PLT105: Airborne Radar
What code PLT105 covers, why the FAA tests it, and how to study Airborne Radar before your checkride.
Recall airborne radar / thunderstorm detection equipment - use / limitations
What this means for your checkride
Airborne and ground weather radar (including NEXRAD shown in the cockpit) detects precipitation, which is a proxy for storm intensity, not the turbulence itself. It has real limits: heavy rain can block the beam so a storm behind it looks weak, and datalink NEXRAD in the cockpit is delayed by minutes, so a cell may have moved from where it appears.
Misreading radar leads pilots into storms they thought they were avoiding, so the FAA tests what radar actually shows and its blind spots.
Pilots treat cockpit NEXRAD as real time. The mosaic can be several minutes old, so you must give fast-moving cells a wide margin and never use it to pick your way between storms as if it were live.
Where to study it
A code on your test report is an area of deficiency. An authorized instructor must review it with you and endorse that review before you take the practical test, and the examiner may revisit it during the oral. Study it until you can explain it out loud, not just recognize the answer.