PLT485: Taxiing
What code PLT485 covers, why the FAA tests it, and how to study Taxiing before your checkride.
Recall taxiing / crosswind / techniques
What this means for your checkride
Taxiing in wind means positioning the flight controls so gusts cannot lift a wing or the tail. The rule is to climb into a quartering headwind (aileron into the wind) and dive away from a quartering tailwind (aileron away from the wind, elevator down), keeping the upwind surfaces held down.
Wind can flip a light airplane on the ground, so the FAA tests the correct control positions for each wind direction during taxi.
Pilots relax the controls once rolling. The greatest upset risk is a quartering tailwind, where the wind can get under the wing and tail; the controls must be positioned for the wind throughout the taxi, not just at the start.
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.