticeably behind the front

Memory trick: Cold front = 'Quick and Cranky' — fast, violent, then gone.

A safety culture concept that balances accountability with a supportive environment, distinguishing between honest human error and reckless or willful misconduct, to encourage reporting and learning.

• Encourages voluntary reporting of errors and safety concerns
• Distinguishes between honest mistakes and willful violations
• Part of the broader Safety Management System (SMS) culture components
• Reduces fear of punishment, increasing data available for safety improvement

Memory trick: Just culture judges the act, not the person — fair, not punitive

A TAF entry indicating the probability (in percent, typically 30 or 40) that a specified set of weather conditions will occur during a given time period.

• Format: PROBnn followed by a time period (ddhh/ddhh)
• Used only for conditions like thunderstorms or precipitation, not routine forecasts
• Not used within the first 6 hours of the TAF for most conditions

Memory trick: PROB = probability dice roll for iffy weather like thunderstorms

Small vane-like devices on wings, nacelles, or tail surfaces that create trailing vortices to energize the boundary layer and delay airflow separation, extending controllability at high AOA or Mach.

• Mix high-energy outer air into the boundary layer
• Delay flow separation at high AOA or high Mach
• Add small parasite drag as a trade-off
• Placed on wings, nacelles, and sometimes tail surfaces

Memory trick: VGs stir the pot so the boundary layer doesn't 'go stale' and separate

A narrow band of active thunderstorms, often forming ahead of a cold front, capable of producing severe weather with little warning.

• Can develop 50–300 miles ahead of a cold front
• Produces severe turbulence, hail, damaging winds, and tornadoes
• More hazardous than the parent cold front itself

Memory trick: A squall line is the storm's angry advance guard, striking hard before the front arrives

A theoretical model of atmospheric conditions used as a baseline reference for aircraft instruments and performance calculations.

• Sea-level standard temperature: 15°C (59°F)
• Sea-level standard pressure: 29.92 in. Hg (1013.25 hPa)
• Standard lapse rate: approximately 2°C decrease per 1,000 ft

Memory trick: 15 and 29.92 — the sky's baseline to compare to

When departure weather is below landing minimums, Part 121 requires designation of a takeoff alternate within specified one-engine-inoperative flight time limits.

• Two-engine airplanes: within 1 hour, one engine inoperative, still air
• Three/four-engine airplanes: within 2 hours, one engine inoperative
• Applies only when departure weather is below applicable landing minimums

Memory trick: 'Two engines, one hour; three-plus engines, two hours' — count engines to set the clock.

A local wind boundary formed by differential heating of land and water, where cooler marine air flows onshore during the day to replace rising warm air over land.

• Occurs during daytime due to land heating faster than water
• Often marked by cumulus cloud lines and low-level wind shift/turbulence
• Reverses at night as a land breeze when land cools faster than water

Memory trick: 'Day breeze blows in from the sea, night breeze blows out to sea'

The gross (demonstrated) climb flight path reduced by a fixed gradient decrement to build in a safety margin for obstacle clearance.

• Twin-engine: 0.8% decrement
• Three-engine: 0.9% decrement
• Four-engine: 1.0% decrement
• Net flight path must clear obstacles by 35 ft (or specified margin)

Memory trick: Two engines, 0.8 — count the engines then subtract a decimal less one.

Default weather minimums used to qualify an airport as a legal alternate when the approach chart has no 'NA' or special alternate minimums listed.

• Precision approach available: 600 ft ceiling, 2 SM visibility
• Nonprecision approach only: 800 ft ceiling, 2 SM visibility
• Applies under 14 CFR 91.169 for planning purposes
• Charts may publish nonstandard alternate minimums that override these defaults

Memory trick: '6 for Precision, 8 for Non' — 600-2 vs 800-2

A standardized verbal and visual procedure ensuring both pilots clearly understand who has control of the aircraft at any given time.

• Captain: 'You have the controls'
• First Officer: 'I have the controls'
• Visual confirmation follows verbal exchange
• Prevents ambiguity during control transfer, per AC 120-71

Memory trick: Say it, confirm it, see it — never assume who's flying

Fog formed when warm, moist air moves horizontally over a colder surface, cooling to saturation.

