Stupid test questions

av8tr1

av8tr1

"Never tell me the odds!"
Got recurrency coming up. Doing the usual last minute study my ass off. I’m a pilot not a A&P. I’m not allowed to mess with anything under the cowling.

WHY DO I NEED TO KNOW THE PSI OF MY FUEL PUMP???

I’m not allowed touch the fuel pump. I have no gauge in the aircraft that tells me the PSI of my fuel flow. I’m not even sure where the fuel pump is on my aircraft (I’m pretty sure it’s on the outside of the right horizontal stabilizer). I’ve got a fuel flow gauge but it’s in gallons per hour. So why do I need to know the fuel pump PSI?
 
Mine are 15 psi each (x6)

Because we have to know. That is why! :)

Most fuel pumps are inside the tanks or mounted on the accessory box of the engine.
 
av8tr1 said:
Got recurrency coming up. Doing the usual last minute study my ass off. I’m a pilot not a A&P. I’m not allowed to mess with anything under the cowling.

WHY DO I NEED TO KNOW THE PSI OF MY FUEL PUMP???

I’m not allowed touch the fuel pump. I have no gauge in the aircraft that tells me the PSI of my fuel flow. I’m not even sure where the fuel pump is on my aircraft (I’m pretty sure it’s on the outside of the right horizontal stabilizer). I’ve got a fuel flow gauge but it’s in gallons per hour. So why do I need to know the fuel pump PSI?
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You don't.*
The correct answer is always, "...in the green."
Then again, if your gauges are kerfluffled...


Also. Cramming is scamming!
Study continuously. Know it. Be it. Do it. :)

*because the original AFM was written in PSI and nothing ever got changed in the training materials???
 
av8tr1 said:
Got recurrency coming up. Doing the usual last minute study my ass off. I’m a pilot not a A&P. I’m not allowed to mess with anything under the cowling.

WHY DO I NEED TO KNOW THE PSI OF MY FUEL PUMP???

I’m not allowed touch the fuel pump. I have no gauge in the aircraft that tells me the PSI of my fuel flow. I’m not even sure where the fuel pump is on my aircraft (I’m pretty sure it’s on the outside of the right horizontal stabilizer). I’ve got a fuel flow gauge but it’s in gallons per hour. So why do I need to know the fuel pump PSI?
Click to expand...

You don’t need to know it to fly the airplane, no. But knowing is one of the myriad of things that separates amateur from professionals.

The PSI of the fuel pump is certainly in the “trivia” section of knowledge, but you should be striving to know everything you can about the piece of machinery you’re operating.

For me at least, knowing what the PSI is helps tack it in my memory as to it’s function. Which fuel pump are you talking about in the van or the jet pump? The low pressure one or the high pressure one? Do you know “why?” you have a low pressure fuel pump?

Also, it’s worth mentioning that you do have a gauge in the Caravan that indirectly tells you what the PSI of the fuel system is. Do you know what it is?

Knowing the trivia really comes in handy when you explain what’s broken to the mechanic. Learn it. Don’t be lazy.
 
ppragman said:
Knowing the trivia really comes in handy when you explain what’s broken to the mechanic.
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I disagree with this. Strongly. And maybe it's because I've spent the last 14 years flying extremely computer controlled aircraft, but I get really nervous when I watch a captain use their systems knowledge to try to explain a symptom we experienced to a mechanic.

Just explain EXACTLY what happened and let MX do their job.
 
BobDDuck said:
I disagree with this. Strongly. And maybe it's because I've spent the last 14 years flying extremely computer controlled aircraft, but I get really nervous when I watch a captain use their systems knowledge to try to explain a symptom we experienced to a mechanic.

Just explain EXACTLY what happened and let MX do their job.
Click to expand...
“We got a left pack overpress and right pack over temp caution.”

MX: “so what probably happened is...”

