# AI.X.I — Spin Awareness and Spins — Flight Instructor Airplane ACS

> AI.X.I from FAA-S-ACS-25, including the official objective, references, notes, and 23 exact knowledge, risk-management, and skill descriptions.

Canonical HTML: [https://www.check-ride.ai/acs/airplane/flight-instructor/ai-x-i](https://www.check-ride.ai/acs/airplane/flight-instructor/ai-x-i)

Site reference: [https://www.check-ride.ai/llms.txt](https://www.check-ride.ai/llms.txt)

## Official Task context

- FAA document: Flight Instructor for Airplane Category Airman Certification Standards
- Identifier: FAA-S-ACS-25
- Published source date: November 2023
- Aircraft category: Airplane
- Certificate or rating: Flight Instructor
- Area of Operation: Area of Operation X. Slow flight, Stalls, and Spins
- Task: Task I. Spin Awareness and Spins
- Task code prefix: AI.X.I
- Official references: AC 61-67; FAA-H-8083-2, FAA-H-8083-3, FAA-H-8083-9, FAA-H-8083-25; POH/AFM
- FAA source library: https://www.faa.gov/training_testing/testing/acs

## Official Task objective

To determine the applicant understands spins, can apply that knowledge, manage associated risks, demonstrate appropriate skills, and provide effective instruction.

## Knowledge elements

- **AI.X.I.K1** — Purpose of and procedures for spin awareness and spins.
- **AI.X.I.K2** — Aerodynamics associated with spins in various airplane configurations, including the relationship between angle of attack, airspeed, load factor, power setting, airplane weight and center of gravity, airplane attitude, and yaw effects.
- **AI.X.I.K3** — What causes a spin and how to identify the entry, incipient, and developed phases of a spin.
- **AI.X.I.K4** — Spin recovery procedure.
- **AI.X.I.K5** — Human factors associated with spin instruction.
- **AI.X.I.K6** — How to determine if an airplane approved for the spin maneuver based on airworthiness category and type certificate.
- **AI.X.I.K7** — Flight situations where unintentional spins may occur.
- **AI.X.I.K8** — Entry procedure and minimum entry altitude for intentional spins.
- **AI.X.I.K9** — Control procedure to maintain a stabilized spin.
- **AI.X.I.K10** — Recognize conditions that lead to a spin for future avoidance.
- **AI.X.I.K11** — Orientation during a spin, including which instrument(s) are reliable for determining the directions of spin.
- **AI.X.I.K12** — Recovery procedure and minimum recovery altitude for intentional spins.
- **AI.X.I.K13** — Common errors related to this Task.

## Risk management elements

- **AI.X.I.R1** — Factors and situations that could lead to inadvertent spin and loss of control.
- **AI.X.I.R2** — Range and limitations of stall warning indicators (e.g., aircraft buffet, stall horn, etc.).
- **AI.X.I.R3** — Spin recovery procedure.
- **AI.X.I.R4** — Effect of environmental elements on airplane performance related to spins (e.g., turbulence, microbursts, and high-density altitude).
- **AI.X.I.R5** — Collision hazards.
- **AI.X.I.R6** — Distractions, task prioritization, loss of situational awareness, or disorientation.

## Skills elements

- **AI.X.I.S1** — Clear the area.
- **AI.X.I.S2** — Select an entry altitude that allows the Task to be completed no lower than 4,000 feet AGL.
- **AI.X.I.S3** — Enter and recover from an intentional spin if requested by the evaluator.
- **AI.X.I.S4** — Analyze and correct common errors related to this Task.

## Difficulty methodology

Difficulty calibration is ongoing for this Task. Observed difficulty is a privacy-thresholded check-ride.ai mock-oral practice proxy, not an FAA practical-test pass or fail rate. Underlying sample sizes and the private reporting threshold are not published.

## Official Task notes

- At the discretion of the evaluator, a logbook record attesting applicant instructional competency in spin entries, spins, and spin recoveries may be accepted in lieu of this Task. The flight instructor who conducted the spin instruction must certify the logbook record.
- See Appendix 2: Safety of Flight and Appendix 3: Aircraft, Equipment, and Operational Requirements & Limitations for information related to this Task.

## Use in practice

A mock examiner can ask a pilot to explain the published elements, apply them to the configured aircraft and airport context, identify risks, and defend a decision. Practice prompts are not represented as actual FAA examiner scripts or predictions of the questions a candidate will receive.