• Common along coastlines and over cold ocean currents
• Can occur with wind (unlike radiation fog)
• Often widespread and persistent

Memory trick: Advection = 'A' for Air-moving-Across cold ground.

The minimum speed during the takeoff roll at which directional control can be maintained using rudder alone, within 30 feet of runway centerline, after sudden failure of the critical engine.

• Applies only during the takeoff ground roll
• Deviation limited to 30 feet from centerline
• Controlled using rudder alone (no nosewheel steering credit)
• V1 can never be less than VMCG

Memory trick: Ground control needs rudder power before wheels leave the ground

Under 14 CFR Part 117, a Reserve Availability Period (RAP) is a period during which a flightcrew member is required by a certificate holder to be available to receive an assignment for an FDP.

• Short-call RAP has a maximum duration.
• RAP begins when the crewmember reports for reserve.
• RAP ends when released or FDP begins.
• Distinct from FDP limits.

Memory trick: RAP is a 14-hour Wait for the Call.

14 CFR Part 121 Subpart N outlines various types of pilot training, including initial, transition, recurrent, and differences training, each serving a distinct purpose in maintaining pilot qualification and proficiency.

• Initial: New to company or aircraft category/class.
• Transition: New aircraft type, same category/class.
• Recurrent: Ongoing proficiency for current aircraft.
• Differences: Minor variations within the same aircraft type.

Memory trick: Initial, Transition, Recurrent, Differences: It's All About Progress.

Under 14 CFR Part 117, a split duty allows for an extension of the flight duty period (FDP) by including a scheduled rest period within the FDP. The maximum FDP for a split duty is the lesser of the Table B FDP limit plus the length of the split duty rest, or 14 hours.

• Applies when a scheduled rest period is provided within an FDP.
• Rest period must be at least 3 consecutive hours.
• Maximum FDP is capped at 14 hours.

Memory trick: Split shifts let you stretch, but don't go past 14 stretch!

14 CFR Part 117.13 Table B defines the maximum number of flight segments a flightcrew member may be assigned within a flight duty period (FDP), based on the FDP start time and the number of pilots in the crew.

• Limits vary by FDP start time.
• Limits vary by crew size (unaugmented, augmented, three-pilot, four-pilot).
• Designed to mitigate fatigue risks associated with multiple takeoffs and landings.

Memory trick: Segments by the clock, crew size is the lock!

14 CFR 121.619 specifies the conditions under which a Part 121 domestic flight requires a destination alternate airport to be listed on the dispatch release.

• Alternate not required if weather is forecast to be above certain minimums.
• Minimums depend on the type of available instrument approaches at the destination.
• Forecast must be valid for 1 hour before and 1 hour after the Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA).

Memory trick: Don't Alternate if Weather's 1 Hour Good.

14 CFR 121.1(b) specifies that only certain subparts of Part 121 apply to non-revenue operations (e.g., ferry flights, training flights) conducted by a Part 121 certificated air carrier.

• Not all of Part 121 applies to non-revenue flights.
• Specific subparts cover general rules, certification, manuals, aircraft, maintenance, personnel, dispatch, and records.
• Subparts related to passenger/cargo handling are often excluded.

Memory trick: ABCD IJKL O: Just the Essentials for Ferry Go.

14 CFR 61.56(e) allows certain pilot proficiency checks, such as those conducted for an airman certificate, rating, or authorization (e.g., a 61.58 PIC proficiency check), to satisfy the flight review requirement of 14 CFR 61.56(c).

• A proficiency check can substitute for a flight review.
• Applies to checks for certificates, ratings, or authorizations.
• Must be satisfactorily completed.

Memory trick: Proficiency check? It's a two-for-one, your Flight Review is DONE!

14 CFR 117.21(c) mandates that if a Part 117 required rest period is interrupted by the certificate holder, the flightcrew member must be provided with a subsequent uninterrupted rest period equal to the original required rest period.

• Applies if the certificate holder causes the interruption.
• Subsequent rest period must be uninterrupted.
• Duration of subsequent rest equals original required rest.
• Standard required rest is 10 consecutive hours with 8 hours sleep opportunity.

Memory trick: Interrupted Rest? Get a Full 10 Back.

