Here are a few of the terms you're likely to encounter during your training with USFA:
Aerobatics: Flight that commonly involves barrel rolls, spins, and other high-performance maneuvers.
Aileron: A movable surface on the back of the wings that causes the airplane to roll.
Airfoil: A curved body, such as a wing, that causes lift when air moves over it.
Air Transport Pilot: A pilot who has completed the Federal Aviation Administration's requirements for the Air Transport Pilot certificate, including a minimum of 1,500 hours of flight time and passing a knowledge exam and flight test.
Airworthy: The state of being capable of flight, usually referring to an airplane's mechanical condition.
Avionics: The radios and navigation instruments.
Check Ride: The "driver's test" a pilot takes in the airplane to earn a certificate or rating. Also known as the Practical Test.
Commercial Pilot: A pilot who has completed the Federal Aviation Administration's requirements for the commercial certificate, including a minimum of 250 hours of flight time and passing a knowledge exam and flight test.
Currency: Meeting the legal requirements to exercise the pilot certificate. Usually, it requires a certain number of hours of flight time over a given period of time.
Dead Reckoning: A method of navigation that requires a pilot to fly a certain direction for a certain time at a certain speed to reach a destination a known distance away.
Elevators: Moveable sections of the tail that pitch the nose up or down.
Federal Aviation Administration: The division of the U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates aviation, including pilot certification and aircraft operations.
Flaps: The movable section of the wing that increases lift and drag and allows for slower, steeper descents during landing.
Flight Computer: A manual slide rule or electronic calculator used to determine wind correction, fuel consumption, airspeed, and other performance calculations during flight planning.
Flight Review: A review of flying skills and aviation knowledge conducted by a flight instructor every two years.
Flight Training Center: A training facility used by corporate, charter, and airline pilots to learn to fly sophisticated aircraft in elaborate, high-tech simulators that realistically replicate flight.
Global Positioning System (GPS): An array of stationary satellites that allows users to locate their exact position on the earth.
Horizontal Stabilizers: The horizontal sections of the tail that include the elevators.
Instrument Flight: A flight solely by reference to the cockpit instruments during low visibility or bad weather.
Instrument Weather Conditions: Weather that includes reduced visibility and cloud ceilings that require a pilot to fly by reference to his or her cockpit instruments.
Knowledge Exam: The written test on theoretical material required by pilots, such as regulations, aerodynamics, and weather.
L - Z Continued...
|
|
