Why Flight Sim Checklists Are Vital in High School Aviation Classrooms

Kids love video games. Once a flight simulator enters a classroom, their first impression is, “What a cool video game!” As a teacher, the next thing out of your mouth should be, “It’s not a video game. It’s a flight simulator.”

From that moment on, your discipline and approach to aviation checklists will determine how effectively students use them. The initial habits you instill will be adopted by the students more likely than not. These should include how to approach the simulator, correct sitting position, holding the yoke and throttle handle correctly, feet placement on the rudder pedals, and most importantly, a mandate to properly use checklists every time without exception. 

Why checklists are critical 

This is what actual pilots do. Those of us who have been pilots for a while know the importance of using checklists properly and not intentionally or accidentally skipping any checklist items.

Checklists are used in aviation for every phase of flight, from preflight before a pilot enters the airplane through shutting down the engine and systems at the end of a flight. Checklists also can include additional items specific to the pilot or aircraft to assist in various phases of flight. 

The aircraft manufacturer provides checklists in the Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH). They also are available from pilot shops and can be viewed online for many aircraft makes and models. ForeFlight, a popular iPad app for pilots, even includes a checklist section that allows you to download checklists for specific makes and models of aircraft.

One day, after getting my private pilot Certificate in a Cessna 172N, I rented a Cessna from a different flight school than where I had learned.  Although I was familiar with the Cessna 172N, I found that the Cessna 172S I rented was sufficiently different enough to create some problems for me. I should also mention that my fiancée was on board, so her safety was in my hands.

The 172S checklist the flight school provided was a bit different than the one I used when I was training. As a still-new pilot, and because of the unexpected checklist items for the 172S, I inadvertently skipped setting the heading indicator to the magnetic compass. That’s a big checklist item to skip! Had I been more disciplined, I would not have made this mistake.

Soon after takeoff, I flew the heading I planned, based on the reading from the heading indicator I had failed to set correctly. Within a matter of minutes, I found myself lost. The rest of that story is for another article.

I mention this pilot error to illustrate that, by skipping an item on the checklist, it didn’t take long for me to lose track of where I was. Being lost in an airplane isn’t a great idea. I eventually realized my error and located where I was on the map, but a checklist mistake can have more dire consequences. I was lucky. My checklist discipline was not what it should have been that day.

Implementing checklists in the classroom

The flight simulator is a great tool to teach checklist usage and adherence. It’s also much easier to teach in a simulator than in an airplane.

Let’s look at the actual “Before Takeoff” checklist in a Cessna 172S.

BEFORE TAKE OFF

1. Parking Brake -- SET.
2. Passenger Seat Backs -- MOST UPRIGHT POSITION.
3. Seats and Seat Belts -- CHECK SECURE.
4. Cabin Doors -- CLOSED and LOCKED.
5. Flight Controls -- FREE and CORRECT.
6. Flight Instruments -- CHECK and SET.
7. Fuel Quantity -- CHECK.
8. Mixture -- RICH.
9. Fuel Selector Valve -- RECHECK BOTH.
   1. Magnetos -- CHECK (RPM drop should not exceed 150 RPM on either magneto or 50 RPM differential between magnetos). Throttle -- 1800 RPM.
   2. Vacuum Gage -- CHECK.
   3. Engine Instruments and Ammeter -- CHECK.
10. Annunciator Panel -- Ensure no annunciators are illuminated.
11. Throttle -- CHECK IDLE.
12. Throttle -- 1000 RPM or LESS.
13. Throttle Friction Lock -- ADJUST.
14. Strobe Lights -- AS DESIRED.
15. Radios and Avionics -- SET.
16. NAV/GPS Switch (if installed) -- SET.
17. Autopilot (if installed) -- OFF.
18. Manual Electric Trim (if installed) -- CHECK.
19. Elevator Trim -- SET for takeoff.
20. Wing Flaps -- SET for takeoff (0°-10°).
21. Brakes -- RELEASE.

A total of 22 items must be checked. This is where the discipline part comes in. The first few times students use the checklist, it will take a while. They will need to know where to look, what to touch, and what to interpret. Fortunately, the above checklist is easier to complete in a Redbird FMX than in a real airplane.

