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SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/pilot-five-ps

The FAA's 5P check covers the Plan, Plane, Pilot, Passengers and what?

Programming, meaning the avionics and automation.

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  1. Paperwork
  2. Programming ✔
  3. Propeller

Why: The 5P model in the PHAK lists five variables a single pilot manages: the Plan, the Plane, the Pilot, the Passengers and the Programming. Checking them at key points helps catch changes that call for a new decision.

Huh, didn't know that: The PHAK says the 5P idea came from a belief that older decision models were too reactionary.

The dad joke
What did the pilot say when his tablet froze? Looks like I need to check my fifth P.
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References

Answer: Programming. The 5P model in the PHAK lists five variables a single pilot manages: the Plan, the Plane, the Pilot, the Passengers and the Programming. Checking them at key points helps catch changes that call for a new decision.

  1. PHAK FAA-H-8083-25C Chapter 2, Aeronautical Decision-Making www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aviation/phak/04_phak_ch2.pdf
    These variables are the Plan, the Plane, the Pilot, the Passengers, and the Programming.
    Checked 2026-10-09.

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