To shut down the engine, the mixture knob or lever is pulled full aft, with the knob or lever left out. [Courtesy: Meg Godlewski]
Key Takeaways:
Many pilots at a flight school were not consistently following aircraft shutdown checklists, leading to improperly configured aircraft.
This neglect created safety hazards, such as the potential for damaged avionics due to incorrect power sequencing and the severe risk of a "hot prop" (magnetos left on), which can cause serious injury if the propeller is accidentally moved.
The issue stemmed from insufficient checklist adherence education and modeling by instructors, as well as misunderstandings among pilots, which the flight school addressed through reminders and targeted education.
“That’s not right,” said the learner, checklist in hand and pointing at the mixture knob. It was full forward. On shutdown the mixture is pulled full aft, cutting off the fuel supply to the engine.
This was the learner’s third flight lesson, and already he had mastered the use of the checklist.
CREATE A FREE ACCOUNT
Sign up to keep reading
Create a free account to continue. Already a member? Sign in below.
Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.
