ATSC 113 Final Exam Review Learning
Goals Exam Questions with Correct
Answers
1e. Contrast horizontal visibility, vertical visibility, and runway visual range (RVR), and
discuss how they affect aviation. - Answer-- Three types of visibility and each have their
own way of measuring:
1) Horizontal
-Distance you can see horizontally
-Distance between when pilot sees a hazard and when plane hits hazard is affected by
horizontal visibility
2) Vertical
-Distance you can see vertically high or height of the cloud ceiling
3) Runway Visual Range (RVR)
-Measured at airports, how far ahead a pilot can see along a runway centerline
1f. Recognize and interpret weather and obscuration glyphs on weather charts -
Answer-
1g. Explain the difference between visual & instrument flight rules (VFR, IFR) and
meteorological conditions (VFC, IFC), and how they affect aviation - Answer-•Visual
Flight Rules (VFR)
-Only flown in visual flight conditions or Visual Meteorological conditions.
-More than 3000 ft AGL ceiling
-More than 5SM (statute miles) visibility
-No instruments, lookout windows.
-Hazards like fog, clouds, heavy precipitation
•Marginal VFR
-When it's a close call between VFR and IFR
-Between 1000 and 3000 ft AGL ceiling
-Between 3 and 5 SM horizontal visibility
•Instrument Flight Rules (IFR)
-Conduct most of flight without looking out the window
-Can fly in good weather and bad weather
-Instrumental Meteorological Conditions
-Less than 1000 ft AGL ceiling
-Less than 3 SM visibility
,1h. Anticipate when fog might occur based on location, humidity, temperature, winds,
and cloud cover, and how fog affects aviation - Answer-• Fog is a cloud that touches the
ground
-Water droplets falling so slowly they seem suspended
-Forms when: water is added to unsaturated air (non-foggy), unsaturated air is cooled to
its dew-point temperature, or when the ground warms the air above it
-Fog is denser and flows downhill
•Fog forms in these conditions:
- Most often late at night or early morning as cool ground cools air →Nights with clear
skies more likely than anything else
-Radiation: cooling at night
-Advection: humid air blows over a cold surface (lake, snow, ocean)
-Upslope: Upwards moving air cools against a slope (mountain, hill)
-Precipitation or frontal: adding moisture, via evaporation from warm rain drops falling
down through cold air below cloud
-Steam: cold air moves over hot surface (cooling pong, warmed fields)
•Hazards
-Visibility hazard
-Can dissipate or lift
-Hard to forecast
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Haze - Answer--Microscopic
water droplets forming around a pollutant particle.
-Small haze particles = aerosols
-Reduces visibility
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Smoke - Answer--Forms due to
forest fires
-Reduces visibility
-Hazard of smoke entering cabin
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Blowing dust/sand - Answer--
Strong winds around deserts and sandy areas make a sandstorm (=haboob)
-Threat to machinery, sandblasting
-Great reduction to visibility
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Blowing Snow - Answer--Blizzard
is when there is blowing snow = ¼ mile visibility + 35mph winds
-Heavy snow visibility <¼ mile
, Moderate snow < ¼ -½ mile
-Obscure landmarks
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Volcanic ash - Answer--Volcanic
eruptions
-Threat to engines, machinery of aircraft
-Can melt and fuse as glass, add weight and change balance of plane
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Rain - Answer--Rain
-Light and moderate, reduced visibilities
-Heavy rain reduces vis to point of no safety -Fly around or IFR
2a. Draw the variation of pressure & density with altitude - Answer-Pressure and density
decrease smoothly with increase in altitude
2b. Explain how reduced oxygen at high altitude affects pilot physiology - Answer-
•Reduced atmospheric density reduces the amount of oxygen a pilot gets.
•At certain altitudes a pilot will get hypoxia
- Between 12k and 15k feet: Impaired memory, thought process, reaction time,
alertness, coordination. Euphoria, dizziness, drowsiness.
- Above 15k feet: vision impaired, lips and fingers blue, unconsciousness, death
•Solutions:
- Above 13k, oxygen mask
-Above 40k, pressurized oxygen
-Above 62k, pressure suit
2c. Explain how and why pilots use "density altitude" - Answer--Thinner air reduces
airplane performance, such as ability to take off and gain altitude
-If low-altitude air is hot enough it can act like a lower density
-Pilots consider density altitude before taking off
-Depends on temperature and altitude
- Adjusts pressure for temp.
