Commercial Pilot Applicant Information

A Commercial Pilot is expected to be able to perform to a more proficient level and have a greater understanding that a Private Pilot. Smoothness, accuracy, and more complex decision making while managing the demands of a set schedule and requirements of an employer add to the responsibility of the Pilot In Command. Applicants for a Commercial Pilot Certificate should have a solid working knowledge of regulations that they are governed by, as well as being able to identify and use all available resources to them.

There a three phases to a practical test:

• Qualification Phase
• This is where all of your training documents are checked (logbook or training record), Aircraft logbooks and documents, and we establish that you have met all the requirements to begin the test. 
• Oral Exam
• This is where we go over the items in the ACS that will be tested orally and your knowledge will be evaluated to ensure you have an adequate working knowledge to function safety as a Private Pilot. The Oral Exam must be successfully completed in order to advance to the Flight Portion.
• Flight Exam
• This is where the remaining items not tested orally or test in conjunction with the oral segments are evaluated. Most well prepared applicants can complete the flight in about 1.5 hours, depending on location and traffic. 

There are three possible outcomes once you being the practical test:

• Temporary Airmen Certificate Issued
• You have successfully completed all required items and found qualified to act as a Private Pilot.
• Notice of Disapproval
• You have failed to meet the standard on one or more tasks. At this point, you must return to your instructor and get remedial training. When your instructor finds you competent on the items that you have failed on, they will re endorse you for a retake exam. The Notice of Disapproval will also give you credit for the items that you have successfully completed, and at the examiners discretion, you will not be required to repeat the items that you have already passed. This Notice is good for 60 days. If you do not take the retest within those 60 days, you will be required to take the entire practical test over again. In order to take the retest, you will have to complete another application, and there will be a retest fee that will have to be paid to the examiner.
• Letter of Discontinuance
• This letter states that you could not complete the entire exam due to circumstances beyond your control. (Illness, Weather, Mechanical). It will give you credit for the items you have completed successfully. You have 60 days from the beginning of the exam to complete all items. This is not a fail, and will not require another endorsement or application to continue the test. There is no extra fee for a discontinuance.

As the Commercial Pilot requires more smoothness, accuracy and "mastery" of the aircraft, common pitfalls are slow flight and stall maneuvers as well as the Power Off 180º accuracy landing. A solid understanding of what the ACS requires as well as the procedures spelled out in the Airplane Flying Handbook will ensure an applicant knows what is being evalutated of them. In the Oral, a strong working knowledge of aircraft systems is a must as all subsequent check rides beyond things will require a higher level of knowledge than required by evaluations before. 

You will be assigned a flight much as if you were working as a commercial pilot. In that scenario, you will have questions to answer that will depend upon the current weather, performance conditions, and airport environment. The scenario is designed to evaluate the applicants knowledge and correlation of Regulations, ADM, Performance and Limitations, Systems, Abnormal Scenarios, and other topics required by the ACS.

Remember, no flight is perfect, errors are to be expected. It is how you identify, correct and prevent these errors that will also be evaluated.