Private Pilot Oral Exam Guide - Human Factors and Aeronautical Decision Making

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering flight physiology, aeromedical safety, single-pilot resource management (SRM), aeronautical decision making (ADM), risk management, task management, situational awareness, CFIT, and automation management.

Hypoxia

A state of oxygen deficiency in the body sufficient to impair functions of the brain and other organs.

Hypoxic Hypoxia

A form of hypoxia that occurs when any condition interrupts the flow of oxygen into the lungs; typically encountered at altitude due to a reduction in the partial pressure of oxygen.

Hypemic Hypoxia

A form of hypoxia caused by any condition that interferes with the ability of the blood to carry oxygen, such as anemia, bleeding, carbon monoxide poisoning, smoking, and certain prescription drugs.

Stagnant Hypoxia

A form of hypoxia that occurs when the normal circulation of blood carrying oxygen to body cells is interrupted, caused by conditions such as heart failure, shock, or positive G-forces.

Histotoxic Hypoxia

A form of hypoxia occurring when body cells are unable to normally utilize oxygen in support of metabolism, caused by toxins such as alcohol, narcotics, and cyanide.

Altitude Hypoxia Thresholds

Night vision deteriorates at cabin altitudes as low as $5,000\text{ feet}$; significant effects in healthy pilots typically begin between $12,000\text{ feet}$ and $15,000\text{ feet}$ (impaired coordination, memory, alertness, and euphoria or belligerence), and worsen above $15,000\text{ feet}$.

Supplemental Oxygen Regulations (14 CFR 91.211)

Required flight crew must use supplemental oxygen for flight time exceeding $30\text{ minutes}$ at cabin pressure altitudes above $12,500\text{ feet MSL}$ up to and including $14,000\text{ feet MSL}$, continuously above $14,000\text{ feet MSL}$, and each aircraft occupant must be provided supplemental oxygen above $15,000\text{ feet MSL}$.

Hyperventilation

An abnormal increase in the volume of air breathed in and out of the lungs, often triggered subconsciously by stressful situations in flight, which results in a significant decrease in the carbon dioxide content of the blood.

Sinus Block

A condition occurring during ascent or descent (most frequently descent) where congestion from an upper respiratory infection or allergy plugs the openings connecting the sinuses to the nasal passages, causing severe pain over the frontal or maxillary sinuses, toothache, or bloody nasal discharge.

Ear Block

A condition during descent where congestion prevents the Eustachian tube from opening to equalize pressure between the middle ear and the cabin, creating severe pain and hearing loss that can last from several hours to several days.

Valsalva Maneuver

A technique to open the Eustachian tube and relieve middle ear pressure by closing the mouth, pinching the nose closed, and attempting to blow through the nostrils.

Spatial Disorientation

The lack of correct awareness with regard to aircraft position in space and relative to other objects, occurring when flight forces cause misleading sensations in the visual, vestibular, or postural sensory systems.

The Leans

A spatial disorientation illusion that occurs when a gradual, unnoticed bank is corrected back to level flight, giving the false sensation of banking in the opposite direction.

Coriolis Illusion

A vestibular illusion caused by rapid head movement during a prolonged constant-rate turn, creating a false sensation of tilting or tumbling.

Graveyard Spiral

A dangerous flight condition resulting from a prolonged constant-rate turn where the sensation of turning is lost; attempting to correct the perceived level descent with back pressure tightens the turn and steepens the descent.

Somatogravic Illusion

An illusion caused by rapid aircraft acceleration (such as during takeoff) where the body senses a false nose-up attitude, which can prompt the pilot to push the nose down.

Inversion Illusion

A vestibular illusion where an abrupt transition from a climb to level flight creates the false sensation of tumbling backward.

Autokinesis

An optical illusion in which a stationary light appears to move when stared at for a prolonged period in darkness.

Motion Sickness

An aeromedical condition caused by continued stimulation of the inner ear balance mechanism, with symptoms progressing from loss of appetite, saliva accumulation, and sweating to nausea, headache, disorientation, and vomiting.

Carbon Monoxide Poisoning

A form of hypemic hypoxia caused by inhaling a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas found in exhaust fumes—commonly entering light aircraft cabins through exhaust manifold heater cracks—causing headache, drowsiness, nausea, dizziness, and fatigue.

Acute Stress

A short-term category of stress triggered by an immediate perceived danger or threat, activating the body's fight-or-flight response.

Chronic Stress

A long-term category of stress that presents an intolerable burden exceeding an individual's coping capacity, causing performance to fall sharply.

Stressors

Elements that trigger stress, categorized into physical (environmental extremes, noise, vibration), physiological (fatigue, illness, sleep loss, low blood sugar), and psychological (mental workload, emotional or social problems).

Fatigue

A physiological state of reduced mental or physical performance capability resulting from lack of sleep or increased physical activity.

Acute vs. Chronic Fatigue

Acute fatigue is short-term tiredness cured by rest, proper diet, and $8\text{ hours}$ of sleep; chronic fatigue has psychological or underlying disease roots, is not relieved by normal sleep, and usually requires medical treatment.

Dehydration

A critical loss of water from the body characterized first by fatigue, which can progress to dizziness, headache, weakness, nausea, cramps, extreme thirst, rapid heartbeat, and low blood pressure.

Hypothermia

A condition defined as a body core temperature dropping below $95^\circ\text{F}$ (normal being $98.6^\circ\text{F}$), resulting in degraded physical and mental efficiency, shivering, slurred speech, and muscular rigidity.

