Air Law: 5 Latest ATPL Questions Explained 

Security questions in Air Law often look straightforward, but the examiner tends to test the exact wording of procedures: what happens during unlawful interference, how ATC should communicate, when the flight deck door must remain locked, and under what conditions weapons may be carried.

In this walkthrough, we break down five recently reported ATPL Air Law questions from 01012 - Security, with the reasoning behind each answer made clear. So you can recognise the correct procedure even when the examiner changes the scenario.

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5  Latest ATPL Air Law Exam Questions Covered in This Blog

• AIR-236467: Flight Deck Security — Attempted Cockpit Entry During Taxi

• AIR-237007: Unlawful Interference — ATC Response to a Suspected Security Threat

• AIR-235956: Flight Crew Compartment Door — Cabin Crew Communication During a Security Breach

• AIR-280039: Cockpit Security — When the Flight Crew Compartment Door Must Be Closed and Locked

• AIR-236335: Carriage of Weapons — Conditions for Transport on Civil Aircraft

Question 1: Attempted Cockpit Entry During Taxi 

Question ID AIR-236467: A pilot is taxiing when someone tries to enter the cockpit. What shall the pilot do?

1. He/she must take off and fly towards an isolated airfield.

2. He/she must always immediately initiate an emergency evacuation.

3. He/she must remain as far away from other aircraft as possible and taxi to a designated or isolated parking area in accordance with local instructions.

4. He/she must taxi towards the terminal areas so that help can be obtained as soon as possible.

Correct Answer: Remain as far away from other aircraft as possible and taxi to a designated or isolated parking area in accordance with local instructions.

Explanation

This is a case of suspected unlawful interference. The first priority is to protect the aircraft, the people on board, and other aircraft, vehicles, personnel and airport infrastructure nearby.

For an aircraft already on the ground, the correct procedure is therefore to move it away from other traffic and installations and, where appropriate, taxi to a designated or isolated parking position in accordance with local instructions.

This is the same basic logic used for other serious security threats, including a suspected bomb threat: isolate the aircraft rather than bringing it closer to terminal buildings, other aircraft or populated areas.

Always remember transponder code 7500, which indicates unlawful interference (hijacking). In practice, exact procedures will depend on the specific circumstances and instructions from ATC.

Exam Tip. For ground security scenarios, think: Threat on board → isolate the aircraft. If the options include a designated or isolated parking area in accordance with local instructions, that is usually the key wording to recognise.

Question 2: ATC Response to a Suspected Security Threat

Question ID AIR-237007: Berlin ATC has been informed about suspected unlawful interference on board G-GGDG. The aircraft has not reported any problem. A military aircraft has taken off to intercept. What is the most appropriate course of action by Berlin ATC?

• A. Inform G-GGDG of potential interference, so they can divert and land.

• B. Do not tell G-GGDG in case it aggravates the situation.

• C. Attempt to contact G-GGDG on 119.000 or 121.500 and inform them of the situation.

• D. Call for total silence on the frequency until the matter has been resolved.

Correct Answer: B and D

Explanation

The crucial detail is that the suspected unlawful interference has been reported by an external source, while the crew themselves have not indicated that anything is wrong.

In this situation, ATC should not directly inform the aircraft that unlawful interference is suspected. If the threat is genuine, openly discussing it over the radio could alert or aggravate the person responsible and make the situation more dangerous. That rules out both options A and C.

The expected exam procedure is therefore to avoid revealing the suspicion to the aircraft while also reducing unnecessary radio traffic. The frequency may be kept clear so that any essential communication connected with the emergency can take priority.

Exam Tip: The examiner is testing one core security principle:

Do not reveal a suspected unlawful interference situation in a way that could aggravate it.

If the crew have not declared the problem themselves, be very cautious about options that involve ATC openly telling them that a hijacking or security threat is suspected.

Question 3: Cabin Crew Communication During a Security Breach

Question ID AIR-235956: According to Annex 6, a requirement for a flight crew compartment door in case of a security breach in the cabin is that the cabin crew can…

1. Discreetly notify the flight crew.

2. Use a megaphone to notify the flight crew.

3. Shout out loud outside the compartment door.

4. Open the door from the outside.

Correct Answer: Discreetly notify the flight crew.

Explanation

A security breach in the passenger cabin can range from serious disruptive behaviour to an attempted intrusion into the flight deck. The flight crew must therefore be able to receive information from the cabin without compromising the security of the cockpit.

