Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check ride

[Jim Logajan]

Below is a table culled from Table 19, Private Pilot Airplane row, from the year entries for 1999 to 2010 from the FAA web page: http://www.faa.gov/data_research/aviation_data_statistics/civil_airmen_statistics/

So far as I understand the table statistics, in 2010, 77.2% of applicants for Private Airplane who used a DPE passed their checkride, the other 22.8% were "disapproved" (failed.) Only 67.1% of those using an FAA Inspector passed.

(I'm not sure how applicants who fail and retry are counted - or whether these stats cover only the first exam attempt. For example, suppose only one person tried in a year and failed the first time, but passed the second. For that year 50% of all attempts would have been disapproved. On the other hand, 100% were disapproved on the first attempt. So depending on how the stats are computed, the initial fail rate may be much worse than indicated below.)

An Inspector may initially be free, but it does seem to comes at a price of higher fail rate. I can't help but notice a slight trend toward ever lower pass rates when using a DPE.

[LIST]
[*][FONT=Courier New]Year  Examiner  Inspector[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]1999   80.4%      51.0%[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2000   81.3       79.7[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2001   80.1       73.6[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2002   80.4       69.8[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2003   78.8       66.4[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2004   78.7       69.7[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2005   76.3       62.5[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2006   76.8       60.3[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2007   77.0       79.8[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2008   76.7       65.4[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2009   77.5       68.5[/FONT]
[*][FONT=Courier New]2010   77.2       67.1[/FONT]
[/LIST]

 

[jesse]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

The FAA really goes over the airplane very thoroughly and that is probably the most common reason the checkride "stops". I was told during my CFI ride that only 50% of the airplanes pass. From there I was told that I was the only CFI initial he had ever passed on the first go.

The FAA is very thorough, more so then most DE's it seems. All of that said, they were fair, which is all I ask.

The part that made me the most nervous was handing over 50 years worth of logbooks to the airworthiness inspector and letting them go over the airplane and books without me present. Thankfully the logbooks were very clean and the first 40 years were in Danish.

 

[jhausch]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

The FAA really goes over the airplane very thoroughly and that is probably the most common reason the checkride "stops". I was told during my CFI ride that only 50% of the airplanes pass. From there I was told that I was the only CFI initial he had ever passed on the first go.

The FAA is very thorough, more so then most DE's it seems. All of that said, they were fair, which is all I ask.

The part that made me the most nervous was handing over 50 years worth of logbooks to the airworthiness inspector and letting them go over the airplane and books without me present. Thankfully the logbooks were very clean and the first 40 years were in Danish.

Sounds like you've found a secret solution. Now, to find a US mechanic who will do the logs only in Danish.....

 

[dell30rb]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

google has a free translation service...

 

[Fearless Tower]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

One of the interesting things is that those stats you posted are only for the PPL.

Believe it or not, the commercial pilot pass rate is reversed - higher pass rate for FAA inspectors vs DPE's.

 

[tonycondon]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

i didn't know that anyone took a private checkride with the FSDO anymore, interesting

 

[RotorAndWing]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

i didn't know that anyone took a private checkride with the FSDO anymore, interesting

Very rare, that's why those stats are skewed.

I tend to view DPE vs Inspector checkrides as this:

A DPE is a "for profit" enterprise, hence if the failure rate goes up applicants decrease.

YMMV

 

[tonycondon]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

Very rare, that's why those stats are skewed.

I tend to view DPE vs Inspector checkrides as this:

A DPE is a "for profit" enterprise, hence if the failure rate goes up applicants decrease.

YMMV

the only non-cfi student i ever sent to the FSDO was an instrument rating student in a 421. There were no DPE's anywhere reasonably close that we could find who were approved to do checkrides in 400 series cessnas. i'd have to think it would be an odd situation to do a private checkride at a fsdo.

 

[JeffDG]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

the only non-cfi student i ever sent to the FSDO was an instrument rating student in a 421. There were no DPE's anywhere reasonably close that we could find who were approved to do checkrides in 400 series cessnas. i'd have to think it would be an odd situation to do a private checkride at a fsdo.

Another situation is SODA rides for people who have Medicals restricted to "Student Pilot" only.

You may be able to convince the FSDO to do the SODA and PP checkrides at once.

 

[ajstoner21]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

Any stats for a pilot applicant being tested by a DPE, with an inspector testing the DPE?

My CFII took his instrument rating test for the first time (or was it commercial?) and had a DPE and FSDO inspector on board. He had some sort of gear problem, and failed the first time, but interesting story.

 

[BillTIZ]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

We've had our glider DPE taking a "check ride" from the FSDO inspector while completing a glider Pvt check ride. Granted the inspector could only watch the oral portion, and had to observe from the ground the flight portion.

Our glider DPE also has to prior coordinate approval to complete first time instructor check rides. Normal CFI rides are completed by FSDO, but there are no glider qualifed FAA types in the area.

 

[RyanShort1]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

Very rare, that's why those stats are skewed.

I tend to view DPE vs Inspector checkrides as this:

A DPE is a "for profit" enterprise, hence if the failure rate goes up applicants decrease.

YMMV

In our area, they apparently don't even have enough inspectors to really consider it an option. They don't want us sending them PPL applicants to even ask about it.

Ryan

 

[gismo]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

In our area, they apparently don't even have enough inspectors to really consider it an option. They don't want us sending them PPL applicants to even ask about it.

Ryan

When I took my commercial ASEL checkride I was planning to use an FAA inspector from the MSP FSDO who I'd flown with before he went over to the dark side. This ride was a little unusual in that I was using a 2 seat fixed gear taildragger which was OK since I already had a commercial AMEL cert. The taildragger was rather weight limited so I needed a "lightweigt" examiner like my friend at the FAA. My friend wanted to do the checkride but his boss wouldn't let him and said I had to use a DPE.

 

[ajstoner21]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

When I took my commercial ASEL checkride I was planning to use an FAA inspector from the MSP FSDO who I'd flown with before he went over to the dark side. This ride was a little unusual in that I was using a 2 seat fixed gear taildragger which was OK since I already had a commercial AMEL cert. The taildragger was rather weight limited so I needed a "lightweigt" examiner like my friend at the FAA. My friend wanted to do the checkride but his boss wouldn't let him and said I had to use a DPE.

Don't mean to hijack a thread, but you had a commercial AMEL before commercial ASEL? How did you build so much ME time, affordably?

 

[Doggtyred]

Don't mean to hijack a thread, but you had a commercial AMEL before commercial ASEL? How did you build so much ME time, affordably?

Most likely did PP ASEL. Then built time, got an IR. Then got most of the commercial stuff out of the way then did a few hours in multi and did the multi commercial checkride.

Just speculation

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

Don't mean to hijack a thread, but you had a commercial AMEL before commercial ASEL? How did you build so much ME time, affordably?

Well, Lance owns a Baron so his definition of "Affordable" may differ from yours and mine. But once you own the bird, it doesn't cost that much more to fly it!

 

[gismo]

Re: Stats say: Use an Designated Pilot Examiner, not an FAA Inspector for your check

Don't mean to hijack a thread, but you had a commercial AMEL before commercial ASEL? How did you build so much ME time, affordably?

I don't know about the affordability part but I own a Baron and had been flying it for a year or two when I decided to upgrade to a CPL instead of doing a BFR. And there's really not much in the way of multi time required for a commercial AMEL, for me the only issue was the 10 hours of dual in a multi. Until I started training for the commercial I only had 5-6 hours of dual in a twin.

But for the really weird one, I also have a commercial ASES rating and when I took that checkride I only had 5 total hours (all dual) logged in seaplanes.