Private pilot · ACS PA.IX.E · Instructor lesson plan
Engine Failure During Takeoff Before VMC (Simulated)
Student pack: Train: Engine Failure During Takeoff Before VMC (Simulated) · Full lesson: Prepare guide
1 · Objective
By the end of this lesson your student can explain engine failure during takeoff before vmc (simulated) in their own words, apply it in a realistic situation, and fly it to the ACS standard for PA.IX.E.
Why it matters for safety: An engine failure on the roll is survivable when the reaction is immediate: close both throttles and stop. Trying to fly before the airplane can be controlled on one engine leads to yaw and roll near the ground. The decision is made before the takeoff, in the briefing.
2 · Assign before the lesson
Pre-work: the free Train pack, Engine Failure During Takeoff Before VMC (Simulated). Lose an engine before you can fly on one: close both throttles, keep straight, stop.
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Pack: pilotprep.pro/train/ppl/engine-failure-during-takeoff-before-vmc · Full lesson: pilotprep.pro/prepare/ppl/engine-failure-during-takeoff-before-vmc
3 · Teach sequence
Key points to land
- Engine failure on the roll: close both throttles smoothly and promptly, keep directional control, brake and stop. No blue line, no memory items, no feathering: those belong to a failure after liftoff.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes; Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), PA.IX.E.S1-S2)
- The decision is by phase, not just speed: on the roll, or just airborne with the gear still down and runway ahead, close both throttles and land or stop straight ahead, even above published VMC.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- Keep it straight with rudder first, then nosewheel steering and brakes (land) or the flight controls (water).(Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), PA.IX.E.S2)
- Published VMC (the red line) is the slowest speed at which you can keep control with the critical engine suddenly inoperative, then hold straight flight with no more than 5° of bank. It is set under fixed conditions: sea-level standard day; maximum takeoff power on the operating engine; the critical engine windmilling with its propeller control in the takeoff position; the most unfavorable weight (the lightest) and the most unfavorable (aft) center of gravity; gear up; wing and cowl flaps and trim in the takeoff position; out of ground effect; no more than 5° of bank toward the operating engine; heading held within 20° with no more than 150 pounds of rudder force.(14 CFR 23.149 (now 23.2135); Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- Accelerate-stop distance: the runway needed to accelerate to a specified speed (often rotation), have an engine fail at that moment, and stop. In most light twins it is advisory data, not a limitation: compare it with the runway at today's weight and density altitude.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes; Your airplane's POH/AFM)
- Brief every takeoff: what you will do with a failure on the roll, just after liftoff with runway left, and once the gear is up.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- Configure by the checklist; a mis-set mixture or fuel selector is a common cause of a takeoff power loss.(Your airplane's POH/AFM)
VMC and the speeds
- Published VMC (the red line) is the slowest speed at which you can keep control with the critical engine suddenly inoperative, then hold straight flight with no more than 5° of bank. It is set under fixed conditions: sea-level standard day; maximum takeoff power on the operating engine; the critical engine windmilling with its propeller control in the takeoff position; the most unfavorable weight (the lightest) and the most unfavorable (aft) center of gravity; gear up; wing and cowl flaps and trim in the takeoff position; out of ground effect; no more than 5° of bank toward the operating engine; heading held within 20° with no more than 150 pounds of rudder force.(14 CFR 23.149 (now 23.2135); Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- Your real VMC differs whenever the conditions do. It goes up with a windmilling propeller (feathering lowers it), an aft CG, lighter weight, more power on the operating engine, and less bank toward it. It goes down with less power (a normally aspirated engine at altitude; a turbocharged one only above its critical altitude), gear extended (keel effect), and ground effect.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- Bank matters most: VMC rises more than 3 knots for each degree of bank less than 5°, and with the wings level control can be lost almost 20 knots above the published red line. Up to 5° toward the operating engine is the certification number, not the way you fly.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- The critical engine is the one whose failure is hardest to control: on twins with both propellers turning clockwise (seen from behind), the left, because of P-factor, accelerated slipstream, spiraling slipstream and torque. Twins with counter-rotating propellers (a Seminole or a Duchess) have no critical engine.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- VMC (red line): minimum control speed. VYSE (blue line): best rate of climb, or least loss, on one engine. VXSE: best angle on one engine. VSSE: safe single-engine speed, the slowest at which an engine may be intentionally failed in training.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
