One of the greatest things pilots can do to reduce checkride anxiety, is to prepare thoroughly. This week Wally and Bobby go through all kinds of excellent resources you can get your hands, including the big 3: the POH, the ACS, and the FAR/AIM!
Got a checkride coming up?? Kick back, relax, pop an ear bud in and listen to this week's episode of Behind the Prop. The guys take you through the major things you need to be doing to prepare for your 'ride... and exactly what publications you need to be digging into to make sure your big day goes as smooth as possible.
Clear prop! Number two following twin traffic on 3 mile final. JB using runway 25 on a 4-mile final.
This is Behind the Prop with United Flight Systems owner and licensed pilot, Bobby Doss. and it's co-host: major airline captain Designated Pilot Examiner, Wally Mulhearn. Now let's go behind the prop!
What’s up bobby how are you. I'm great another week. another shows we Shows grown a lot and we want to think about the listen to the show. We are back to another check ride episode. This is something. We put together that we're branding or calling. Check ride turbulence taking the bumps check rides and this week. We want to talk about really something basic to help you. Prepare for the check ride That that Wally sees too few people doing and that. I enforced here about some students that come to us from other schools. Don't use these books on a regular basis and as we become commercial pilot's probably think of more but a student pilot. You should have and be aware of three big things as it relates to flying. There's obviously more but these are three things for the check. Ride the POH The ACS and the FAR/AIM. And if you were to bring those three books to your check ride and actually know how to use them know. What's in them. I think you'd be surprised how easy that check ride. They would go would you. Would you agree. Well absolutely I. I remember my first I grew up in an aviation family. I flew with my father quite a bit as a as a very young Young little boy. But I took my. I what I call my first real flying lesson on august. Thirty first nineteen eighty-one so almost forty years ago and it was in a tomahawk piper tomahawk. Who was two five four nine alpha and member walking The the I fly. We flew for about an hour and we walk back into the flight. School the FBO And I remember my instructor taking me right up to the counter and there's a little display case there and he said you need to get that book right there and you need to learn it now. I have already done private pilot. Ground school so I already had a copy of the FAR/AIM and You know. I had a Jepson Private pilot book and so I was Well on my way. But I remember him saying okay. You need to buy that book and you need to know everything in it. And so that night I remember going home and opening up the POH. And starting to remember it To memorize it and learn it and you know. I remember learning the menu. The propeller manufacturer was a seventy-eight-inch propeller fixed pitch. And I’m I’m thinking to myself. Well okay he said. I needed to learn it so you know what that meant on that day did you. Did you instantly know what all that Probably not probably not. But I did. I learned it And nowadays I I went back. And I think of my career my aviation career and how many check rides. I've taken over my career. And I I don't know how many it is but it's a lot and I don't think I have ever taken a check ride in an airplane that I did not have a personal copy of the POH whether it be in print or digitally I went to my bookshelf. The other day and I found that tomahawk manual. I still have it. it's again. It's over forty years old. I have a a Beechcraft baron manual. I have a Beechcraft duchess. I've bonanza manual. I have one for a a warrior and they're old but they're they're still good information and a mess still valid and of course with the airlines You know the issue you manuals and back in the day used to be paper manuals but now it's all digitally transmitted the iPad so that makes it very nice but again I have never taken a check ride in an airplane that I did not own the manual to And you know so. What are you studying the manual. The POH we're talking about here So what do you study well you know obviously limitations It's more knowing where it's more knowing how to use the manual then knowing what's in it And and I tell people man you know if you're just going to spend ten minutes getting an overview of the manual. Maybe the table of contents for each chapter might be a thing just so you know what's in there. Yeah, and we'll we'll show some of my lack of pilots. When I was a student you know. And and how I got smarter as I got more proficient in probably happens everybody but I fly. Our one eighty-two a lot now flat a lot with my family. I check the fuel Obviously a lot I have. A dipstick tells me how much fuels in that and recently I think I asked a rampart or somebody to check that for me before I went then I checked it again before I went in the numbers aren't the same that I had asked for and I thought that was a little bit odd But they they they want and did that with the dipstick and they they had the wrong dipstick of course but I asked him. Do you know in the POH where to look at. How many gallons are in the tank because they had a dipstick said a different number of gallons in that particular tank and this is a student pilot who wants to learn and I wanted to teach them and also teach my staff as well. I said where do we look. Let's go pull out the POH. And look at it and it was funny. They jumped towards the back and performance in the fuel system.
