Emergency Checklist Usage and Memory Items

When something goes wrong in the cockpit, the difference between a survivable incident and a catastrophe often comes down to one thing: preparation. Emergency procedures divide into two broad categories — actions you must execute immediately from memory before you can reach for the checklist, and actions you complete methodically with the printed checklist in hand. Understanding that distinction, knowing which items fall into each category, and practicing both until they become second nature is a cornerstone of private pilot training and one of the FAA's most tested emergency-procedures topics.

This article walks through the logic behind emergency checklists, explains memory items (sometimes called "immediate action" items), covers the practical workflow from recognition through resolution, and flags the exam traps students most often stumble into.

Why Two Tiers Exist

Not every emergency gives you the luxury of time. An engine fire, a sudden loss of control, or an engine failure at low altitude demands that you act in the first two to five seconds — before you could physically locate a checklist, open it to the right page, and begin reading. For these situations, aircraft manufacturers and FAA training standards identify a short set of memory items: critical actions that must happen fast enough that waiting for the checklist would allow the situation to deteriorate beyond recovery.

All other emergency and abnormal procedures are handled with the printed checklist. The checklist is not a crutch for people who did not study; it is the primary reference even for experienced professionals. Human memory under stress is unreliable. Adrenaline narrows attention, disrupts recall, and causes experienced pilots to skip steps they have performed dozens of times. Checklists exist precisely to compensate for these physiological realities.

The Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3) emphasizes that the printed checklist should be used whenever time and the nature of the emergency permit, and that memory items are the exception rather than the rule. The goal is to complete memory items first, stabilize the situation, and then immediately back up those actions with the printed checklist to verify accuracy and continue through remaining steps.

Memory Items: What They Are and How They Work

Memory items are a carefully curated short list of actions whose delay would lead to loss of life or loss of the aircraft. Manufacturers define these items in the Emergency section of the Pilot's Operating Handbook (POH), often distinguished by bold type, capital letters, or a specific callout that reads "Memory Items" or "Immediate Action." Common categories include:

• Engine failure after takeoff — establishing best-glide speed, selecting a landing area, and configuring the aircraft for an off-airport landing must begin within seconds of the power loss.
• Engine fire in flight — mixture to idle cutoff, fuel selector off, and magnetos off may need to happen before a checklist is in hand to prevent fire from spreading.
• Electrical fire — master switch off and avionics off in the immediate term.
• Spin recovery — the standard sequence (often taught as the PARE checklist) is power to idle, ailerons neutral, full opposite rudder to stop the rotation, then forward elevator (control) pressure to break the stall, followed by neutralizing the rudder and recovering from the resulting dive; this is an immediate-action sequence because altitude is being consumed rapidly.

Notice that the list is intentionally short. A memory item that takes thirty seconds to recall under stress is not a true memory item. Trainers and examiners expect student pilots to be able to recite and physically demonstrate these items smoothly, without hesitation, without reference material. If you find yourself unable to recall them on the ground, you certainly will not recall them in a cockpit with a failed engine at 500 feet AGL.

The Checklist Workflow After Memory Items

Once memory items are complete and the immediate threat is addressed — or for any abnormal situation that is not immediately life-threatening — the procedure is straightforward:

1. Aviate. Maintain aircraft control. Establish a stable airspeed and configuration before anything else. An engine failure does not become a crash because the engine stopped; it becomes one because the pilot allowed the airspeed to decay below stall speed while distracted.
2. Navigate. Identify the nearest suitable landing area if the situation might require landing. Turn toward it early so you preserve your options.
3. Communicate. Declare an emergency on the frequency you are currently using with ATC if already in contact; use 121.5 MHz if you are not in contact with ATC or cannot reach them on your working frequency. Squawk 7700. ATC can provide vectors, clear traffic, and alert emergency services. There is no penalty for declaring an emergency that resolves itself — the FAA explicitly encourages pilots to use this resource without hesitation.
4. Use the printed checklist. Only now — with the aircraft under control and a plan forming — do you open the POH's emergency section and work through the procedure step by step, reading each item aloud if possible and physically verifying each action.

This sequence is often summarized as Aviate, Navigate, Communicate. The printed checklist is the tool you use to work through the actual emergency or abnormal procedure once the aircraft is under control — it is not merely a communication aid during the Navigate and Communicate steps, but the primary means of executing the procedure itself. The Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA-H-8083-25) reinforces this priority hierarchy repeatedly.

