Piper Warrior Preflight Checklist

[Placido Teofilo]

Sorryif this a dumb question but I can't find the answer in my POH and even my CFI didn't have an answer. I have a 1976 PA-28-151. I bought the plane to use as my trainer and am in the process of getting my license. On the pre-flight checklist that came with the plane, under the in cockpit section it has "check pitot static drain". After some searching, I found the drain just aft of the fuel selector. But what am I supposed to be checking?

Hi, this isn't a dumb questionat all! If you're plane is left out in the rain or it's hot and steamy out one summer day you can get rain water or condensation in the pitot and static systems rendering them inop. This can happen when you're washing the plane, too. When you're preflighting you push both buttons and if there's any water in the static or pitot system it will drain out at the lowest point in the system directly under the buttons. Just push it for a couple of seconds and your're done. There are two buttons, right? One for static, one for pitot.

Thanks Scott. Yes there are two buttons and since I found them, I've been pushing them during my pre-flight.... just didn't know why. ha ha. Luckily the plane is parked in a hangar and we definitely don't have much humidity in Montana this time of year.

Hi Jim,

They are logically, if not poorly placed on the left side about 18 inches behind the fuel selector valve, left of the pilots seat near the floor. You have to slide the seat backwards to get to them. PA-28, 32, 44 and 34 are all them same. Some of the early PA-28's don't have them but they're really needed to keep water out of the pitot static system.

Addendum...even though I have flown in some pretty heavy rain I have had no indication of water in either the pitot or static ports (on the same "mast" , of course). I did add an alternate static source many years ago because the plane did not have one originally.

I see your Arrow has separate static ports (2) at the rear of the fuselage. My static port and ram air are located on the same "mast". The configuration on your drawing is quite complex and definitely not going to be incorporated in my bird!! I figure after almost 50 years it is what it is! As I mentioned above, I have not had any issues with water in the system but there must have been some reason Piper made the change. Thanks for the data!! FYI, my Arrow also had the automatic landing gear extension system which was, fortunately, removed long before I bought the plane. I have heard only bad vibes about that system.

Dave, suggestion,, I would not screw with them UNLESS you are having a issue . These are NOT owner maintenance items and IF you do manage to take them apart, ( dont know of any one that has) you will need at MIN a leak check performed to verify integrity. YOu might need a full IFR check again. Knowing where they are is important, but these are one of the few things better left alone. There is no way to verify any repair to these short of a pitot static check. CArl

I wanted to learn to fly a plane and be friendly with the clouds. I wanted to be up there in the sky, looking down into the earth below, so far away from everything and everyone. But flying is expensive, so I never got around to having lessons. Until recently, that is.

I never knew planes can be so responsive! When I turned the yoke a bit to the right, the plane turned right immediately. I turned left, up, down, and generally, had so much fun acting as a pilot for a few minutes high up in the Johor Bahru airspace.

Hi Aleah,

If you wish to continue your flight training on a similar piper warrior ii (9m-tnc) based out of Subang , it costs less than SGD550 per hr ( in fact only RM650 per hr with an instructor ) . D drop me an email if you are keen. You will be taught by a very experienced MAS pilot with over 25,000 flying hrs experience.

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Does the Mooney M20C Mark 21 have an "exhaust piper"? How about a fuel gascolator drain in the engine access compartment? Finally, is there a pitot-static system drain as there is in the Piper Warrior series?

Thanks in advance for any responses. My memory of the type is rustier than I'd like.

Well, I could be wrong...I thought the Mark 21 designation stopped in 1964, and the 65' models were just 20Cs and Ranger started in 1968. Thought only late model 20Bs and early Cs were Mark 21, but I can't find anything to support that right now. So all I can accuarately say is the 63' 20C has it in the nose gear well.

The "exhaust piper" was a line in an old 3rd party checklist I had laying around. I didn't remember seeing one when I flew a 1964 model M20C but I didn't fly anything newer until an M20J then the M201TN and those didn't have exhaust gizmos.

My purpose is currently purely selfish, I'm working on some new checklists that have more than the owner's manual fifeteen pages of how to wash the things and two on how to fly it. I'm aiming for a more airline-style set that has the short checklist for those that are flying more than once a month plus the "quick reference": book-style checklist for those that like expanded emergency procedures and a detailed preflight. Once I get the bugs worked out, I'm going to be even more selfish and ask if anyone here would be interested in proofreading the finished checklist in exchange for a free copy of it.

That's OK, I'm not neccesarily buying either. But I've been on a an iPad push for all of my written documents. I just don't have my check lists as well organized. I used to scan them at work and email them to my iPad.

While I strive to make the best checklists possible, nothing beats a checklist customized to the planes and how you fly, which is why I've made my iPad versions customizable and, most importantly, saved through updates. The best checklist is worth nothing if it remains unused.

3a8082e126