Let’s look at items 10a, 10b, and 10c - the Magnetos, Vacuum Gauge, and Ammeter checks. If students are not taught how to use the checklist, they will never check those items. If one of the magnetos is going bad, the pilot may not realize it until they are in the air. The system is set up so that if one magneto goes bad, the other should work. However, if the second fails, then there will be a problem. Therefore, a pilot would like to know before takeoff if both magnetos are functioning correctly, hence the checklist.

Likewise, if the vacuum gauge is not reading in the green (normal range), then the engine-driven vacuum pump may be faulty or starting to fail. If that is the case, then eventually, the gyro instruments like the attitude indicator and heading indicator will fail. Again, I’d like to check that before taking to the skies.

Finally, the ammeter check. If the ammeter isn’t reading correctly or is showing a discharge on the battery, then the alternator isn’t working properly. Eventually, a loss of electrical instruments will occur as the battery discharges. I can’t help but hear the words of the legendary John King saying, “And they print the items on the checklist…because they thought you might want to know.”

Challenges

As a high school instructor, you should be aware of a few main challenges with students using checklists. 

1. Beyond adopting the checklist, they need to understand the "why" and "what" of each checklist item. For example, why do we check the vacuum gauge, and what are we looking for? Why do we check the ammeter, and what are we looking for?
   
   
2. They also may be reluctant to take the time necessary to get through the checklist methodically and correctly. Unfortunately, attention spans seem to get shorter each year. Getting a student to sit for any length of time to read and concentrate on something is far more difficult this year than last. As the teacher, you must fight the good fight and insist on effective checklist usage.

Suggestions

After teaching high school aviation for five years, I believe the following lessons and suggestions will help you integrate effective checklist usage in the classroom. For this example, let’s assume you have a typical high school aviation classroom with flight simulators for Cessna 172S aircraft.

You should model for the students how to use the checklist methodically. Present each student with a printed copy of the checklist and encourage them to follow along line by line. 

On the first reading, stop at each item, use the simulator to show what needs to happen, and explain why. You should give the students time to take notes to help reinforce the "why" and "what" of each checklist item. This process may take the better part of an entire class period depending upon prior knowledge by the students.

Once you have demonstrated checklist usage to the students, they should work in pairs to run through it again, mirroring the process they would use in an airplane (the pilot flying in the left seat and the pilot monitoring in the right seat). They should perform the checklist using the challenge and response method where the pilot monitoring reads the checklist item, and the flying pilot completes and responds the item.

For example, the pilot monitoring says, “Parking Brake,” and the pilot flying sets the parking brake and says, “Set.” The pilot monitoring should verify the correct action and response have been given before moving to the next item.

Two students working together can help alleviate many questions that may otherwise be asked of the teacher. This method also works extremely well in promoting crew resource management (CRM), a critical skill for airline and charter flying. 

Depending on the air carrier or charter company, the standard operating procedures in those environments may allow for a flow to be completed and checked with the checklist. A flow is a memorized sequence of checklist items to maximize efficiency. However, at the beginner level, it is best to go line by line with the checklist.

If you prefer to have one student per simulator, then students must complete the checklist on their own. In this case, you must be very present and engaged, especially at first. Students often want to skip ahead in the checklist. Additionally, students may be reluctant to draw attention to themselves by raising their hands to ask a question. 

Another effective technique is asking students to read checklist items aloud while pointing at (or touching) each item. Another flight instructor taught me that. 

In the airplane, I used to read checklist items silently to myself, and my flight instructor asked me to read each item aloud (and touch) so he could hear me say it and see me do it. If your students do this in the simulator, they will do it in the airplane, which flight instructors and designated pilot examiners will appreciate. Pay close attention while students are running checklists, especially in the beginning.

I strongly encourage you to reinforce the continual use of checklists while students use the flight simulators in your classroom. You want it to become habit-based behavior for the students, so the checklist always should be accessible by the pilot. 

Once these good habits are formed, they will directly transfer to the real aircraft. As students progress through their flight training, the checklist will become more automatic.

You should remind students that their flight instructors will expect checklist usage, and when they take their checkride the designated pilot examiner will demand it. They cannot pass the checkride without it! Remember, it all starts with you, the teacher.