Why It Matters: Checklists Save Lives

Accident investigations by the National Transportation Safety Board repeatedly identify improper or omitted emergency procedures as contributing factors. Pilots who attempt to recall multi-step emergency procedures entirely from memory under stress frequently skip or misequence steps. A fuel selector that was never moved to the correct tank, a primer that was never locked, or a fuel pump that was not turned on — each of these small omissions can mean the difference between a successful precautionary landing and a fatal crash.

The printed checklist also serves a psychological function: it slows the pilot down. Urgency bias — the impulse to rush through actions to "fix" a problem — is one of the most dangerous human factors in emergency management. Reading each line of a checklist forces a deliberate pace and gives the brain time to assess whether the action is actually appropriate. A pilot who skips to the bottom of the checklist and pulls the mixture without confirming the aircraft type or the actual malfunction can introduce a new emergency.

The Risk Management Handbook (FAA-H-8083-2) identifies task saturation and fixation as common hazards during abnormal situations. Checklists directly mitigate both by distributing cognitive load across a pre-tested sequence rather than demanding real-time improvisation.

Know Your Aircraft's POH

Memory items vary by aircraft make and model. The POH for a Cessna 172 differs from that of a Piper Cherokee, which differs from a Cirrus SR20 (which has a whole-airframe parachute as part of its emergency procedures). You must know the specific memory items and checklist procedures for the aircraft you are flying — not a generic set memorized from a textbook. Before your checkride, you should be able to open the Emergency section of your aircraft's POH and locate any procedure within seconds.

POH emergency sections are typically organized by system: engine, electrical, flight control, fire, and so on. Familiarizing yourself with that layout before an emergency means you are not searching blindly when stress has degraded your fine motor coordination and reading speed.

Key Numbers and Rules

• 121.5 MHz is the international emergency frequency; use it if you are not already in contact with ATC or cannot reach them on your working frequency.
• Squawk 7700 on the transponder to alert radar facilities of an emergency.
• Best glide speed (VBG) must be established immediately after engine failure — this is the first memory item for most single-engine aircraft and is found in the POH performance section.
• Memory items are manufacturer-defined — there is no universal FAA list; consult Section 3 (Emergency Procedures) of your specific aircraft's POH.
• No automatic FAA enforcement for declaring an emergency under 14 CFR 91.3(b) — pilots may deviate from any rule in Part 91 to the extent required to meet an emergency, though the PIC may still be required to submit a written report to the Administrator upon request under 91.3(c).
• Checklist after memory items — the AFH is explicit: once immediate actions are complete, always follow up with the printed checklist.

Memory Aid

The classic priority sequence for emergency management is A-N-C: Aviate, Navigate, Communicate. Here is what each letter demands:

• A — Aviate: Keep the wings level, maintain controlled flight, and establish the correct emergency airspeed. Nothing else matters if the aircraft is not under control.
• N — Navigate: Identify where you are, where you can land, and begin tracking toward that option. Do not let attention to the malfunction cause you to drift away from your best landing opportunity.
• C — Communicate: Declare the emergency, squawk 7700, and give ATC or nearby traffic your position and intentions. Then use the checklist for all remaining steps.

Common Test Traps

• Checklist first, always — FALSE. The exam may imply that reaching for the checklist is always the first step. In reality, memory items come first; the checklist follows to verify and continue.
• Declaring an emergency causes automatic FAA enforcement action. This is a persistent myth. 14 CFR 91.3(b) grants pilots broad authority to deviate from Part 91 rules in an emergency, though 91.3(c) may require a written report if the Administrator asks for one. The FAA does not punish pilots for good-faith emergency declarations.
• Best glide is the same as best rate of climb speed. These are different airspeeds. Best glide (VBG) maximizes glide distance; best rate (VY) maximizes altitude gain per unit of time. Know both from your POH.
• Memory items are the same for all aircraft. They are not. The FAA does not publish a universal list. Each manufacturer defines their own immediate-action items in the aircraft-specific POH.
• Communicate before aviating. ATC cannot help a pilot who has lost aircraft control. Aviate always comes first. Attempting radio calls while allowing airspeed to decay is a well-documented accident pattern.

Emergency checklist proficiency is not simply a checkride requirement — it is a habit system you build now, in training, so that when the unexpected happens at 3,000 feet on a solo cross-country, your hands and brain already know what to do. Study your aircraft's POH, drill your memory items until they are truly automatic, and respect the printed checklist as the professional tool it is.