IH.II.B — Helicopter Flight Instruments and Navigation Equipment
IH.II.B for the Instrument Rating Rotorcraft ACS: official objective, references, and 16 exact knowledge, risk-management, and skill descriptions.
FAA-S-ACS-14, November 2023. This study page does not replace the current FAA publication or an examiner's plan of action.
Official task context
| Certificate or rating | Instrument Rating |
|---|---|
| Aircraft category | Rotorcraft |
| Area of operation | Area of Operation II. Preflight Procedures |
| Task | Task B. Helicopter Flight Instruments and Navigation Equipment |
| Task code prefix | IH.II.B |
| Official references | 14 CFR part 91; AC 90-100, AC 90-105, AC 90-107, AC 91-78, AC 91.21-1; AIM; FAA-H-8083-2, FAA-H-8083-15, FAA-H-8083-21, FAA-H-8083-25 |
| FAA document | FAA-S-ACS-14 — Instrument Rating – Helicopter Airman Certification Standards |
| FAA source library | Open the official ACS library |
Official task objective
To determine the applicant exhibits satisfactory knowledge, risk management, and skills associated with managing instruments appropriate for an IFR flight.
What the ACS code means
- IH identifies the ACS standard family used for this Instrument Rating Rotorcraft document.
- II identifies Preflight Procedures, the Area of Operation.
- B identifies Helicopter Flight Instruments and Navigation Equipment, 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
| ACS code | Official description | How a mock oral can probe it |
|---|---|---|
| IH.II.B.K1 | Operation of the helicopter’s applicable flight instrument system(s), including. | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
| IH.II.B.K1a | a. Pitot-static instrument system and associated instruments | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
| IH.II.B.K1b | b. Gyroscopic/electric instrument system and associated instruments | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
| IH.II.B.K1c | c. Electrical systems, electronic flight instrument displays [primary flight display (PFD), multifunction display (MFD)], transponder and automatic dependent surveillance - broadcast (ADS-B) | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
| IH.II.B.K1d | d. Magnetic compass | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
| IH.II.B.K2 | Operation of the helicopter's applicable navigation system(s), including: | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
| IH.II.B.K2a | a. Very high frequency (VHF) Omnidirectional Range (VOR), distance measuring equipment (DME), instrument landing system (ILS), marker beacon receiver/indicators | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
| IH.II.B.K2b | b. Area navigation (RNAV), global positioning system (GPS), Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS), flight management system (FMS), autopilot | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
| IH.II.B.K3 | Use of an electronic flight bag (EFB), if used. | Explain the element, apply it to a scenario, and connect the answer to current references or aircraft information when relevant. |
Risk management elements
| ACS code | Official description | How a mock oral can probe it |
|---|---|---|
| IH.II.B.R1 | Monitoring and management of automated systems. | Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision. |
| IH.II.B.R2 | Difference between approved and non-approved navigation devices. | Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision. |
| IH.II.B.R3 | Modes of flight and navigation instruments, including failure conditions. | Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision. |
| IH.II.B.R4 | Use of an electronic flight bag. | Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision. |
| IH.II.B.R5 | Use of navigation databases. | Work through a scenario by identifying the hazard, evaluating the risk, and explaining a practical mitigation or decision. |
Skills elements
| ACS code | Official description | How a mock oral can probe it |
|---|---|---|
| IH.II.B.S1 | Operate and manage installed instruments and navigation equipment. | Describe the procedure, interpretation, or decision process that can be discussed during an oral. Physical aircraft performance remains part of the practical test. |
| IH.II.B.S2 | Operate and manage an applicant supplied electronic flight bag (EFB), if used. | 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.
Related ACS tasks
- All Instrument Rating Rotorcraft ACS tasks
20 task-level resources from FAA-S-ACS-14.
- IH.II.A — Aircraft Systems Related to Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) Operations
Area of Operation II. Preflight Procedures
- IH.II.C — Instrument Flight Deck Check
Area of Operation II. Preflight Procedures