Checkride Scheduled!

[inav8r]

Well, I've gone and done it. I've talked w/ my local DPE and scheduled my checkride. Now all I have to do is pass the written tomorrow and I'll be all set!

The week before my checkride, I'm going to do a "stage check" with the examiner. At first I didn't want to spend the money for this, but as I've thought about it, I think it will be money well spent.

My biggest reason for wanting the stage check is that I've flown with all of the CFI's at my FBO - and while they're good, I've got enough time with each of them to know what they like and dislike. I think flying with the examiner before the actual check ride will actually calm my nerves a bit when it's time for the real thing... not to mention I may actually *gasp* learn something!

Now all I have to do is pray to the weather gods!

 

[poadeleted3]

Good luck! It's an awesome day.


I'm not sure I'd want to fly with an examiner twice. I'd just as soon just have to deal with the nerves once! Might help calm some folks down for the actual ride, though.

 

[poadeleted20]

Captain Levy’s Checkride Advice



1. Relax and enjoy it. Nationwide, about 90% of applicants pass on the first try, so look around and see if you think you’re as good as 9 out of 10 other students. Also, your instructor must maintain a pass rate of at least 80% to get his ticket renewed, so he’s not going to send you up unless he’s pretty darn sure you’ll pass – otherwise, he has to find four other people to pass to make up for you, and that’s not always easy.



2. Go over with your instructor the logbooks of the aircraft you're going to use the day BEFORE the checkride to make sure it's all in order (annual, transponder checks, ELT ops and battery, 100-hour if rented, etc.). If the airplane's paper busts, so do you. Run a sample W&B, too – get the examiner’s weight when you make the appointment. If you weight 200, and so does the examiner, don’t show up with a C-152 with full tanks and a 350 lb available cabin load – examiners can’t waive max gross weight limits.



3. Relax.



4. Rest up and get a good night's sleep the night before. Don't stay up "cramming."



5. Relax.



6. Read carefully the ENTIRE PTS including all the introductory material. Use the checklist in the front to make sure you take all the stuff you need -- papers and equipment. And the examiner’s fee UP FRONT (too much chance a disgruntled applicant will refuse to pay afterward) in the form demanded by the examiner is a “required document” from a practical, if not FAA, standpoint.



7. Relax.



8. You're going to make some minor mistakes. Correct them yourself in a timely manner "so the outcome of the maneuver is never seriously in doubt" and you'll be OK. If you start to go high on your first steep turn and start a correction as you approach 100 feet high but top out at 110 high while making a smooth correction back to the requested altitude, don't sweat -- nail the next one and you'll pass with "flying colors" (a naval term, actually). If you see the maneuver will exceed parameters and not be smoothly recoverable, tell the examiner and knock it off before you go outside those parameters, and then re-initiate. That shows great sense, if not great skill, and judgement is the most critical item on the checkride.



9. Relax.



10. During the oral, you don’t have to answer from memory anything you’d have time to look up in reality. So if the examiner asks you about currency, it’s OK to open the book to FAR 61.56 and 61.57 and explain them to him. But make sure you know where the answer is without reading the whole FAR/AIM cover-to-cover. On the other hand, for stuff you’d have to know RIGHT NOW (e.g., best glide speed for engine failure, etc.), you’d best not stumble or stutter – know that stuff cold. Also, remember that the examiner will use the areas your knowledge test report says you missed as focus points in the oral, so study them extra thoroughly.



11. Relax.



12. Avoid this conversation:
Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?

Applicant - A: I have a #2, a mechanical, a red one...

Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?

Applicant - A: I also have an assortment of pens, and some highlighters...

Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?

Applicant - A: Yes.

Examiner - Thank you.

One of the hardest things to do when you’re nervous and pumped up is to shut up and answer the question. I've watched people talk themselves into a corner by incorrectly answering a question that was never asked, or by adding an incorrect appendix to the correct answer to the question that was. If the examiner wants more, he'll tell you.



13. Relax



14. Some questions are meant simply to test your knowledge, not your skill, even if they sound otherwise. If the examiner asks how far below the cloud deck you are, he is checking to see if you know the answer is “at least 500 feet,” not how good your depth perception is. He can’t tell any better than you can, and the only way to be sure is to climb up and see when you hit the bases, which for sure he won’t let you do.



15. Relax



16. Remember the first rule of Italian driving: "What's behind me is not important." Don't worry about how you did the last maneuver or question. If you didn't do it well enough, the examiner must notify you and terminate the checkride. If you are on the next one, forget the last one because it was good enough to pass. Focus on doing that next maneuver or answering the next question the best you can, because while it can still determine whether you pass or fail, the last one can’t anymore. If you get back to the office and he hasn't said you failed, smile to your friends as you walk in because you just passed.



17. Relax and enjoy your new license.



Ron Levy, ATP, CFI, Veteran of 11 license/rating checkrides, including 4 with FAA inspectors

 

[Greebo]

Cap'n Ron's Checkride Advice should be one of the Pilot Training Stickies.

Did you know, though, that #15 is repeated after #16?

 

[sere]

Captain Levy’s Checkride Advice



1. Relax and enjoy it. Nationwide, about 90% of applicants pass on the first try, so look around and see if you think you’re as good as 9 out of 10 other students. Also, your instructor must maintain a pass rate of at least 80% to get his ticket renewed, so he’s not going to send you up unless he’s pretty darn sure you’ll pass – otherwise, he has to find four other people to pass to make up for you, and that’s not always easy.



