IMSAFE Checklist

IMSAFE is the checklist the FAA recommends single pilots use to determine physical and mental readiness for flight. The letters stand for Illness, Medication, Stress, Alcohol, Fatigue and Emotion. The Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge places it under the P in the PAVE checklist, which divides the risks of a flight into the pilot in command, the aircraft, the environment and external pressures.

Each item is a question you ask yourself before the flight. Am I sick? Am I taking any medicines that might affect my judgment or make me drowsy? Am I under psychological pressure? Have I been drinking within 8 hours, or within 24 hours? Am I tired and not adequately rested? Am I emotionally upset? The handbook notes that fatigue continues to be one of the most insidious hazards to flight safety, because it may not be apparent to a pilot until serious errors are made.

The checklist is useful because the regulations list medical conditions that require grounding but do not list stress, and because impairment is hard to notice from the inside. Treat a single yes as a reason to stop and think, not as something to push through.