Private Pilot Applicants

Applicants who are taking the Private Pilot Checkride are probably taking their first checkride ever. Being nervous is to be expected. What I remind applicants on the date of the test is that no checkride ever goes perfectly, as planned, no matter what level of flying you are at, so don't expect it to be. Safety and performance to the ACS is what is expected. The ACS spells out exactly what will be tested, so all the answers to the test are there. There really are no surprises and your Flight Instructor should be sure that you can consistently fly to the ACS prior to endorsing you for the checkride.

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.

The introduction of the ACS was intended to take practical tests away from simply memorizing answers, to a more realistic, scenario based approach. Many applicants try to memorize each item verbatim, and when things don't get asked verbatim in the Oral, it tends to shake their confidence. Your instructor should be teaching in a more scenario based manner to help you to understand how to apply different skill sets to meet the needs of different scenarios you will encounter on an everyday flight. Understand the fact that you will get some questions that you may not have thought about before, much like after you pass your checkride, you will come across scenarios you have not encountered before. The purpose of the practical test is to see how you meed the needs of each scenario and that you maintain safe flight throughout the process.  Each individual will have a different approach to a problem, and personal technique is not a gradable process as spelled out in the ACS. Remember to think practically during the practical test and that will allow you to approach each problem with a clear mind. 

Please ensure you complete a weight and balance report for your checkride flight. The weight of your examiner is 170 lbs with a 10 lb briefcase. 

You will be given a simulated flight scenario prior to checkride day that will have you plan a flight to a specified location. Please ensure you gather the following data points and have them ready:

• Completed Navigation Log
• Completed Weight and Balance computation
• Weather Briefing information
• Aircraft Airworthiness Information
  • Have logbooks available for review prior to beginning the test.