Originally Posted by
double_barrel
Indeed, + 1000 for both. Over 20 hours into my PPL, no-one has mentioned the existence of an 'instruction book'!
Which reminds, Pilot_Dar, you kindly sent me a link to the manual for the C172M. All of its units are 'American', especially airspeed is in mph which seems very odd when the dial is in Knots. But also all the fuel, weight, balance is in rods, poles and perches. What is the advice on using this? Does a 'metric' version exist ? Or do I work in the given units and convert at the end ?
To somewhat condense Pilot DARs reply, you'll find many additions to the Flight Manual in the supplements. Case in point, in NZ we are metric but we must operate our US made aircraft in a mixture of imperial and US measurements (US gallons, fuel pounds, statue miles, nautical miles, feet, knots) as well as metric (visibility is always given in meters or km - don't ask me why). The FM supplements may contain tables to allow quick conversion of units. For example, when doing a weight and balance, I need to convert liters of fuel (what our pumps and fuel dipsticks are calibrated in) to kilograms to fuel pounds as the chart is in pounds. You may also find approved modifications to that specific aircraft in there as well. For example, our 172M has the Supplemental Type Certificate that upgrades the engine output to 180hp but restricts flap travel to 30 degrees maximum. We also have a STC that allows us to remove the right hand door for photo ops or liferaft dropping.
The lesson here Double_Barrel is that you'll find that no two 172s are alike (the older they are, the more likely this is), and I cannot recommend strongly enough the need to read through the flight manual (and supplements) for any aircraft you might fly before you crank it over, especially if you have never flown it before.