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PL.IV.A — Vertical Takeoff and Landing

PL.IV.A for the Private Pilot Powered Lift ACS: official objective, references, and 18 exact knowledge, risk-management, and skill descriptions.

FAA-S-ACS-13, November 2023. This study page does not replace the current FAA publication or an examiner's plan of action.

Official task context

PL.IV.A official ACS context
Certificate or ratingPrivate Pilot
Aircraft categoryPowered Lift
Area of operationArea of Operation IV. Hovering Maneuvers
TaskTask A. Vertical Takeoff and Landing
Task code prefixPL.IV.A
Official references14 CFR part 91; FAA-H-8083-2, FAA-H-8083-25; Flight Manual
FAA documentFAA-S-ACS-13 — Private Pilot for Powered-Lift Category Airman Certification Standards
FAA source libraryOpen the official ACS library

Official task objective

To determine the applicant exhibits satisfactory knowledge, risk management, and skills associated with vertical takeoff and landing from a hover.

What the ACS code means

  • PL identifies the ACS standard family used for this Private Pilot Powered Lift document.
  • IV identifies Hovering Maneuvers, the Area of Operation.
  • A identifies Vertical Takeoff and Landing, the Task within that Area.
  • K, R, and S identify knowledge, risk-management, and skill elements. The number selects the item; a trailing lowercase letter identifies a listed sub-element.

Knowledge elements

Official ACS knowledge items and mock-oral treatment
ACS codeOfficial descriptionHow a mock oral can probe it
PL.IV.A.K1Elements related to a vertical takeoff to a hover and landing from a hover.Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant.
PL.IV.A.K2Appropriate aircraft configuration for a stationary hover.Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant.
PL.IV.A.K3Effect of wind on flight control inputs.Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant.
PL.IV.A.K4Ground effect.Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant.

Risk management elements

Official ACS risk management items and mock-oral treatment
ACS codeOfficial descriptionHow a mock oral can probe it
PL.IV.A.R1Obstacle and hazard avoidance.Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision.
PL.IV.A.R2Dynamic rollover.Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision.
PL.IV.A.R3Powerplant failure during hover.Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision.
PL.IV.A.R4Downwash.Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision.
PL.IV.A.R5Ground resonance.Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision.

Skills elements

Official ACS skills items and mock-oral treatment
ACS codeOfficial descriptionHow a mock oral can probe it
PL.IV.A.S1Complete the appropriate checklist(s).Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.
PL.IV.A.S2Comply with air traffic control (ATC) or evaluator instructions and make radio calls as appropriate.Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.
PL.IV.A.S3Position the primary flight controls, including the thrust vector, for the prevailing environmental conditions.Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.
PL.IV.A.S4Ascend to and maintain recommended hovering altitude, and descend from recommended hovering altitude in headwind, crosswind, and tailwind conditions, without drift.Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.
PL.IV.A.S5Establish recommended hovering altitude, ±1/2 of that altitude within 10 feet of the surface; if above 10 feet, ±5 feet.Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.
PL.IV.A.S6Maintain position within ±4 feet of a designated point.Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.
PL.IV.A.S7Descend vertically to within 2 feet of the designated touchdown point.Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.
PL.IV.A.S8Maintain headings ±10°, as specified by the evaluator.Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.
PL.IV.A.S9Use single-pilot resource management (SRM) or crew resource management (CRM), as appropriate.Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test.

Difficulty data

Difficulty calibration is ongoing for this Task. A difficulty estimate is published only with a sufficiently large, privacy-preserving first directly recorded assessment sample. Any observed difficulty comes from Checkride AI mock-oral practice assessments and is a practice-data proxy, not an FAA practical-test pass or fail rate.

Difficulty calibration remains ongoing until an item clears the private reporting threshold. Percentages, when available, describe the share who needed review on their first directly recorded assessment. Underlying sample sizes are never published, and historical final states are not backfilled into this measure.

How to use this in a mock oral

A mock examiner can ask you to explain the published elements, apply them to the configured aircraft and airport scenario, identify risks, and defend a decision. The prompts are practice scenarios; they are not claimed to be actual FAA examiner scripts or a prediction of the questions you will receive.

Practice in a mock oral

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