Airspeed Indicator Markings and Color Codes

The multi-engine airspeed indicator carries every marking found on a single, plus two unique radial lines you must interpret instantly.

• White arc — the flap operating range, from Vs0 (stall, landing configuration) at the bottom to Vfe (max flap-extended speed) at the top.
• Green arc — the normal operating range, from Vs1 (stall, clean) to Vno (max structural cruising speed).
• Yellow arc — the caution range, from Vno to Vne; fly here only in smooth air.
• Red radial line at the top of the yellow — Vne, the never-exceed speed.

• Red radial line (lower on the dial) — Vmc, the sea-level minimum control speed with the critical engine inoperative. This is a second red line, distinct from Vne, and it sits near the bottom of the green arc.
• Blue radial line — Vyse, the single-engine best rate-of-climb speed. Blue line is your target whenever an engine quits.

Notice the painted Vmc (red) is below the blue (Vyse) line, and that there is a band of speeds between them. After a failure you want to be at or above blue line, never decelerating toward the lower red line. Because both Vmc and Vyse are painted for sea-level, max-weight conditions, your real margins shift with altitude and weight — the markings are a fixed reference, not a live readout.

Va (maneuvering), Vlo/Vle (gear operation/extended), Vsse, and Vxse are typically found on placards or in the POH rather than as arc markings. Commit them to memory for your airplane.