Mechanisms of Body Heat Loss

Five physical processes: conduction (direct contact; primary cause), radiation ($50\%$ of body heat lost from the head), convection (air currents blowing heat away), evaporation (moisture cooling the skin), and respiration (warming inhaled cold air).

Runway Width Illusion

An illusion where a narrower-than-usual runway makes an aircraft appear higher than actual altitude (leading to flying a lower approach), while a wider runway creates the illusion of being lower than actual (leading to leveling off high).

Runway and Terrain Slopes Illusion

An illusion where an upsloping runway or upsloping terrain makes the aircraft appear higher than it is, prompting a lower approach; a downsloping runway or terrain creates the opposite perception.

Featureless Terrain Illusion

An illusion caused by an absence of ground features (such as flying over water, darkened areas, or snow) creating the impression of being at a higher altitude than actual, causing a pilot to fly a lower approach.

Water Refraction

An optical illusion caused by rain on the windscreen that makes the horizon appear lower than it is, causing the pilot to fly a lower approach.

Scuba Diving Decompression Rules

For flights up to $8,000\text{ feet MSL}$, wait at least $12\text{ hours}$ following a dive not requiring a controlled ascent, or at least $24\text{ hours}$ following a controlled ascent dive; for flights above $8,000\text{ feet MSL}$, wait at least $24\text{ hours}$ after any dive.

14 CFR 91.17 Alcohol Restrictions

Federal aviation regulations prohibiting crewmembers from acting within $8\text{ hours}$ after consuming alcohol, while under the influence of alcohol, or with a blood/breath alcohol concentration of $0.04\%$ or greater.

14 CFR 61.53 (Self-Grounding)

The federal regulation requiring pilots to voluntarily self-ground if they know or have reason to know of any medical condition or are receiving treatment/medication that prevents meeting medical certificate standards.

Single-Pilot Resource Management (SRM)

The art and science of managing all onboard and outside resources available to a single pilot prior to and during flight to ensure the successful outcome of the flight is never in doubt.

5P Checklist

A practical SRM risk assessment checklist used at scheduled decision points to evaluate five critical variables: Plan, Plane, Pilot, Passengers, and Programming.

Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM)

A systematic approach to the mental process used by aircraft pilots to consistently determine the best course of action in response to a given set of circumstances.

DECIDE Model

A six-step problem-resolution ADM model: Detect a change, Estimate the need to counter/react, Choose the desirable outcome, Identify actions, Do something to adapt, and Evaluate the effect.

Hazardous Attitudes and Antidotes

Five dangerous mindsets and their neutralizing thoughts: Anti-authority ('Follow the rules—they are usually right'), Impulsivity ('Think first—not so fast'), Invulnerability ('It could happen to me'), Macho ('Taking chances is foolish'), and Resignation ('I can make a difference; I am not helpless').

Hazard

A present condition, event, object, or circumstance that could lead to or contribute to an unplanned or undesired event such as an accident.

Risk

The future impact of a hazard that is not controlled or eliminated.

PAVE Checklist

A preflight risk-assessment checklist dividing flight risks into four categories: Pilot-in-command, Aircraft, enVironment, and External pressures.

IMSAFE Checklist

A personal fitness checklist assessing six pilot factors: Illness, Medication, Stress, Alcohol, Fatigue, and Emotion.

3P Model

A continuous risk management loop consisting of Perceiving hazards (using PAVE), Processing their impact on safety (using CARE: Consequences, Alternatives, Reality, External pressures), and Performing the best action (using TEAM: Transfer, Eliminate, Accept, Mitigate).

Flight Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT)

A preflight planning tool utilizing questions across the PAVE categories to help pilots objectively identify, quantify, and visually evaluate flight risk for go/no-go decisions.

Get-There-Itis

A dangerous psychological bias where a goal-oriented pilot prioritizes reaching the destination over safe decision-making and adherence to personal minimums.

Task Management

The process by which pilots prioritize, plan, and manage concurrent tasks to safely operate an aircraft, following the core hierarchy of 'Aviate, navigate, and communicate.'

Do-Verify (DV) Method

A checklist accomplishment method where the flight crew executes action items from memory using flow patterns, and then reads the checklist to verify each item.

Challenge-Do-Verify (CDV) Method

A checklist accomplishment method where one crewmember issues a challenge before an action is taken, the second performs the action, and then confirms verification.

Immediate Action Item

A critical emergency checklist procedure that must be executed expeditiously from memory without referring to a manual or checklist to avoid or stabilize a hazardous situation.

Situational Awareness (SA)

The accurate perception and understanding of all factors and conditions within the five fundamental risk elements (flight, pilot, aircraft, environment, and external pressures) affecting flight safety.

Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT)

An accident where an airworthy aircraft under the control of the flight crew is inadvertently flown into terrain, water, or obstacles due to factors like loss of situational awareness, lack of currency, or failure to comply with minimum altitudes.

Automation Management

The demonstrated ability to control and navigate an aircraft using automated avionics systems, requiring pilot proficiency in managing the course deviation indicator (CDI), the navigation source, and the autopilot.

Standard Callouts

Prescribed, standardized verbal announcements (e.g., 'Rotate,' 'Positive Rate—Gear Up,' 'Localizer Alive') used by pilots to maintain situational awareness and verify critical flight parameters and automation modes.