Documents

Aircraft Documents (ARROW)

Aircraft cannot be operated legally without carrying certain documents. It’s important to know these documents, not only for your checkride, but as a private pilot: you’ll likely rent, own, or fly many airplanes during your time flying, and you need to be able to make sure each one is legal to operate.

Lesson Notes

Certain documents must be on-board an aircraft to operate legally. The acronym ARROW can help us remember which documents we need. They include:

• Airworthiness Certificate
• Registration Certificate
• Radio Operators Permit (Int’l Only)
• Operations and Limitations Handbook (tied to the airplane’s serial number)
• Weight and Balance Data (signed by a mechanic)

Some optional equipment installed in your aircraft, like GPS units or transponders, requires its own operator’s manual, which must be in the aircraft.

It doesn’t matter how you remember these documents, just make sure you remember them. This definitely shouldn’t be something you have to think about for a checkride!

Additional Resources

• Acronyms Quick Reference Handout

Flashcard Questions

• What are the ARROW Documents?
• When is a Radio Operator’s permit required?
• What must be on the weight and balance data?
• Your local flight club recently bought a new, cheap Cessna 172. The club owners casually mention that the previous owner lost the Operations and Limitations Handbook for the aircraft, but they were able to find one for the same make and model online. They downloaded and printed it and left it in the airplane. Does this fulfill the legal requirement for the Operations and Limitations Handbook?
• You remove the rear passenger seats in your Beechcraft in order to use it for baggage. Do you need a new weight and balance data sheet?