Flight Instruments  Chapter 8  Introduction  Pitot-Static Flight Instruments  In order to safely fly any aircraft, a pilot must understand  how to interpret and operate the flight instruments. The  pilot also needs to be able to recognize associated errors and  malfunctions of these instruments. This chapter addresses the  pitot-static system and associated instruments, the vacuum  system and related instruments, gyroscopic instruments, and  the magnetic compass. When a pilot understands how each  instrument works and recognizes when an instrument is  malfunctioning, he or she can safely utilize the instruments  to their fullest potential.  The pitot-static system is a combined system that utilizes the  static air pressure and the dynamic pressure due to the motion  of the aircraft through the air. These combined pressures are  utilized for the operation of the airspeed indicator (ASI),  altimeter, and vertical speed indicator (VSI).  [Figure 8-1] 