Distances
- Accelerate-stop: accelerate to a specified speed, have an engine fail, and stop. Accelerate-go: accelerate, lose an engine at that speed, and continue on the other to 50 feet. Many light twins publish only accelerate-stop.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes; Your airplane's POH/AFM)
- If accelerate-stop exceeds the runway, a failure near rotation may leave you off the end: reduce weight, wait for cooler air, or use a longer runway.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- A wet or contaminated runway, a downhill slope or a tailwind all lengthen the stop; on a wet runway braking is weaker and the tires can hydroplane, so brake firmly but modulate.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
The decision and the stop
- Brief it before the roll: "Failure before liftoff, or with the gear still down and runway ahead: I close both throttles and stop or land straight ahead." Continue only once airborne, gear coming up, at or above VXSE (or VMC + 5 knots), with single-engine climb assured at today's weight and density altitude.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- The stop: both throttles closed, directional control with rudder, then nosewheel steering and differential braking as speed falls; maximum braking without locking the wheels or losing control. Brief what is past the end of the runway in case of an overrun.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes)
- Configure by the checklist: mixtures, propellers, fuel selectors, trim, flaps, cowl flaps.(Your airplane's POH/AFM)
- In training the instructor or evaluator simulates the failure by closing one throttle at a low, safe speed on the roll; the engine is never shut down or feathered on the runway, and no failure is introduced in flight below VSSE.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes; Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), Appendix 2)
- A failure on the roll is startling. The briefing turns the reaction into one action: both throttles closed. Then keep straight and stop.(Risk Management Handbook (FAA-H-8083-2A))
Watch for in the airplane: Your instructor watches for a takeoff briefing, an immediate close of both throttles, straight tracking on the centerline with rudder, steering and brakes, a firm controlled stop, and no attempt to fly.
4 · Ask your student
In order: recall, then understanding, then applying it. Move up only when the answer shows it.
Recall · What do you do if an engine fails on the takeoff roll?
A strong answer: Close both throttles, keep straight with rudder, steering and brakes, and stop.
Understand · Why stop even if you're already above published VMC on the roll?
A strong answer: Real VMC with the wings level is higher than the red line, the airplane may not climb on one engine, and with runway ahead stopping is the safer choice.
Apply · The POH accelerate-stop distance is longer than today's runway. What does that mean for you?
A strong answer: A failure near rotation could take me off the end. Reduce weight, wait for cooler air, or use a longer runway, and brief it.
Scenarios to talk through
At 60 knots on the roll, with VMC at 65, the left engine sputters. What do you do?
Sound decision: Close both throttles, keep straight with right rudder, then steering and brakes, and stop.
Just airborne, gear still down, plenty of runway left, the right engine quits. What do you do?
Sound decision: Close both throttles and land straight ahead on the remaining runway.
Hot day, heavy, short runway. What do you check before departing?
Sound decision: Accelerate-stop distance against the runway, accelerate-go if published, and single-engine climb against the terrain; if they don't work, change the plan.
5 · Common student errors
Hesitating.
Why it matters: Each second uses runway.
How to correct it: Brief the action; close both throttles at once.
Closing only one throttle.
Why it matters: Asymmetric thrust swerves the airplane.
How to correct it: Both throttles closed.
Starting the airborne flow (blue line, feather) on the runway.
Why it matters: It delays the stop and invites an attempt to fly.
How to correct it: On the roll the only actions are throttles closed, straight, stop.
6 · Completion standard
- Close the throttles smoothly and promptly at a simulated engine failure.
- Maintain directional control and apply brakes (AMEL) or flight controls (AMES) as needed.
- Your student answers each "Ask your student" question in their own words, up to the Apply level, without prompting.
- They talk through the scenarios and reach a safe, legal decision, explaining why.
- They complete the pack’s quick check and can say what they flagged.
Area trained? Close out with a practice oral focused on PA.IX.E: pilotprep.pro/exam?exam=PPL&focus=PA.IX.E
7 · References
- Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Transition to Multiengine Airplanes
- Instrument Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-15B)
- Risk Management Handbook (FAA-H-8083-2A)
- Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), Areas IX and X (multiengine)
- Your airplane's POH/AFM, Emergency Procedures; Performance
- 14 CFR 23.149 (now 23.2135), Minimum control speed
- Airman Certification Standards, task PA.IX.E
PilotPrep instructor lesson plan, from the Engine Failure During Takeoff Before VMC (Simulated) lesson (checked against current FAA sources 2026-11-13). A study and teaching aid, not FAA guidance; teach to your own judgment and the current ACS.