Me: “Yea. That’s great. QRH complied with. Put it in the can and tagged the plane with an open write up. On to the next flight.”
 
av8tr1 said:
Got recurrency coming up. Doing the usual last minute study my ass off. I’m a pilot not a A&P. I’m not allowed to mess with anything under the cowling.

WHY DO I NEED TO KNOW THE PSI OF MY FUEL PUMP???
Click to expand...

Because if it's on the test, you need to know it. It's really as simple as that.

At one point in time during my 757/767 day, I had to memorize: "Entry door evacuation slide systems must be armed and engagement of the girt bar with the door sill verified prior to taxi, takeoff or landing whenever passengers are carried." and recite it exactly, verbatim, during the type ride and CQ because it was a limitation. Didn't make any sense to me because I generally didn't mess with the door, but, it was the token needed to make the video game say "Player One… GO!"

It's gone now and if we're of the training philosophy that if you can't touch it, change it, set it, affect it, there's no need in knowing it. Hell, I don't even know how much thrust my engines have, nor is it testable, AND THAT'S OK! :)

Thankfully, someone realized that your systems diagrams are basic logic flowcharts and when you infer certain things it's not actually showing you, you're kind of making up your own stuff. The maintenance manuals are the systems, the manual John Q Pilot gets is, for the most part, simple operational logic.
 
Starting a bizjet with 30kt tailwind someplace in the boonies when there's no tug/tractor adapter available to swing you around*
Persuading the computer that 23.8v on the batt 2 is good nuff when it is hardcoded to not let you start below 24v just in case*

That's why you need to know the answers to the stupid questions

* Professional Russian, don't try this at home, your mileage may vary, call the doctor if erection lasts more than 8 hours

PS To those wondering, rear engine plug in until the ignition starts clicking, then pull, and in the fancy new brazilian ac diode bridges are used to separate the power sources, these have latency in stabilizing to the actual voltage readout, so draw to the min, flip batt 1 on, system voltage goes to 24.1 or so with the good batt assuming the load momentarily, will then stabilize at 23.9 - so start before that happens. Just watch out for the higher probability of hot/hung start. Complete non event.
 
BobDDuck said:
I disagree with this. Strongly. And maybe it's because I've spent the last 14 years flying extremely computer controlled aircraft, but I get really nervous when I watch a captain use their systems knowledge to try to explain a symptom we experienced to a mechanic.

Just explain EXACTLY what happened and let MX do their job.
Click to expand...

Reminds me of the sign we had in the shop at Ford.

Hourly rate: $65/hr
Hourly rate if customer diagnosed: $75/hr
Hourly rate if customer attempted own repairs: $100/hr
 
So the other day when I landed I had “smoke” coming out of my engine enough for the ground crew to come running out with a fire extinguisher I should have reported TKS fluid on the exhaust or ......white vapor emanating from under the cowl?
 
BobDDuck said:
I disagree with this. Strongly. And maybe it's because I've spent the last 14 years flying extremely computer controlled aircraft, but I get really nervous when I watch a captain use their systems knowledge to try to explain a symptom we experienced to a mechanic.

Just explain EXACTLY what happened and let MX do their job.
Click to expand...
It's because you fly 121. At a small time 135 shop they're going to expect you to know the airplane enough to help the mechanic have a clue as to what happened. Mechanical knowledge becomes operational knowledge if you want the airplane to keep flying that day.
There's also a good chance that the mechanic you're suddenly using at some outstation has limited knowledge of your airplane.
In 135 you're more than a pilot. A lot of times you're the dispatcher, de-icer, fueler and mechanics helpers all rolled in one.
 
av8tr1 said:
So the other day when I landed I had “smoke” coming out of my engine enough for the ground crew to come running out with a fire extinguisher I should have reported TKS fluid on the exhaust or ......white vapor emanating from under the cowl?
Click to expand...
It's up to you how you handle something like that. If there's a problem that warrants a write up and you have an idea what might be causing it you can just make an ambiguous write up and walk away or you can talk to MX and tell them what happened. Don't attempt to diagnose the problem, it's not your job. You fly/break them. MX fixes them. It's symbiotic and everyone gets paid.
 
