FAA Federal Aviation Regulations (FARS, 14 CFR)

(a) Each flight, navigation, and powerplant instrument for use by any required pilot during takeoff, initial climb, final approach, and landing must be located so that any pilot seated at the controls can monitor the airplane's flight path and these instruments with minimum head and eye movement. The powerplant instruments for these flight conditions are those needed to set power within powerplant limitations.

(b) For each multiengine airplane, identical powerplant instruments must be located so as to prevent confusion as to which engine each instrument relates.

(c) Instrument panel vibration may not damage, or impair the accuracy of, any instrument.

(d) For each airplane, the flight instruments required by §23.1303, and, as applicable, by the operating rules of this chapter, must be grouped on the instrument panel and centered as nearly as practicable about the vertical plane of each required pilot's forward vision. In addition:

(1) The instrument that most effectively indicates the attitude must be on the panel in the top center position;

(2) The instrument that most effectively indicates airspeed must be adjacent to and directly to the left of the instrument in the top center position;

(3) The instrument that most effectively indicates altitude must be adjacent to and directly to the right of the instrument in the top center position;

(4) The instrument that most effectively indicates direction of flight, other than the magnetic direction indicator required by §23.1303(c), must be adjacent to and directly below the instrument in the top center position; and

(5) Electronic display indicators may be used for compliance with paragraphs (d)(1) through (d)(4) of this section when such displays comply with requirements in §23.1311.

(e) If a visual indicator is provided to indicate malfunction of an instrument, it must be effective under all probable cockpit lighting conditions.

[Doc. No. 4080, 29 FR 17955, Dec. 18, 1964, as amended by Amdt. 23-14, 38 FR 31824, Nov. 19, 1973; Amdt. 23-20, 42 FR 36968, July 18, 1977; Amdt. 23-41, 55 FR 43310, Oct. 26, 1990; 55 FR 46888, Nov. 7, 1990; Amdt. 23-49, 61 FR 5168, Feb. 9, 1996]