2d. Compute crosswind & headwind components - Answer-
2e. Identify the causes and typical locations of wind shear at aerodromes - Answer-
•Change of wind speed or direction with altitude
•Almost always present near ground
•Strong wind shear near the ground at airports make it hard to land
•Caused by: (as well as others):
Goals Exam Questions with Correct
Answers
1e. Contrast horizontal visibility, vertical visibility, and runway visual range (RVR), and
discuss how they affect aviation. - Answer-- Three types of visibility and each have their
own way of measuring:
1) Horizontal
-Distance you can see horizontally
-Distance between when pilot sees a hazard and when plane hits hazard is affected by
horizontal visibility
2) Vertical
-Distance you can see vertically high or height of the cloud ceiling
3) Runway Visual Range (RVR)
-Measured at airports, how far ahead a pilot can see along a runway centerline
1f. Recognize and interpret weather and obscuration glyphs on weather charts -
Answer-
1g. Explain the difference between visual & instrument flight rules (VFR, IFR) and
meteorological conditions (VFC, IFC), and how they affect aviation - Answer-•Visual
Flight Rules (VFR)
-Only flown in visual flight conditions or Visual Meteorological conditions.
-More than 3000 ft AGL ceiling
-More than 5SM (statute miles) visibility
-No instruments, lookout windows.
-Hazards like fog, clouds, heavy precipitation
•Marginal VFR
-When it's a close call between VFR and IFR
-Between 1000 and 3000 ft AGL ceiling
-Between 3 and 5 SM horizontal visibility
•Instrument Flight Rules (IFR)
-Conduct most of flight without looking out the window
-Can fly in good weather and bad weather
-Instrumental Meteorological Conditions
-Less than 1000 ft AGL ceiling
-Less than 3 SM visibility
,1h. Anticipate when fog might occur based on location, humidity, temperature, winds,
and cloud cover, and how fog affects aviation - Answer-• Fog is a cloud that touches the
ground
-Water droplets falling so slowly they seem suspended
-Forms when: water is added to unsaturated air (non-foggy), unsaturated air is cooled to
its dew-point temperature, or when the ground warms the air above it
-Fog is denser and flows downhill
•Fog forms in these conditions:
- Most often late at night or early morning as cool ground cools air →Nights with clear
skies more likely than anything else
-Radiation: cooling at night
-Advection: humid air blows over a cold surface (lake, snow, ocean)
-Upslope: Upwards moving air cools against a slope (mountain, hill)
-Precipitation or frontal: adding moisture, via evaporation from warm rain drops falling
down through cold air below cloud
-Steam: cold air moves over hot surface (cooling pong, warmed fields)
•Hazards
-Visibility hazard
-Can dissipate or lift
-Hard to forecast
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Haze - Answer--Microscopic
water droplets forming around a pollutant particle.
-Small haze particles = aerosols
-Reduces visibility
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Smoke - Answer--Forms due to
forest fires
-Reduces visibility
-Hazard of smoke entering cabin
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Blowing dust/sand - Answer--
Strong winds around deserts and sandy areas make a sandstorm (=haboob)
-Threat to machinery, sandblasting
-Great reduction to visibility
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Blowing Snow - Answer--Blizzard
is when there is blowing snow = ¼ mile visibility + 35mph winds
-Heavy snow visibility <¼ mile
, Moderate snow < ¼ -½ mile
-Obscure landmarks
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Volcanic ash - Answer--Volcanic
eruptions
-Threat to engines, machinery of aircraft
-Can melt and fuse as glass, add weight and change balance of plane
1i. Explain the nature of these obscurations: haze, smoke, blowing dust/sand, blowing
snow, volcanic ash, rain, and how they affect aviation: Rain - Answer--Rain
-Light and moderate, reduced visibilities
-Heavy rain reduces vis to point of no safety -Fly around or IFR
2a. Draw the variation of pressure & density with altitude - Answer-Pressure and density
decrease smoothly with increase in altitude
2b. Explain how reduced oxygen at high altitude affects pilot physiology - Answer-
•Reduced atmospheric density reduces the amount of oxygen a pilot gets.
•At certain altitudes a pilot will get hypoxia
- Between 12k and 15k feet: Impaired memory, thought process, reaction time,
alertness, coordination. Euphoria, dizziness, drowsiness.
- Above 15k feet: vision impaired, lips and fingers blue, unconsciousness, death
•Solutions:
- Above 13k, oxygen mask
-Above 40k, pressurized oxygen
-Above 62k, pressure suit
2c. Explain how and why pilots use "density altitude" - Answer--Thinner air reduces
airplane performance, such as ability to take off and gain altitude
-If low-altitude air is hot enough it can act like a lower density
-Pilots consider density altitude before taking off
-Depends on temperature and altitude
- Adjusts pressure for temp.
2d. Compute crosswind & headwind components - Answer-
2e. Identify the causes and typical locations of wind shear at aerodromes - Answer-
•Change of wind speed or direction with altitude
•Almost always present near ground
•Strong wind shear near the ground at airports make it hard to land
•Caused by: (as well as others):
