Dear Amy,

Thank you so much for sharing your experience.

Your reflecting upon the exam clearly indicates you are a brilliant, capable and brave lady. I am sure you will do  a wonderful job in your coming exam.

I passed my PPL check ride very recently on April 23, 2010. I am a Chinese city girl who didn’t even know how to drive until coming to the States 2 years ago. So I was very nervous before the exam, wondering if the flight training in the last four months was sufficient for the exam, and if I would misunderstand instructions in English due to high stress or difficulty with accent. Anyway, I decided to trust my instructor’s judgment and give it a try.

A few things that my instructor mentioned before the exam and King’s video I watched greatly helped me to pass the check ride smoothly. You may already know them. I hope they may offer some help and comfort to you and other FWPs.

1)      Complete and well-organized paper work and comprehensive reference material

Examiners are really happy to see you are very well organized on the ground as well as in the cockpit. Organized paper work helps them with their work. When  asked questions of an unfamiliar area, the reference material will save your day as you know how to find the answers.

2)      Good oral examination performance

Examiners are very impressed when you don’t miss one single question, or maybe only one. It’s an indication of your excellent preparation for the exam. (I followed this advice and my examiner was so satisfied that later he complimented me when later talking with my instructor. )

-Private Oral Exam Guide (Michael D. Hayes) and Practical Test Standards (FAA) are very thorough and exam-oriented.
-Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA) and Private Pilot Handbook (Rod Machado) can be used as reference material for deep understanding.

3)      Passenger comfort

Just imagine your examiner is your 84-year-old grandma who is really anxious about flying. Talk out loud in a calm tone about what you are thinking and doing so she knows that you are fully aware of the situation and you are making sound judgments. Grandma will be happy and feeling safe, so is your examiner.

Normal climb at Vy+5 to Vy+10 and explain you would like you and your examiner both to have a better view for traffic scan. Examiners seem to like this extra comfort, even though they have quite a wide range of tolerance.

Make most of your turns standard rate turn if it’s not necessary to turn very steeply. It is not only good for night flying to avoid spacial disorientation but also good for the impression your examiner gets about your fineness in operating the plane.

On-the-glide-slope descending and greased landings always win examiners’ heart. (I did two beautiful ones and even though the last one was a little funny, my examiner was still happy.)

4)      Correction, correction, correction

Perfect maneuver each time definitely is great. But examiners love to see that you can correct for the situation. Just like you, I was using an unfamiliar skinny runway and flared a little too early. I added a little more power after realizing my speed was bleeding off and I was still high. When I eased the plane to the runway, my examiner said, “That’s very good. I am glad to see you know how to make the corrections.
Secret: Speak out your mind about how to correct the situation and keep your right hand on the throttle so it’s hard for your examiner to take it over. (I played this with my instructor a lot as I scare him easy.) J  

5)      Attitude – Licensed to learn

Examiners love to see that you hold an learning attitude and will continue to improve your skills to be a even safer pilots. Let him know that you are very humble and aware of that pilot license is only the license to learn.

6)      Good rest before the exam

Don’t worry too much the night before your exam. Take a bubble bath, watch  a comedy movie if you like, and go to bed at a decent hour.  (Kongfu Panda is a nice one to watch.)

Wish you good luck and see you in the sky!

Laura Ying Gao