And all these other places but as you talk about limitations there's a pretty good summary right up in the fourth or fifth page that drives about what each tank has in it and that's a quick way to verify and to your point about knowing how to use the book, I don't necessarily need to know every plane and every tank size and everything at an airport but if I’m going to go fly that plane I better know where to find out how much fuel it can hold. Then make sure. I fill it to the right levels for the flight and the weight balance that I’m looking for exactly about using it right right and I signed off a student for a CFI check ride a couple of years ago. And I just remember the the examiner telling me that he was very happy with the student. He said, she was a female. She doesn't know everything but boy she knows exactly where to go to get the information. And that's that's worth its weight in gold knowing where to go to get the information. No doubt no doubt so the very important. Lots of great information in there I'm jealous when I hear people that. Get the book and they come back the next day and they said I read the whole thing. Because I can't sit down and do that sort of thing, I remember doing that for my multi. Engine check ride and really understanding the airspeeds and really getting into creating cheat sheets for myself to her in the plane to us Because I became knowledgeable about the systems. Of course right But but the things that I would need in real time. We're probably much fewer. So I did. I did create my own cliff. Notes version of what was going to be important while flying that particular craft But there's there's so much good stuff in there and reading the POH will will help you learn the airplane better from the standpoint of your the the manual you're going to have is probably not going to be POH for that particular airplane So it's going to be a one that you've found online or or you you've bought and So some of the systems for instance you may have an airplane has a twenty four volt electrical system and You might have a twenty four volt battery. You may have to twelve-volt batteries You may have the Forty-five-amp alternator. You may have the sixty-five-amp alternator so it. It creates questions for you that when you come back out to the flight school you can say hey. Does this airplane. How the sixty-five-amp alternator or does it have the forty-five so it it. It causes you to do some research in which I think is very helpful for sure so one that I know you're passionate about I’m passionate about it. It's free on the internet for everybody to go. Download from the faa's website. It's called the ACS it stands for the airman certification standards Wally are are you ever on the check ride have heard or training someone and heard AC - what See what yeah. Yeah, that's I you can usually tell I will very before we even start the check ride. I tell them that the plan of action that I have created for this check ride was taken from the ACS.
And sometimes I get a funny look in their eyes. And I are you familiar with the ACS and Lot of times. They'll say well yeah. My my instructor pulled it out a couple times and and You know I. I get a little nervous for the applicant. When I hear that The ACS airman certification standards is the new Why I shouldn't say new. It's a couple years old for private an instrument and commercial. It's basically the the document that examiners create Or or I shouldn't say create use to create their check rides scenario scenario and it's It is free of charge from the faa website. You can also if you're Fore flight user you can go onto the documents section and download it there But there's my gosh. There's so much good information in the ACS. And and I’m I’m you know I am referencing. It almost daily when I’m doing check rides You know I may do a commercial check ride. Then I'm doing a private. nothing else. She is a is one hundred futures. Two hundred feet. While I just pull it up and just confirm what the standards are but the acs in the very front. There's there's an introduction section and talks about the airman certification standards concept Using the acs and then you go in and you can go through the areas of operation of the acs an away one on looking at a private acs right here is preflight preparation and then to is preflight procedure in Three is airport and seaplane base operations. I'm not going to go through everything but there are. There are three sections to each AOA Subsection there's a knowledge risk management and skills elements and Basically if you just go through there and read all of that and as a as an examiner, we required to cover all the skills elements we're required to pick one risk management element and one knowledge element And of course as applicant you. Don't you know know what we're going to pick so It's prudent to be with all of them but for instance You know a lot of for landings every every landing One of the one of the elements is a proper use of checklist. Well you know it's basically says you got to use the checklist so the ACS In in in the back the back of the there's quite a bit of good reading Material sometimes it can be a little little dry but You know you don't have to read this whole document at once sitting in fact if you go into the instrument. Acs that's where you could actually find out what is required to do on an instrument proficiency check. You want to say well. Gee I I haven't Haven't flown or.
