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Preferred
select/verify roll mode, set speed, VNAV or LVL CHG. Clean up on schedule. Distractions from radio calls and cabin crew or passenger issues should not be ignored but prioritized and feathered into your litany, as well as your fuel calculations and what to do next.
Flight planning and reviewing upcoming events during the flight are ways to minimize errors, increase safety, and to save brain cells for more, possibly critical, decisions later. We’ve always called it staying ahead of the airplane. In flight, a big surprise can turn out poorly, and there’s no need to make it difficult on ourselves by trying a seat-of-the-pants maneuver or trying to come up with a litany at the last sec- ond. Ask around, find some of the litanies for your jet and if you like them, give them a try. They should help you avoid Mr. Potter, SAMs and tweets from The Big Kahuna.
Note: Originally published June 2017.
Kevin Dingman has been flying for more than 40 years. He’s an ATP typed in the B737 and DC9 with 28,000 hours in his logbook. A retired Air Force major, he flew the F-16 and later performed as an USAF Civil Air Patrol Liaison Officer. He flies volunteer missions for the Christian organiz tion Wings of Mercy, is employed by a major airline, and owns and operates a Beechcraft Duke.Contact Kevin at dinger10d@ gmail.com.
24 • TWIN & TURBINE / February 2021
Turbines