Airline Transport Pilot and Type Rating for Airplane Category › I. Preflight Preparation › Task D. High-Altitude Aerodynamics (ATP) (AMEL, AMES)

AA.I.D.S1

Skill

If a cruise altitude is reached, manage the airplane’s systems and energy state.

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Study note

Get a short, cited explanation of this element written from the FAA handbooks: the core idea, the numbers that matter, common test traps, and a quick self-check.

From the FAA library

Airplane Flying Handbook p. 4-2
Chapter 4: Energy Management: Mastering Altitude and Airspeed Control › Viewing the Airplane as an Energy System › A Frame of Reference for Managing Energy State
example, if the pilot decides to put all the surplus energy into altitude, the airplane can climb at a constant airspeed. [Figure 4-1A] If the pilot opts to place all the surplus energy into airspeed, the airplane ... accelerate while maintaining altitude. [Figure 4-1B] When drag exceeds thrust, (T – D < 0), the airplane's total mechanical energy decreases. The pilot has two sources of stored energy to tap into. For example, the pilot may choose…
Airplane Flying Handbook p. 4-6
Chapter 4: Energy Management: Mastering Altitude and Airspeed Control › Rules of Energy Control › Visualizing the Airplane’s Ability to “Move” Between Energy States
Rules of Energy Control The central principle encapsulating the role of the throttle and elevator for managing the airplane’s energy can be summed up as follows: coordinated throttle and elevator inputs control the airplane’s energy state. Modifying ... popular adage, the principle can be restated as “pitch plus power controls energy state.” This central principle serves to guide a set of general energy control rules to achieve and maintain any desired vertical flight path and airspeed targets within…
Airplane Flying Handbook p. 4-12
Chapter 4: Energy Management: Mastering Altitude and Airspeed Control › Mitigating Risks from Mismanagement of Energy › Managing Energy Errors
Figure 4-11. An energy state matrix that translates the main altitude-speed deviations into energy errors relative to the desired energy state (5). Monitoring the altimeter (or other flight path reference) and airspeed indicator allows the pilot to distinguish ... these two types of energy errors. In total energy errors, the airplane has too much energy (blue boxes) or too little energy (red boxes). The pilot will notice that altitude and speed deviate in the same direction (“lower-and-slower…
Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge p. 8-6
Chapter 8: Flight Instruments › Types of Altitude
Indicated altitude—read directly from the altimeter (uncorrected) when it is set to the current altimeter setting. 2. True altitude—the vertical distance of the aircraft above sea level—the actual altitude. It is often expressed as feet above mean ... level (MSL). Airport, terrain, and obstacle elevations on aeronautical charts are true altitudes. 3. Absolute altitude—the vertical distance of an aircraft above the terrain, or above ground level (AGL). 4. Pressure altitude—the altitude indicated when the altimeter setting…