PLT366: Accident and Incident Reporting
What code PLT366 covers, why the FAA tests it, and how to study Accident and Incident Reporting before your checkride.
Recall regulations - accident / incident reporting and preserving wreckage
What this means for your checkride
After an aircraft accident, the operator must file a written report on NTSB Board Form 6120 within 10 days; for an overdue aircraft that is still missing, the report is filed after it has been missing for 7 days. A report on an incident is filed only when an authorized NTSB representative requests it. The operator is also responsible for preserving, to the extent possible, the aircraft wreckage, cargo, mail, and all flight and maintenance records until the Board takes custody or grants a release.
Pilots and operators must know the difference between immediate notification and the later written report, and their duty to protect the wreckage and records for the investigation.
Filing the report does not replace the immediate notification required at the time of the accident; both duties are separate.
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.