Inside the Plane Preflight Checklist

Series Summary

Not everyone is meant to be a pilot. Some people may be terrified of the thought of getting inside a machine that flies more than a hundred feet up in the air. Others may suffer from severe motion sickness once their legs leave the ground. However, while flying in airplanes isn't for everyone, some have developed an intense passion for these machines. It takes a great deal of knowledge, practice, and skill to feel confident enough to fly a plane, but it is a very coveted and practical skill.

If you are interested in learning how to fly a plane, this video series is perfect for you. While this is only an introduction to soaring the skies, it will help you understand more about the process of flying. Learn about plane instruments and parts. Also, learn how to perform preflight checklist to ensure your safety when in the air. Our expert Dave Pressy gives you great information about flying planes. With his tips, you can learn what to expect from your flight instructor. He even gives you advice for your first solo flight. So, if you truly are terrified of being up in the air, there is a solution. Don't trust someone else. Learn how to fly yourself!

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Dave Pressy with St. Charles Flying Service on behalf of Expert Village. In this segment we're going to talk about the pre-flight of the airplane on the inside, the preflight starts on the inside of the aircraft. We want to start with our checklist, a checklist we use throughout the flight to make sure that we're getting all the required items that we need. So the first thing we need to do here is check our legal documents. We have several documents that the aircraft has to have in order for it to be legal to fly. In this case we have an Air Worthiness Certificate, we have a registration certificate, and we also have some weight and balance information to make sure the plane is loaded properly. Once we check these we put them right back here so that they're visible to everyone on the airplane. After that what we want to do is remove the gust lock or control lock, this keeps the aircraft controls from moving on the ground if we get a gust of wind or something, this way they won't move around the airplane, they'll be secure. Next thing we want to do is check a few things on the interior of the cockpit. We're gonna turn on the electrical power to the airplane, we want to make sure our fuel gages are working and that we're hearing the gyroscopes and the instrument panel starting to spin. All that looks good. Also, we want to put down the flaps, master switch turns back off again. Next thing we want to check is to make sure that the seats are secure and that the seat belts are secure and not frayed. Another thing we want to check is our Power Operating Handbook, which has all the limitations and procedures for flying the aircraft. This needs to be in the airplane before we fly."