AVweb Quiz #177: Urgent Matters

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Nov. 5, 2012

Interactive Quiz #177:
Urgent Matters

Best-laid plans can evaporate in the twinkling of a failed fuel pump. Contemplating a dead prop on the nose is no time to kick yourself for going past TBO. Time to act and ace this quiz!

INSTRUCTIONS: Answer the questions as best you can, then click on the "Score my quiz answers" button to see your score and read the explanations. If you don't like your score the first time around, you can change some of your answers and resubmit. To get the most out of this quiz, we suggest you keep trying until you get a perfect score.

NOTE: When more than one answer is true, only the most complete, correct answer will be scored as correct. The answers are assumed to apply within the United States unless otherwise noted.

1. Before venturing out of the pilots' lounge, you need to answer this: What is the international emergency (also called "guard") VHF frequency?
a. 123.45
b. 122.75
c. 121.5
d. 121.9

2. Now that you've memorized the correct answer from the previous question (and do not proceed with further questions or even get into an aircraft without knowing it), what is the ICAO-approved international phrase that indicates distress? It's usually repeated three times to really get everyone's attention.
a. PAN-PAN
b. MAYDAY
c. ATTENTION
d. HELP
e. DOH!

3. You may have noticed that ICAO was not decoded in the previous question. Intentional oversight on our part, so be a pal and decode ICAO.
a. Interagency Civil Aviation Organization
b. Internal Civil Aviation Organization
c. Internet Civil Aeronautical Organization
d. International Civil Aviation Organization

4. This question is admittedly subjective and tests your ADM (aeronautical-decision-making) skills in a fictitious, stressful scenario: A Private pilot airplane owner/operator, not you, is about to fudge a few seemingly insignificant rules. The weather is VFR and the pilot's flight review is current, but he forgot to check NOTAMs and didn't preflight the airplane well enough to see if the required paperwork was on board. The airplane's last annual inspection was 14 months ago, and he wants to get the aircraft ready for the annual inspection by removing inspection plates as per FAR 43, Appendix A. He is not a licensed mechanic (not an A&P) but wants to warm up the oil and drain it before the mechanic arrives. He figures the best way to do that is to fly for 20 minutes. Who's going to notice? (That's rhetorical and not the quiz question.) Guilt-ridden but persistent, he departs and passes through 300 feet AGL when the unthinkable happens: The engine quits (stupid engine!). The aircraft is less than one-half mile from the runway and pointed into the wind. The pilot's first reaction (after thinking "This can't be happening!") in this emergency should be to:
a. Turn back.
b. Announce the emergency on the frequency from Question #1, using the proper phraseology from Question #2.
c. Squawk 7700.
d. Fly the airplane.
e. Switch tanks.
f. Apply carburetor heat.

5. Picture yourself, not in a boat on a river but, instead, in a single-engine airplane with retractable gear, flaps and constant-speed propeller. You're at 3500 feet AGL, VFR, flying in complete harmony with wind, sky and FARs, when, suddenly (because this is a stressful quiz and you didn't expect this bliss to last indefinitely) you smell smoke. And then see smoke. And conclude that -- holey smoke! -- something's on fire. Time to get down ... now! With power reduced to idle and gear and flaps extended (in accordance with the POH), you head down. Placing the propeller control into the low-pitch (high-rpm) position will increase drag and help control airspeed on your descent.
a. True
b. False

6. Refer to the following image. Crudely drawn, it comes straight from the AIM and is an accepted signal from a downed crewmember to rescue aircraft. The person on the ground extends both arms forward horizontally, squats and points to indicate what?

a. Do not land here.
b. Land here.
c. Send help.
d. Send medical help.
e. Return later after we've finish Zumba class.

7. Probably not an emergency, but how would your airspeed indicator react in flight if the only static source became blocked, while the pitot source remained clear?
a. No change if pitot tube is clear
b. Indicates higher than the actual airspeed when the aircraft is operated above the altitude where the static ports became blocked
c. Indicates lower than the actual airspeed when the aircraft is operated above the altitude where the static ports became blocked
d. When operating at a lower altitude, a slower than actual airspeed is displayed

8. When flying IFR in an older airplane with analog, steam-gauge instruments, you suspect the static port is blocked. Which instruments does a blocked static port affect?
a. Altimeter, vertical-speed indicator, airspeed indicator
b. Heading indicator, altimeter, vertical-speed indicator
c. Vacuum gauge, attitude indicator, heading indicator
d. VOR CDI, ADF needle, A/N rangefinder

9. It doesn't happen often, but eventually in an air traffic controller's career a VFR pilot, often a student, will call on the verge of panic, confessing that weather has deteriorated, and the flight is about to enter IMC (instrument meteorological conditions). It's a stressful moment for both pilot and controller. When a pilot reports unable to maintain VFR and is about to enter IMC, the air traffic controller is expected to first determine:
a. If the pilot is qualified and capable of conducting IFR flight
b. If the aircraft has GPS
c. If the aircraft has an autopilot
d. If the pilot has visual contact with the ground

10. FAR 91.3 says, in part: "In an in-flight emergency requiring immediate action, the pilot in command may deviate from any rule of this part to the extent required to meet that emergency." It goes on to say that any PIC who does deviate from a rule shall "send a written report of that deviation to the Administrator within 30 days."
a. True
b. False

If you enjoyed taking this interactive quiz and would like to see more like it, go to the AVweb Brainteaser page. And if you thought it was unfair, confusing, or a waste of time, we'd like you to tell us that, too. And if you have an idea for a subject that you think would make a good future Brainteaser quiz, be sure to let us know.

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Interactive Quiz #177:Urgent Matters

Interactive Quiz #177:
Urgent Matters