FAQS

Take a deep breath. You've worked hard, put in the hours studying, planning, and practicing. You passed your FAA written and your flight instructor believes you are ready. Trust them. They would not have "signed you off" unless they believed you were ready!

As a Gold Seal Flight Instructor, I've always advised my students not to "cram" the night before. Relax. Take care of yourself by doing  something you enjoy most the night before your check ride. Take care of your mind and body. Enjoy a good meal, go for a walk, or perhaps zone out with an old movie.  If you are still preparing the night before, then you may be adding unnecessary stress.

Ensure you are intimately familiar with the Airman Certification Standards (ACS). All Private Pilot, Instrument Rating and Commercial Pilot candidates will be evaluated using the current/appropriate ACS. Read it "cover to cover" for yourself. My job as a DPE is to evaluate you against these standards, therefore it's in your best interest to know them thoroughly. Every ACS describes the role and responsibility of the examiner, what is considered satisfactory performance and what might be considered unsatisfactory. Work with your instructor to ensure your understanding and compliance with each and every Knowledge, Risk Management and Skill elements outlined in each area of operation within the ACS.

Lastly, arrive early on the day of your test. The ACS provides a checklist of the things you will be expected to bring. Be organized. Spread out your materials, charts, and reference materials. Make sure the airplane is fueled and airworthy. Do yourself a favor and pack snacks or a light lunch. Stay hydrated.

Submit your check ride request on my "Scheduling" page. After appointment confirmation (and approximately 3 days prior to the testing date) I will provide you an overall scenario for the test (the reason to take the flight). I will also give you data for a W&B calculation and aircraft performance computations. Collect the weather information you used to make your "go/no go" decision for our weather discussions or you can demonstrate a "live" briefing during the test.

The big day is here! We'll begin by simply getting acquainted and learning a bit more about each other. We will then go through your logbook, all the endorsements and ground logs your instructor gave you, and then your IACRA application.  I will then excuse you for a short break while I review the aircraft's maintenance records and ensure the aircraft is eligible for the flight.

Once it's determined that you are qualified and eligible for the practical test, the ground portion of the check ride will begin. You will be provided with a series of scenarios to evaluate your understanding of the Knowledge, Risk Management and Skill topics outlined in the ACS. If you don't understand a question or you need more information to answer the scenario, simply ask. Also, if you need to look up an answer to a question, for the most part, that is perfectly acceptable. On a practical test, the examiner is trying to evaluate you based on what you would do "in practice." And in practice, one would hope that you would research and find the answer to an aviation related question that you didn't know.

The flight portion of the check ride may only be conducted after successful completion of the ground portion. Oral questions will continue throughout the flight. But, it's a very good sign you are doing well when it's time to go fly!

Please, when submitting the appointment request, fill in all the requested information. I use this to do an initial review of the applicant's qualifications. I would rather find an issue early on and skip the embarrassment of hunting for a missing endorsement or find a flight did not qualify.

Instructors, if you present a candidate on the day of the test and errors are found, 90% of the time they can be fixed with a stroke of your pen. In the event your candidate is found to be ineligible and you are not present, as a professional I recommend you reimburse your candidate's expenses incurred.

Caution: if you are signing pre-printed endorsements in the back of your students logbook I strongly recommend you read them carefully and compare them with AC 61-65J to ensure they are still current and valid. Many times commercial logbooks have out of date endorsement references.

If you wish for me to review documents prior to the appointment date, please follow the instructions below and submit several days prior to your appointment. Send everything.

• Clear,  hi-res photos that can be zoomed in and easily read
• All photos must be orientated properly when opened.  I will stop if I need to rotate photos to read.
• All logbook pages
• All endorsements
• Ground logs
• Graduation certificate(s),  if applicable
• Written test results
• Medical certificate
• Pilots certificate (front and back)

Submit all documents on a Google Drive.  Send me the link only.  Do not submit via email!

When I say “perfection is not the standard”, I mean it. There is no such thing as a perfect check ride. The vast majority of disapprovals occur because of obvious and egregious errors. If the end result happens to be a Notice of Disapproval, we'll debrief afterward with you and your instructor so that he/she can best prepare you to re-attack!