I haven't done any instrument work in over a year so I’m going to have to. IPC well what's required on an IPC. Well it sits rights very. It's just in the back of the s. and it's very it's spelled out for you so Again something that really. It's the test. It's the test. I mean I can remember going into a university class The first day of class and when the professor stands up there and says hey all the tests are going to come from this document on thinking to myself. Okay I’ve I’ve I’ve picked a good professor for this chemistry class. Whatever class it is well the check rides are going to come from the acs and that that pretty much says the answer sheet as you said so. Go look at it if you can meet those standards as it relates to maneuvers and can talk to all of the bullets and or maybe reference material that can help you find the answers to some of those questions. Then I think you're going to be golden and anybody who I can remember. It was PTS. when I took my private private what was PTS. Practical test stander so similar book. They as made some changes to it. acs is is the new version acronym but there were used to be special emphasis areas. And I can remember. I think we pulled out that book like the day before to review those special emphasis areas. And I was thinking to myself. You know all the weight of the check ride coming and being nervous. I was thinking we should have looked at this a couple of weeks ago. Right if you're if you're a student pilot at any stage working on private instrument whatever that might be There is an ACS still pts's s. for the CFIs is but they'll get changed. I'm sure in the short term as well. But I would highly recommend that early on really pre solo. The you're looking at the ACS so the you understand what. What will I be expected to do. My as I’m working on slow flight for my check ride. If you practice that way the check ride will be that much easier. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, I don't think. I was held to knowing the ACS really well. Until I started working on my commercial. And I think that's were. Maybe instructors stop spoon feeding you a little bit. And they're like don't come back and do maneuvers with me. Until you understand can articulate out loud what what's required for this maneuver and I think maybe we should hold private students to those a little bit a little bit more But if you want to be a great student you can do it yourself. You don't need an instructor to tell you to do it. So that's two very important books and I guess the the last book really is to books as well but they're normally printed together. It's the far aim the federal regulations. And then the Airman's information manual. I believe or airman. Information aeronautical information information so one one physical book to different locations on the web.
If you look at the electronic copies but almost an invaluable book that every again student at any level should be aware of and know how to use it. Yeah, and that's the key is knowing how to use it and learning you know. Let's let's just take the the regulation side of things. There's for a for the type of training that we're talking about. There are two sections of the regulation regulations. That for the most part we're going to be Very involved in part sixty-one impart part ninety-one and you know just knowing the difference in the two and when I started interrupted, I remember when I was training in my structures would always say this one's for certifications and this one's for what you have to do and my like how you remember listed just blew my mind that they could remember this big regulation but they only had to really keep up with two. Maybe three. If you took one forty-one but I’ll let you go on right but Yeah you know so You know parts. Sixty-one is the certification certification of pilots. If you want to know how many hours you must have to obtain a commercial pilot certificate. It's it's down in there in part sixty-one if you want to know the Oxygen requirements for a non-pressurized airplane. that's impart ninety-one. That's a flight rule. That's getting in the air if you want to know right of way rules Fuel requirements. those are all flight things. So that's all part ninety-one and again You know the the regulations can be To sit here and read the regulations Is probably something you're not going to do but Being familiar with with about where they are again looking at the table of contents if you really wanted to study the FARs just studying the table of contents to know what is in. There would be a great idea. You know I I. in check rides. We we do talk about oxygen requirements Quite a bit. And I’ll give maybe a private pilot candidate a scenario where they're they're much higher than they've ever thought about. Being you know is okay. We want to fly at fifteen thousand five hundred feet and the airplane may not even be able to obtain that. But I’ll say okay. Let's say we're in an airplane that can get up that high You know what are the oxygen requirements and in you know as long as they can they can look it up because the check right is The oral portion is an open book. Test so You know from a time standpoint. If they have to look up every question that and- ask them we. We wouldn't have enough time to finish the check ride. But that's one that that a lotta times has has the applicant digging in in the the far's and again it's in part ninety-one and you know as long as I can find it and answer the question. I'm happy with it. The the thing that I can remember using the far four was the the the regulatory stuff was looking up. The rules like you said in in ninety-one the the the operational components right. I think as I as I worked on. Am I ready for these checks. Rides I think you sixty-one to look up. Do I have all my stuff done. Do I have my nighttime time. Don’t have my all my things that have to get done done to make sure that I’m ready to go Maybe auditing my logbook. But a very valuable tool. Probably not your weekend. Read not something you can all sit around and enjoy But something that if you're going to be a professional pilot, you're going to become intimately aware of what's in the for for sure right now. We've talked about the aim.
