Page 55 - Volume 14 Number 4

control. We all know or have read of accidents that have occurred not because of the emergency at hand, but because no one was minding the ship while the emergency was being dealt with. So, say it out loud “Fly the airplane,” this will re-engage the brain to the task at hand after the initial surprise of the emergency. Please remember that all actions must be backed up by the checklist once the emergency is under control.
The logic behind this simplified memory checklist is to group the necessary actions into three categories: Air, Fuel and Ignition. That’s it; memorize these three and you are well on your way. Where does the logic come from? To create combustion – a good thing when contained within the engine, a bad thing anywhere else – you need those three items. Let’s see how it is applied to each emergency.
Partial Power Loss or Engine Failure
When I simulate an engine failure, first a student maintains aircraft control and establishes best glide speed, their attention then moves to the fuel system – mixture rich, switching tanks and activating the boost pump. At that point, dealing with the engine failure or partial power loss is often deemed complete and the student is now concentrating on proceeding to the nearest airport, a forced land- ing or CAPS activation. The magnetos and alternate air, often sources of engine failure or partial power loss, are forgotten.
A better approach is to apply the three memory items. Each can be quickly accomplished in any order. As an added bonus, Cirrus aircraft have the items in each of these categories physically grouped together.
= Air – Pull alternate air on.
= Fuel – Look at the fuel grouping and work with mixture, tank selection and boost pump; it’s all right there.
= Ignition – Check magnetos; left, right and both.
That is it. Attention to these three areas will cover most common causes of non-catastrophic powerplant failures. Now you can concentrate on heading to the airport, attempting an engine restart, and completing the checklist.
Volume 14, Number 4
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