Reminder: Avoid Complacency by Following Pre-flight Checklists
Did you know that maintenance-related problems are one of the deadliest causes of accidents in general aviation? Contributing to this is a pilot’s failure to identify maintenance discrepancies because of a lack of knowledge, complacency with checklists, or improper techniques used during the preflight of the aircraft.
Advanced preflight is a practice that helps aircraft owners and pilots become more aware of all the safety-related data pertaining to their aircraft. In addition to using the preflight checklist, it focuses on being more cognizant of who maintains your aircraft and how to apply a detailed approach to your preflight inspection based on a review of the aircraft’s maintenance history.
The foundation of any effective preflight inspection is knowledge: knowledge of your aircraft’s history, its systems and components, and its propensity for possible failures or vulnerabilities — the sometimes-inconspicuous items not always covered in an Airworthiness Directive (AD) or a manufacturer’s Service Bulletin.
Learn how to spot the red flags and mitigate them with a more rigorous preflight inspection at https://medium.com/faa/perfecting-your-preflight-inspection-17a2b6f2d21a.
In early March 2025, the FAA held an Aviation Safety Call to Action (www.faa.gov/newsroom/faa-takes-immediate-safety-steps-following-general-and-business-aviation-call-action) to identify concrete steps to address recent safety incidents and make general and business aviation safer. As part of our commitment to aviation safety, we are reminding general and business aviation pilots about the tools and resources available to them during their pre-flight, in-flight, and post-flight activities. Learn more about the GA Call to Action at www.faa.gov/GA-action.
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