Aircraft documents and inspections
10 min readLesson 26 of 59
- List the documents that must be on board (ARROW)
- Know the required inspections and their intervals
- Determine whether an airplane is legal to fly from its logbooks
Documents on board: ARROW
- Airworthiness certificate, displayed where passengers and crew can see it (91.203).
- Registration certificate (currently valid for 7 years).
- Radio station license, only needed for international flights.
- Operating limitations: the POH/AFM, placards and markings (91.9).
- Weight and balance data (usually in the POH).
Required inspections
| Inspection | Interval | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| Annual | Within the preceding 12 calendar months | 91.409 |
| 100-hour | Every 100 hours if the airplane is used for hire or for flight instruction provided by the person furnishing the airplane | 91.409 |
| ELT | Within 12 calendar months; battery replaced after 1 cumulative hour of use or half its useful life | 91.207 |
| Transponder | Within 24 calendar months | 91.413 |
| Altimeter and static system | Within 24 calendar months, for IFR in controlled airspace | 91.411 |
| Airworthiness Directives (ADs) | As required by each AD | Part 39 |
The 100-hour limit can be exceeded by up to 10 hours only to fly the airplane to a place where the inspection can be done, and that extra time counts against the next 100 hours. An annual inspection can take the place of a 100-hour, but not the other way around.
A common memory aid is AV1ATE: Annual, VOR check (IFR only, every 30 days), 100-hour, Altimeter/static, Transponder, ELT.
Who's responsible
The owner or operator is primarily responsible for keeping the airplane in airworthy condition, including inspections and ADs (91.403). But the pilot in command decides whether it's safe to fly (91.7). Before your checkride, you'll be expected to find each inspection in the logbooks and show it's current.
Key takeaways
- On board: ARROW (airworthiness, registration, radio license if international, operating limitations, weight and balance).
- Annual every 12 calendar months; 100-hour if for hire or instruction; ELT 12, transponder 24 calendar months.
- Owner keeps it airworthy; the PIC decides if it's safe to fly.
What the examiner may ask
Practice answering out loud before you open each answer.
Show me in the logbooks that this airplane is airworthy.
Who is responsible for maintaining the airplane in airworthy condition?
Is a 100-hour inspection required on a rental airplane?
Common mistakes
- Not knowing where the inspection entries are in the logbooks before the checkride.
- Forgetting that the 10-hour 100-hour overfly is only to reach an inspection location.
- Assuming the radio station license is required domestically.
Read it in the FAA sources
Lesson check
Get every question right to complete the lesson. Take your time; wrong answers explain why.
Something wrong or out of date? Report an error