This is why the cabin crew must have a means of discreetly notifying the flight crew, normally through an interphone or another secure communication system.

The flight crew compartment door itself must remain capable of being locked. Allowing unrestricted opening from the cabin side would defeat the purpose of the security barrier. The key idea is that communication between the cabin and cockpit must remain possible even when the flight deck door is secured.

Exam Tip: Remember the two separate requirements:

• Flight deck door → must be lockable.

• Cabin crew → must be able to discreetly contact the flight crew.

Question 4: Cockpit Security 

Question ID AIR-280039: In passenger-carrying aeroplanes equipped with a flight crew compartment door designed to resist penetration by small arms fire, when shall this door be closed and locked?

1. From the commencement of pushback until top-of-climb, and again from top-of-descent to vacating the runway upon landing.

2. From the time the cabin crew reports cabin ready during taxi-out, until vacating the runway upon landing.

3. From the commencement of pushback until vacating the runway upon landing.

4. From the time all external doors are closed following embarkation until opening such doors for disembarkation, except to permit entry and egress of authorised persons.

Correct Answer: From the time all external doors are closed following embarkation until opening such doors for disembarkation, except to permit entry and egress of authorised persons.

Explanation

The important point here is that flight deck security does not begin only at take-off.

Once passenger embarkation is complete and the external aircraft doors are closed, the flight crew compartment door must be closed and locked and remain so until the external doors are opened again for disembarkation.

The only exception is when access is required for authorised persons, such as appropriately authorised crew members or other personnel permitted under the operator's procedures.

This means options referring only to pushback, taxi, climb or descent are too limited. The protected period covers essentially the whole operational phase from completion of embarkation to the beginning of disembarkation.

Individual airlines may also impose additional cockpit access procedures through their Operations Manual and SOPs, but those should not be confused with the underlying regulatory requirement tested here.

Exam Tip: Use the external doors as your trigger:

• External doors closed after embarkation → flight deck door locked

• External doors opened for disembarkation → protected period ends

Question 5: Carriage of Weapons on Civil Aircraft

Question ID AIR-236335: The carriage of weapons on a civil aviation aircraft is only allowed under certain conditions. Which of the following is a condition that permits a weapon to be carried on board?

1. When carried by a professional hunter who holds a firearms permit with an ICAO endorsement.

2. When it is unloaded and stowed in a place inaccessible to any person during the flight.

3. When carried by in-flight security officers without notification to the flight crew.

4. When carried by a flight crew member, provided he/she holds a valid firearms permit.

Correct Answer: When it is unloaded and stowed in a place inaccessible to any person during the flight.

Explanation

Weapons may not simply be carried freely in the passenger cabin because the person carrying them holds a firearms licence.

For normal carriage on a civil aviation flight, the weapon must be unloaded and stored somewhere that is inaccessible during the flight, typically in an appropriate secured hold or compartment.

There are special provisions that may allow authorised in-flight security personnel to carry weapons, but these operations are subject to specific conditions and coordination. The flight crew cannot simply remain unaware that an armed security officer is on board. That makes option 3 incorrect.

Likewise, being a professional hunter or a flight crew member does not by itself provide the authority to carry an accessible firearm in the cabin.

Exam Tip: For ordinary carriage of weapons, remember:

Unloaded + inaccessible during flight

Security officers are a special case, subject to specific authorisation and coordination – not a general exception that allows weapons to be carried without the crew's knowledge.

Further Reading

Air Law: 7 Latest ATPL Questions Explained

Continue your Air Law revision with another set of recently reported EASA questions covering MSA obstacle clearance, TCAS, FIRs, radar vectoring, minimum heights, altimeter settings and missed approaches.

Communications: 6 Latest ATPL Questions Explained | Lost Comms

Security incidents and communication procedures often overlap operationally. Review lost communications, transponder codes, blind transmissions and the actions expected from pilots when normal radio contact is disrupted.

When Pilots Squawk: Transponder Codes Explained.

From routine squawks to emergency alerts: Learn how transponder modes function and the critical codes every pilot must know. 

Keep Practising

Security questions are often won or lost on one small procedural detail. If you want to reinforce the rules while they’re still fresh, practise more questions from 01012 – Security in the Airhead ATPL Question Bank and get used to recognising the exact wording used in exam scenarios.