What is the IMSAFE personal preflight checklist?

8-1-1. Fitness For Flight
a. Medical Certification.
1. All pilots except those flying gliders and free air balloons must possess valid medical certificates in order
to exercise the privileges of their airman certificates. The periodic medical examinations required for medical
certification are conducted by designated Aviation Medical Examiners, who are physicians with a special interest
in aviation safety and training in aviation medicine.
2. The standards for medical certification are contained in 14 CFR part 67. Pilots who have a history of
certain medical conditions described in these standards are mandatorily disqualified from flying. These medical
conditions include a personality disorder manifested by overt acts, a psychosis, alcoholism, drug dependence,
epilepsy, an unexplained disturbance of consciousness, myocardial infarction, angina pectoris and diabetes
requiring medication for its control. Other medical conditions may be temporarily disqualifying, such as acute
infections, anemia, and peptic ulcer. Pilots who do not meet medical standards may still be qualified under special
issuance provisions or the exemption process. This may require that either additional medical information be
provided or practical flight tests be conducted.
3. Student pilots should visit an Aviation Medical Examiner as soon as possible in their flight training in
order to avoid unnecessary training expenses should they not meet the medical standards. For the same reason,
the student pilot who plans to enter commercial aviation should apply for the highest class of medical certificate
that might be necessary in the pilot's career.
CAUTION-
The CFRs prohibit a pilot who possesses a current medical certificate from performing crewmember duties while the pilot
has a known medical condition or increase of a known medical condition that would make the pilot unable to meet the
standards for the medical certificate.
b. Illness.
1. Even a minor illness suffered in day-to-day living can seriously degrade performance of many piloting
tasks vital to safe flight. Illness can produce fever and distracting symptoms that can impair judgment, memory,
alertness, and the ability to make calculations. Although symptoms from an illness may be under adequate
control with a medication, the medication itself may decrease pilot performance.
2. The safest rule is not to fly while suffering from any illness. If this rule is considered too stringent for
a particular illness, the pilot should contact an Aviation Medical Examiner for advice.
c. Medication.
1. Pilot performance can be seriously degraded by both prescribed and over-the-counter medications, as
well as by the medical conditions for which they are taken. Many medications, such as tranquilizers, sedatives,
strong pain relievers, and cough-suppressant preparations, have primary effects that may impair judgment,
memory, alertness, coordination, vision, and the ability to make calculations. Others, such as antihistamines,
blood pressure drugs, muscle relaxants, and agents to control diarrhea and motion sickness, have side effects that
may impair the same critical functions. Any medication that depresses the nervous system, such as a sedative,
tranquilizer or antihistamine, can make a pilot much more susceptible to hypoxia.
2. The CFRs prohibit pilots from performing crewmember duties while using any medication that affects
the faculties in any way contrary to safety. The safest rule is not to fly as a crewmember while taking any
medication, unless approved to do so by the FAA.
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d. Alcohol.
1. Extensive research has provided a number of facts about the hazards of alcohol consumption and flying.
As little as one ounce of liquor, one bottle of beer or four ounces of wine can impair flying skills, with the alcohol
consumed in these drinks being detectable in the breath and blood for at least 3 hours. Even after the body
completely destroys a moderate amount of alcohol, a pilot can still be severely impaired for many hours by
hangover. There is simply no way of increasing the destruction of alcohol or alleviating a hangover. Alcohol also
renders a pilot much more susceptible to disorientation and hypoxia.
2. A consistently high alcohol related fatal aircraft accident rate serves to emphasize that alcohol and flying
are a potentially lethal combination. The CFRs prohibit pilots from performing crewmember duties within 8
hours after drinking any alcoholic beverage or while under the influence of alcohol. However, due to the slow
destruction of alcohol, a pilot may still be under influence 8 hours after drinking a moderate amount of alcohol.
Therefore, an excellent rule is to allow at least 12 to 24 hours between "bottle and throttle," depending on the
amount of alcoholic beverage consumed.
e. Fatigue.
1. Fatigue continues to be one of the most treacherous hazards to flight safety, as it may not be apparent to
a pilot until serious errors are made. Fatigue is best described as either acute (short-term) or chronic (long-term).
2. A normal occurrence of everyday living, acute fatigue is the tiredness felt after long periods of physical
and mental strain, including strenuous muscular effort, immobility, heavy mental workload, strong emotional
pressure, monotony, and lack of sleep. Consequently, coordination and alertness, so vital to safe pilot
performance, can be reduced. Acute fatigue is prevented by adequate rest and sleep, as well as by regular exercise
and proper nutrition.
3. Chronic fatigue occurs when there is not enough time for full recovery between episodes of acute fatigue.
Performance continues to fall off, and judgment becomes impaired so that unwarranted risks may be taken.
Recovery from chronic fatigue requires a prolonged period of rest.
4. OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA (OSA). OSA is now recognized as an important preventable factor
identified in transportation accidents. OSA interrupt s the normal restorative sleep necessary for normal
functioning and is associated with chronic illnesses such as hypertension, heart attack, stroke, obesity, and
diabetes. Symptoms include snoring, excessive daytime sleepiness, intermittent prolonged breathing pauses
while sleeping, memory impairment and lack of concentration. There are many available treatments which can
reverse the day time symptoms and reduce the chance of an accident. OSA can be easily treated. Most treatments
are acceptable for medical certification upon demonstrating effective treatment. If you have any symptoms
described above, or neck size over 17 inches in men or 16 inches in women, or a body mass index greater than
30 you should be evaluated for sleep apnea by a sleep medicine specialist.
(https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/adult_bmi/english_bmi_calcula tor/bmi_calculator.html )
With treatment you can avoid or delay the onset of these chronic illnesses and prolong a quality life.
f. Stress.
1. Stress from the pressures of everyday living can impair pilot performance, often in very subtle ways.
Difficulties, particularly at work, can occupy t hought processes enough to markedly decrease alertness.
Distraction can so interfere with judgment that unwarranted risks are taken, such as flying into deteriorating
weather conditions to keep on schedule. Stress and fatigue (see above) can be an extremely hazardous
combination.
2. Most pilots do not leave stress "on the ground." Therefore, when more than usual difficulties are being
experienced, a pilot should consider delaying flight until these difficulties are satisfactorily resolved.
g. Emotion.
Certain emotionally upsetting events, including a serious argument, death of a family member, separation or
divorce, loss of job, and financial catastrophe, can render a pilot unable to fly an aircraft safely. The emotions
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of anger, depression, and anxiety from such events not only decrease alertness but also may lead to taking risks
that border on self-destruction. Any pilot who experiences an emotionally upsetting event should not fly until
satisfactorily recovered from it.
h. Personal Checklist. Aircraft accident statistics show that pilots should be conducting preflight checklists
on themselves as well as their aircraft for pilot impairment contributes to many more accidents than failures of
aircraft systems. A personal checklist, which includes all of the categories of pilot impairment as discussed in
this section, that can be easily committed to memory is being distributed by the FAA in the form of a wallet-sized
card.
i. PERSONAL CHECKLIST. I'm physically and mentally safe to fly; not being impaired by:
Illness
Medication
Stress
Alcohol
Fatigue
Emotion