Learning to Fly: The Checkride

The big day has arrived. It's time to get your pilot's license. If you feel like I did, you're scared beyond belief and are studying furiously. Don't worry. Let me explain. If you've been flying consistently - and consistently well - during your training, then you'll be fine.

By now, your instructor should have gone over everything you'll need to know. Plus, you've probably completed a review lesson in the air to cover possible situations on the exam. The only thing you can do now is make some quick preparations before the exam, perhaps some short field or soft field take-offs and landings, just to ease your nerves and reassure yourself that you can do this. Otherwise, if you don't know it by now, you probably won't.

Stay positive. If your instructor signed-off on your readiness for the checkride, then you probably know what you'll need. Remember, too, that if you fail, your instructor looks bad. There's no incentive for a flight instructor to sign you off if you're not ready.

The Oral Exam

The oral exam was probably what I was most nervous about. I was confident in my ability to fly, but there were so many situations in my oral exam review book that I needed to review. But don't worry. An examiner isn't cruel and heartless. You probably won't be asked some obscure question that even your flight instructor couldn't answer.

Simply put, your examiner just wants to know that you can fly the plane and be safe about it. You'll probably be asked about the most common rules and regulations and a lot of navigation questions. There will also be questions about weather you'll encounter, and other common practical procedures while flying. This doesn't mean that you don't need to study all that you should, but it's merely to illustrate that your examiner isn't out to get you.

If you don't know the answer to a question, don't try to bluff your way through it or make something up. Just admit to that you don't know the answer and would like to learn what you need to know. If your examiner is anything like mine, he'll appreciate this response and gladly cover that material. Don't do this for too many questions, of course, but for a couple it's acceptable.

The Hardest Questions

As I was taking my exam, I was surprised at how well it was going. I was expecting the worst - the hardest maneuvers, the hardest questions. So I was pleasantly surprised when most of the questions on my exam were common, and taken out of practical knowledge. Plus, I had practiced most of the maneuvers a million times. That's not to say that my instructor didn't throw me a curveball now and then, but it was really just to make sure I was still on my toes.

So don't worry too much about your exam. If you're nervous and you show it, this may cause your examiner to think it's because you're not fully prepared. Relax and breathe. Before you know it, you'll be holding your pilot's license in your hand.

Previous blog entries:

Learning to Fly: Getting Lost (Part 2)

Learning to Fly: Getting Lost (Part 1)

Learning to Fly: Take Your Seat

Learning to Fly: Going Solo

Learning to Fly: Choosing a Plane

Learning to Fly: Ground School

Learning to Fly: Meet Tinypilot18

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P.S. Thanks all for reading and taking interest my Learning to Fly blogs, I very much enjoyed writing them, and hope you enjoyed reading them. =)

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