BobDDuck said:
I disagree with this. Strongly. And maybe it's because I've spent the last 14 years flying extremely computer controlled aircraft, but I get really nervous when I watch a captain use their systems knowledge to try to explain a symptom we experienced to a mechanic.

Just explain EXACTLY what happened and let MX do their job.
Click to expand...


B767 said:
“We got a left pack overpress and right pack over temp caution.”

MX: “so what probably happened is...”

Me: “Yea. That’s great. QRH complied with. Put it in the can and tagged the plane with an open write up. On to the next flight.”
Click to expand...

Man o' Manischewitz, I wish it were like that in 135.

It's just sooooo NOT.

In 135, we pilots are pulling Mx manuals off the shelves more often than flight manuals.
 
z987k said:
It's because you fly 121. At a small time 135 shop they're going to expect you to know the airplane enough to help the mechanic have a clue as to what happened. Mechanical knowledge becomes operational knowledge if you want the airplane to keep flying that day.
There's also a good chance that the mechanic you're suddenly using at some outstation has limited knowledge of your airplane.
In 135 you're more than a pilot. A lot of times you're the dispatcher, de-icer, fueler and mechanics helpers all rolled in one.
Click to expand...
Working out of a rural air ambulance base will make one real good at playing jack of all trades real quick...
 
Crop Duster said:
Man o' Manischewitz, I wish it were like that in 135.

It's just sooooo NOT.

In 135, we pilots are pulling Mx manuals off the shelves more often than flight manuals.
Click to expand...
Meh, I worked for two 135's and was never quite pulling mx manuals off the shelf....but I have been on cold ramps in the middle of the night with mechanics trouble shooting stuff. I always followed up on all my squawks to see what the cause of my issue was too when possible...the more you know about your ship the better.
 
av8tr1 said:
Got recurrency coming up. Doing the usual last minute study my ass off. I’m a pilot not a A&P. I’m not allowed to mess with anything under the cowling.

WHY DO I NEED TO KNOW THE PSI OF MY FUEL PUMP???

I’m not allowed touch the fuel pump. I have no gauge in the aircraft that tells me the PSI of my fuel flow. I’m not even sure where the fuel pump is on my aircraft (I’m pretty sure it’s on the outside of the right horizontal stabilizer). I’ve got a fuel flow gauge but it’s in gallons per hour. So why do I need to know the fuel pump PSI?
Click to expand...

For the same reason that DPEs ask what are the propeller blade angles for the high and low pitch stops on a P28R-200. It is information that does nothing for the pilot but it is written down somewhere, and therefore can be recalled.

While at school for the machine I currently fly, they’ll ask us system knowledge questions about losses during various failures. Such as lack of nose wheel steering during a left engine failure. Is the tiller being inop really critical during a V1 cut? To me, that isn’t useful knowledge until landing but they want us to know it.



Sent from my Startac using Tapatalk.
 
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Been doing my 737 type ground school, I think the only limit on a system they presented was the hydraulic pressure, 3000 normal, 3500 red and the max diff on the pressurization system, 9.1. That’s it, other than gear and flap speed. I know for the at least the last 6 recurrents, maybe longer, and a type rating FSI has taken out all of that stuff, except for limitations, gear and flap, why does it matter what the red arch of the ITT is, it goes to yellow and then red, if it does that do something.
 
SFLAX said:
Been doing my 737 type ground school, I think the only limit on a system they presented was the hydraulic pressure, 3000 normal, 3500 red and the max diff on the pressurization system, 9.1. That’s it, other than gear and flap speed. I know for the at least the last 6 recurrents, maybe longer, and a type rating FSI has taken out all of that stuff, except for limitations, gear and flap, why does it matter what the red arch of the ITT is, it goes to yellow and then red, if it does that do something.
Click to expand...
BBJ or going to the dark side?
 
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