14 CFR 121.333(c) specifies the minimum duration of supplemental oxygen supply for flight crew members in Part 121 operations. When supplemental oxygen is required, the supply must be sufficient for the entire flight time at those altitudes where it's needed, plus a 15-minute reserve.

• Applies when supplemental oxygen is required.
• Duration is for the 'entire flight time' at requiring altitudes.
• Includes an additional 15-minute reserve.

Memory trick: Entire flight at altitude, plus 15 to dilute!

14 CFR 121.391 mandates the minimum number of flight attendants required on Part 121 aircraft based on passenger seating capacity.

• One flight attendant per 50 passenger seats, or fraction thereof.
• Applies to aircraft with seating capacity over 19 passengers.
• Ensures adequate cabin safety and emergency response.

Memory trick: Fifty per Attendant, Plus Any Leftovers.

14 CFR Part 117.19 allows certificate holders to implement an approved Fatigue Risk Management System (FRMS) as an alternative means of compliance with certain flight and duty limitations. An FRMS is a data-driven process for continuously monitoring and managing fatigue-related safety risks.

• Alternative to prescriptive 117 limits.
• Requires FAA approval.
• Must be data-driven and continuously monitor fatigue risks.
• Includes fatigue hazard identification, risk assessment, and mitigation strategies.

Memory trick: Fatigue RISKS? FRMS is the best fix!

14 CFR Part 117 establishes maximum flight time limits for flightcrew members within a flight duty period (FDP), which can be reduced if the FDP infringes upon the Window of Circadian Low (WOCL).

• WOCL is generally 0200-0559 local time.
• Flight time limits vary based on crew complement and WOCL infringement.
• These limits are distinct from FDP limits.

Memory trick: WOCL Cuts Flight Time Significantly.

Under 14 CFR Part 117, a Reserve Availability Period (RAP) is the time a flightcrew member must be available for assignment. It ends either when the flightcrew member begins a flight duty period (FDP) or 14 hours after the RAP begins, whichever comes first.

• RAP is defined in 14 CFR 117.3.
• Ends at the start of an assigned FDP.
• Maximum duration is 14 hours if no assignment.

Memory trick: RAP ends when you START the flight, or 14 hours if no flight in sight!

14 CFR Part 117.5 outlines the responsibility of flightcrew members to assess their fitness for duty, prohibiting them from accepting or continuing an assignment if they are fatigued or have a medical condition that impairs their ability to perform duties safely.

• Flightcrew members are responsible for their own fitness for duty.
• Must not accept an assignment if fatigued or medically impaired.
• Must notify the certificate holder if unable to perform duties safely.

Memory trick: Fatigued? Notify, then REFUSE, it's the safest cruise!

14 CFR 121.391 dictates that for aircraft with over 19 seats, the minimum flight attendant requirement is calculated by dividing the passenger capacity by 50 and rounding up to the next whole number.

• Minimum of one flight attendant for every 50 passengers or fraction thereof.
• Applies to aircraft with more than 19 passenger seats.
• Calculation: (Total Passengers / 50) then round up.

Memory trick: Divide by 50, then Round Up for Safety.

A chart specifically designed for IFR navigation at altitudes from 18,000 feet MSL (FL180) up to FL450, showing airways, navigational aids, and communication frequencies.

• Used for IFR navigation at FL180 and above.
• Displays Jet Routes, VORs, air traffic control information.
• Updated periodically to reflect changes in airspace and navigation.

Memory trick: Charts guide your flight, knowing which to pick is light.

For Part 121 domestic operations, if the destination airport has no instrument approach procedures, an alternate is not required if the forecast weather for the ETA is at or above a 2,000 ft ceiling and 3 miles visibility.

• Applies to Part 121 domestic operations.
• Specific to destinations with no instrument approaches.
• Forecast weather must meet or exceed 2,000 ft ceiling and 3 SM visibility.

Memory trick: Destination's clear, no alternate fear, if it's two thousand up and three miles near.

For flightcrew members on short-call reserve under 14 CFR Part 117, the flight duty period (FDP) begins at the time the flightcrew member is notified of an assignment.

• Applies to short-call reserve.
• FDP starts at notification of assignment.
• Distinguishes from report time.

Memory trick: FDP starts when duty's due, or when the short-call rings for you.