Aviator90 Episode 5

[music]

Man: [0:31] Welcome back to another masterful episode of Aviator 90 from
Angle of Attack.
[0:37] All right, so we’re nowhere near masterful. All the same,
let’s move on. Last episode, we discussed trim and its importance
for stable and smooth flight.

[0:47] Before we jump in the cockpit and take this bad boy for a
spin, I’d like to introduce you to the cockpit and give you a brief
overview of everything in it. We are going to go from the top to
the bottom, left to right, like we’re reading a book.

[1:02] Lining the top of the instrument panel is the glare shield,
which reduces the glare from the sun and also helps encompass all
of the instruments.

[1:11] On the left side of the instruments, we find what we call
the basic six. These instruments are what is used in basic
instrument flight, as they give us all the indications we need to
fly correctly, even when we can’t see outside.

[1:27] Top left is the airspeed indicator. We’ll go over the many
aspects of this instrument throughout the training. But keep in
mind, for now, that there is more than meets the eye.

[1:36] To the right of the airspeed indicator is the attitude
indicator. This indicator is central to everything we do and the
most import of all the instruments. Here we can see the relative
position the aircraft is in, in comparison to the horizon and sky.
And we also see the bank indications.

[1:55] Top right on the basic six is the altimeter. This instrument
shows us our altitude above mean sea level, MSL, in feet. The small
hand is for thousand of feet and the longer hand is for hundreds of
feet.

[2:11] Bottom left on the basic six is the turn coordinator. This
instrument gives us indications to coordinate turns as well as
indications for two minute turns. More on that a bit later.

[2:24] To the right of the turn coordinator is the heading
indicator. Unlike the magnetic compass this heading indicator is
much easier to use and doesn’t have the degree of errors compared
to that of the magnetic compass.

[2:37] Last but not least, is the vertical speed indicator. This
indicator let’s us know how many feet we are climbing or
descending, in feet per minute.

[2:48] That does it for the basic six.

[2:50] Now just to the right of the basic six is the VOR and ADF
instruments, top and bottom. We’ll use these instruments for cross
country navigation, as you’ll see later.

[3:00] Now looking in the middle of the panel, you can now find the
radio stack. Starting from the top we have the VHF radios or coms,
ADF tuner and the transponder.

[3:11] The VHF radio allows us to communicate with air traffic
control, ATC, and other aircraft. This is used often. You’ll learn
how to communicate well through Aviator 90.

[3:23] The ADF is simply tuned here. Not much else to be said about
that right now.

[3:28] Last but not least is the transponder. This instrument is
used to ping our position and altitude to air traffic control.

[3:37] When we are under control, we’ll give a squawk code, as it’s
called, to place here. This is a four number code that is unique to
our aircraft.

[3:48] Now moving along the radio panel we find the RPM indicator
or tachometer. This shows how much power the engine is producing.
You’ll certainly see where this comes in handy later. But for now
just know that you must not go over the red line. You can be right
on it, but do not go over.

[4:06] Next, top right on the panel, is the amperes that indicates
how much juice the battery is charging or discharging.

[4:14] Moving down to the bottom of the panel in this area, we’ll
break it up according to this line.

[4:21] The parking break is located here, used when parked or
running up. Pull and depress the brakes and it will set.

[4:30] Oil temp and oil pressure are next and should be kept in the
green values when above 10, 000 RPM.

[4:37] Left and right fuel quantity indicators are seen here. Now
one thing I should say at this time is to never trust these.
Always, always do your fuel planning manually. These are for
verification purposes only.

[4:51] Carb Heat is located here and we’ll actually talk about that a
bit later as well.

[4:56] The throttle is located here, which is the primary control
for engine power.

[5:01] Next to the throttle is the mixture. This mixture controls
the fuel. This must be adjusted, depending on altitude, so we are
getting the most efficient fuel burn out of the current situation
we’re in.

[5:14] Flap controls are located here and they have different
detents, so they are easy to put down and pull up.

[5:21] Cabin air and cabin heat are located here for comfort. But
lucky you, flight sim doesn’t model the freezing temperatures or
humid heat that is often experienced as a pilot.

[5:31] So moving down to the bottom part of the panel now, we come
to the primer. This is used for engine start.

[5:39] The master switch is located here. It lives up to its name.
It is the master of all power to the aircrafts systems. Without
this, you wouldn’t have electronics.

[5:51] The magneto and start switch is located here.

[5:55] In this area we will find the lights for the aircraft, both
interior and exterior. We’ll be learning when it’s appropriate to
use these different lights at a later time.

[6:05] The trim wheel comes next, which you have seen in the last
section, so we won’t rehash that now.

[6:12] Circuit breakers are located here for abnormal and emergency
circumstances.

[6:19] So as you can see there’s still a lot to learn. By getting
in the cockpit and looking at all the different switches and
controls within our reach, it’s even more important to learn what
these things do and how to operate them.

[6:32] So with that said, don’t be too overwhelmed on how to use
each and every switch for now. Let’s take one thing at a time. Once
we actually get this thing moving things will come to you much
easier.

[6:43] For now, I’d like to congratulate you on completing the
intro to flight section. It’s now time to move onto the basics of
flight section, where we’ll finally get up in the air.

[6:53] Until next time throttle on.

Transcription by CastingWords