2. Go over with your instructor the logbooks of the aircraft you're going to use the day BEFORE the checkride to make sure it's all in order (annual, transponder checks, ELT ops and battery, 100-hour if rented, etc.). If the airplane's paper busts, so do you. Run a sample W&B, too – get the examiner’s weight when you make the appointment. If you weight 200, and so does the examiner, don’t show up with a C-152 with full tanks and a 350 lb available cabin load – examiners can’t waive max gross weight limits.



3. Relax.



4. Rest up and get a good night's sleep the night before. Don't stay up "cramming."



5. Relax.



6. Read carefully the ENTIRE PTS including all the introductory material. Use the checklist in the front to make sure you take all the stuff you need -- papers and equipment. And the examiner’s fee UP FRONT (too much chance a disgruntled applicant will refuse to pay afterward) in the form demanded by the examiner is a “required document” from a practical, if not FAA, standpoint.



7. Relax.



8. You're going to make some minor mistakes. Correct them yourself in a timely manner "so the outcome of the maneuver is never seriously in doubt" and you'll be OK. If you start to go high on your first steep turn and start a correction as you approach 100 feet high but top out at 110 high while making a smooth correction back to the requested altitude, don't sweat -- nail the next one and you'll pass with "flying colors" (a naval term, actually). If you see the maneuver will exceed parameters and not be smoothly recoverable, tell the examiner and knock it off before you go outside those parameters, and then re-initiate. That shows great sense, if not great skill, and judgement is the most critical item on the checkride.



9. Relax.



10. During the oral, you don’t have to answer from memory anything you’d have time to look up in reality. So if the examiner asks you about currency, it’s OK to open the book to FAR 61.56 and 61.57 and explain them to him. But make sure you know where the answer is without reading the whole FAR/AIM cover-to-cover. On the other hand, for stuff you’d have to know RIGHT NOW (e.g., best glide speed for engine failure, etc.), you’d best not stumble or stutter – know that stuff cold. Also, remember that the examiner will use the areas your knowledge test report says you missed as focus points in the oral, so study them extra thoroughly.



11. Relax.



12. Avoid this conversation:
Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?

Applicant - A: I have a #2, a mechanical, a red one...

Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?

Applicant - A: I also have an assortment of pens, and some highlighters...

Examiner - Q: Do you have a pencil?

Applicant - A: Yes.

Examiner - Thank you.

One of the hardest things to do when you’re nervous and pumped up is to shut up and answer the question. I've watched people talk themselves into a corner by incorrectly answering a question that was never asked, or by adding an incorrect appendix to the correct answer to the question that was. If the examiner wants more, he'll tell you.



13. Relax



14. Some questions are meant simply to test your knowledge, not your skill, even if they sound otherwise. If the examiner asks how far below the cloud deck you are, he is checking to see if you know the answer is “at least 500 feet,” not how good your depth perception is. He can’t tell any better than you can, and the only way to be sure is to climb up and see when you hit the bases, which for sure he won’t let you do.



15. Relax



16. Remember the first rule of Italian driving: "What's behind me is not important." Don't worry about how you did the last maneuver or question. If you didn't do it well enough, the examiner must notify you and terminate the checkride. If you are on the next one, forget the last one because it was good enough to pass. Focus on doing that next maneuver or answering the next question the best you can, because while it can still determine whether you pass or fail, the last one can’t anymore. If you get back to the office and he hasn't said you failed, smile to your friends as you walk in because you just passed.



15. Relax and enjoy your new license.



Ron Levy, ATP, CFI, Veteran of 11 license/rating checkrides, including 4 with FAA inspectors

Great reply to this post.

 

[inav8r]

Update: Passed the written!! Got a 90. Not super stellar, but not a squeak by either. I'm happy.

 

[ladyaviator]

HI Mike
Are you going to Muncie and fly with Denny Green?

 

[inav8r]

Are you going to Muncie and fly with Denny Green?

No. I'm going to use the DE that my instructor used for most of his check rides.

 

[jdwatson]

Update: Passed the written!! Got a 90. Not super stellar, but not a squeak by either. I'm happy.

Not super-stellar ???

 

[silver-eagle]

Congrats on the written. 90% is a good score.

Hint: review the areas you did not get correct because the DE is most likely to ask about them. On the summary of the test, you should see the areas that were missed. While they don't tell you the questions, you can probably figure it out by looking.

 

[silver-eagle]

Ron;
Is the 90% for PPL or does it include ratings/other licenses? Does the CFI/II have to maintain 80% passing across all levels?

 

[Ed Guthrie]

Ron;
Is the 90% for PPL or does it include ratings/other licenses? Does the CFI/II have to maintain 80% passing across all levels?

Not Ron, but the answer is any/all checkride recommendation (recreational, sport, private, instrument, commercial, CFI).

 

[poadeleted20]

Is the 90% for PPL or does it include ratings/other licenses?

With the exception of initial CFI tickets, yes, that's about the national average for all certificates/ratings. Initial CFI is much lower, but it's administered primarily by FAA Inspectors, not DPE's.

Does the CFI/II have to maintain 80% passing across all levels?

Yes, if the instructor wants to renew on the basis of activity, which is measured by 2 points for each successful applicant (all practical tests for which the CFI signed the 8710) and 1 point for each initial solo endorsement, with 20 points and an 80% success rate being needed for automatic renewal.