FAA · FAASTeam Safety Articles
Personal Minimums Development Worksheet
In Brief
What It Addresses
Illness, medication, stress, or fatigue; lack of currency (e.g., haven’t flown for several weeks) A d d
From the Document: selected source passages, quoted as written, for a quick overview.
If you are facing: Adjust baseline personal minimums to:
Pilot
Illness, medication, stress, or fatigue; lack of currency (e.g., haven’t flown for several weeks) A d d
At least
500 feet to ceiling
At least ½ mile to visibility
Aircraft
An unfamiliar airplane, or an aircraft with unfamiliar avionics/ equipment:
At least
500 ft to runway
length enVironment
Airports and airspace with different terrain or unfamiliar characteristics
S u b t r a c t
At least
5 knots from winds
External
Pressures “Must meet” deadlines, passenger pressures;
etc.
Baseline Personal Minimums
Weather Condition VFR MVFR IFR LIFR
Ceiling
Day
Night
Visibility
Day
Night
Turbulence SE ME Make/Model
Surface
Wind Speed
Surface
Wind Gust
Crosswind
Component
Performance SE ME Make/Model
Shortest
runway
Highest terrain
Highest density altitude
Step 4: Assemble and evaluate baseline personal minimums. Step 5: Adjust for specific conditions.
Federal Aviation
Administration
Developing Personal Minimums
Think of personal minimums as the human factors equivalent of reserve fuel. Personal minimums should provide a solid safety buffer between:
Skills required for the specific flight, and
Skills available to you through your training, experience, currency, and proficiency.
Step 1 – Review Weather Minimums
Step 2 – Assess Weather Experience and Personal Comfort Level Step 3 – Consider Winds and Performance Step 4 – Assemble Baseline Values Step 5 – Adjust for Specific Conditions Step 6 – Stick to the Plan!
CERTIFICATION LEVEL
Certificate level (e.g., private, commercial, ATP) Ratings (e.g., instrument, multiengine) Endorsements (e.g., complex, HP, high altitude) TRAINING SUMMARY Flight review (e.g., certificate, rating, Wings) Instrument Proficiency Check
Time since checkout in airplane 1
Time since checkout in airplane 2
EXPERIENCE
Total flying time
Years of flying experience
RECENT EXPERIENCE (last 12 months)
Hours Hours in this airplane (or identical model) Normal Landings
Crosswind landings
Night hours
Night landings
Hours flown in high density altitude
Hours flown in mountainous terrain
IFR hours
IMC hours (actual conditions)
Approaches (actual or simulated)
Time with specific GPS navigator
Time with specific autopilot Step 2(a): Record certification, training, & recent experience.
Category Ceiling Visibility
VFR greater than 3,000 AGL and greater than 5 miles MVFR 1,000 to 3,000 AGL and/or 3 to 5 miles IFR 500 to 999 AGL and/or 1 mile to less than 3 miles LIFR below 500 AGL and/or less than 1 mile Step 1: Review definitions for VFR & IFR weather minimums.
Experience & “Comfort Level” Assessment
Combined VFR & IFR
Weather
Condition VFR MVFR IFR LIFR
Ceiling
Day
Night
Visibility
Day
Night
Experience & “Comfort Level” Assessment
Wind & Turbulence
SE ME Make/
Model
Turbulence
Surface wind speed
Surface wind gusts
Crosswind component
Experience & “Comfort Level” Assessment
Performance Factors
SE ME Make/
Model
Performance
Shortest runway
Highest terrain
Highest density altitude
Step 2(b): Enter values for weather experience/ “comfort level.” Step 3(a): Enter values for experience / comfort in turbulence. Step 3(b): Enter values for performance.
Source: Federal Aviation Administration — www.faasafety.gov. Reproduced from the published record; FlightPush adds formatting only.
Author: Susan Parson
FAASTeam library-14078