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5 Answers

Mnemonics I Can Fly This Puppy?

Asked by: 3700 views Student Pilot

Just a quick question, as a student pilot I have heard of a before takeoff  mnemonic covering the "killer items" it was I  C an F ly T his P uppy. I was just wondering what it stands for cant seem to find it on google...? I'm assuming its instruments controls and then what...?  

PS any other good checks you guys use right before you takeoff? Thanks 

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5 Answers



  1. David on Jun 02, 2013

    Instruments
    Controls
    Fuel
    Trim
    Prop

    This video covers it and a few other takeoff considerations: http://youtu.be/iqaskYxGnb0

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  2. Best Answer


    David on Jun 02, 2013

    I don’t think I’m answering your question quite directly in that my response is not with respect to a three or five item takeoff checklist. However, I find that in small aircraft the best approach is to create a flow through the cockpit whereby you check everything as part of the run up. Checklists are a lovely idea for very complex airplanes but when I fly with others I find the act of the checklist becomes an act unto itself and very little actual checking goes on. That is to say if I discretely change something on the checklist that is not terribly important from the right seat as we are taxiing to the runway, during the checklist process more often than not the pilot will read the checklist and say check but never discover the fact that I changed whatever I have switched.

    Instead I encourage the pilot to start at a corner of the airplane a sweep all settings in a pattern across the dash (not my innovation, someone else wrote about this and was absolutely right). The reality is there are roughly 30 switches in a small airplane. Reading a checklist for the 30 switches that bounces all over the cockpit takes a lot of time switching between the list and the relevant item and trying not to lose your place. The result is an attempt to hurry, which results in you reading the item but not really checking the switch so as to not lose your place. If instead you simply sweep the entire cockpit one item at a time you stand a better chance of making sure everything is properly set as there is very little in a small airplane (if anything) that you cannot set correctly without referencing a checklist.

    Of course this only works if you create a flow that ensures you touch absolutely everything that can be switched. But once you get that set up you can sweep the entire cockpit in less time and in my watching others with much greater likelihood of catching anything mis-set. Just to be clear, what I am proposing is in essence a checklist but one based on touching literally every device in the aircraft and ensuring it is properly set in a set order without reference to a separate piece of paper. That is something easily done in your average GA aircraft that, unlike a jet or turboprop, does not have hundreds of switches requiring a variety of settings based on conditions requiring reference to a paper checklist.

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  3. MaggotCFII on Jun 03, 2013

    “PS any other good checks you guys use right before you takeoff? Thanks”

    I spend a lot of time teaching in the PA-28 series and use the following after the checklist is
    done, at the Hold Line, before calling tower or announcing taking the runway.

    “5/2”

    The 5 – Carb Heat-off / Fuel Pump-on / Mixture – Set / Throttle – Free / Primer – Locked

    and the

    2 – Mags-both / Fuel Tank – Selected

    Also use this for the downwind check and the “instant/instinctive” response to
    simulated loss of power ops.

    I think of the I-C-F-T-P as checklist items.

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  4. Bob on Jun 08, 2013

    How about GUMPS?? probably the most well known one out there

    Gas
    Undercarrage
    Mixture
    Prop
    Saftey/switched

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  5. corkywg on Jun 30, 2013

    Thanks for the responses, good info all around!

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