Home › ATPL study guides › Principles of Flight

ATPL subject 081

ATPL Principles of Flight: what it covers and how to study it

Principles of Flight (subject 081) explains why an aeroplane flies: how lift and drag are produced, what happens at the stall and at high speed, and how the aeroplane is stable and controlled.

By Matthew Dowell, airline training captain and Chief Flight Instructor. A revision guide, not approved by any regulator. Your training organisation sets the syllabus and exam rules, and regulations always take precedence.

What the Principles of Flight paper covers

• Lift and drag, and how they change with speed and angle of attack
• The stall and its consequences
• High-lift devices
• High-speed flight and compressibility effects
• Stability and control
• Propellers and flight in different conditions

Where students find it hard

This paper rewards a clear mental picture over memorised statements. Students who can explain what is happening and why can answer unfamiliar questions; those who only recall definitions struggle when a question approaches the idea from a different angle.

How to study Principles of Flight

• Explain each idea aloud in your own words, with a diagram.
• Follow cause and effect: what changes, and what follows from it?
• Use the questions to find where your mental picture breaks down.

The Mastering ATPL book for this subject

The Mastering ATPL Principles of Flight book is available on Amazon and through the Other stores links.

Mastering ATPL · Subject 081

Principles of Flight

Lift, drag, stalls, high-speed flight, stability and control.

Buy on Amazon UK Amazon US Other stores

Also on Amazon in Europe: Amazon.de · Amazon.fr · Amazon.es · Amazon.it · Amazon.nl

How this book is organised

The book follows the topics listed above, in turn, starting with lift and drag, and how they change with speed and angle of attack; the stall and its consequences; high-lift devices, so you can see which part of the paper you are covering at any point. It is a complete revision guide and question bank built on the full published learning objectives for the subject, and it ends with a mock examination weighted as the real one. Work through a section, test yourself on it, and keep the mock examination for the end, under timed conditions.

Related subjects

• ATPL Aircraft General Knowledge
• ATPL Performance
• ATPL Operational Procedures
• ATPL Communications

See also: all 13 ATPL subjects and 14 study guides · how the EASA ATPL exams work · what order to study and sit the papers · Principles of Flight in the airline technical interview.