We've talked about the aim a couple times still one that blows my mind. How good the book is how valuable the book is and just how much stuff is in it. Not regulatory right but more suggested would that be the way you describe it. Yeah, I would say not. Well definitely non-regulatory innate nature But I I was. I I was. I know as a private pilot before. The I really dove into the aim one I distinctly remember one night reading it and thinking to myself. Gosh there's a lot of good stuff in here there really is it's You know. I you can go back to the pilot's handbook Where we're going off on a tangent a little bit talking about other books but Pilots handbook of aeronautical knowledge or the airplane. Flying handbook boy. There's just so much good stuff in there and You know the the aim is is another good and it. it's it's a little bit easier reading because We all joke that the the far's that that's written by lawyers and most of us don't have a law degree so There's a lot of things that may be tough to understand The aim maybe maybe written by pilots. I hope I think the aims nice because it's got pictures Wally his pictures in the aim and as you flip through using on a print version of the game there in color. I don't know how they how they afford to print these books and some cheap but I can remember using the aim a lot for the lighting systems. Right because you can go in there and see a cool visual of it right Any if I go somewhere. And there's a lineman and they wave me in you know and my wife or kids or whatever. How do you know what that guy saying. Well I only know. Because I want to look at the pictures in the aim. The hand signals with orange cones in their hand. That that shows you exactly what that line man wants you to do. And what does it mean if he holds up one finger and wants you to start an engine. Yeah, and you have two engines. Which one is that like the answers. Those questions right. And I think everybody as you become more proficient in your flying. You really should use the aim more than we do. I think we. I think we all default wanted. We said one of the other books a manual or something else. When a lot of that information's right there in the end and I would make a suggestion for a brand-new student pilot. Especially if you're a young person By that first aim in a printed version. And keep it. And I say this because I distinctly remember cleaning out my office in my house many years ago and I had my original FAR/AIM and I threw it away and I’m I still kick myself for throwing it away because I i would love to go back and see what what was in the FARs to leading system in one thousand nine hundred eighty-one I. I've just be curious to know. But I don't have that I do have as I mentioned earlier. I do have my original POH. For that airplane the one thing. I can assure everybody is that. The regulatory section was much shorter in nineteen eighty-one than it has become in twenty twenty-one for sure right But the aim is a really really good book and so how. How would we use these on a check. Ride well again. I think we're talking about preparing if you if you do all the flight maneuvers and you know the acs know what you're allowed to be what the tolerances of those are. That's going to be helpful. I hear and I was that person Do I have to do this maneuver starting into the wind or should I do this maneuver starring in the win that if you have to you have to do those type things. It's probably in the ACS right. There's a specific rule. It's going to be in the acs right. It's a technique then discuss that with your CFI but use the ACS as you're preparing. That means not three days before. Check ride three months before. Yeah, I think the POH is a great example of something that I think we all think about later on in our piloting training right commercial. Whatever we start really reading and learning stuff but it would be very helpful even again pre solo to be thinking about those systems and be able to articulate. What is the ignition system. Magneto check right. I'm doing and what's really telling me that's going to make you a better pilot. Yeah, not a better runner. Upper right better pilot right right And then finally the far in the aim to invaluable sources in one one bound book that really should be in everybody's at least flight bag that they put on the plane with them. But what you travel to train with. You should have that you have electron of copies on your iPad and then no the links to find him on the web. If you to look on the web.
If you to look on the web right absolutely anything else to add I know. There's a lot more stuff to check ride and we're not saying if you just do these three things, you're going to pass with flying colors but these these will definitely take the bumps out of a check ride for you. Yeah, prepare you will absolutely and and you just go back to the POH circling back to that. You know the the performance section just be familiar with with the charts and how to use them. Obviously but again. What's available what charts are available. I inevitably inevitably will ask an applicant Okay what true airspeed. Are you using on our cross country. And they'll they'll give me a number. And I’ll say we'll have that while that's just what we use is sometimes answer again. Let's let's Let's maybe explorer The actual number and see see what it is voice our recording you. You talked about one question. Asked I think the listeners love to hear from a designated pilot examiner on a question you might ask. It's a pretty basic limb. But what's the what's that one question that you asked about weight that everyone just didn't know how to go find that in the POH asked the max takeoff weight to the airplane pretty important frequent number. It's important. yeah, yeah and a lot of people I think that ought to be on the tip of your tongue. You ought to be able to tell me. It's twenty-three hundred pounds and we're at twenty to eighty today you know. We're we're twenty pounds below. Max takeoff weight so you know if if if someone shows up with a fifty-pound bag well we're going to have to do something something's going to have to come off the airplane weight wise most would say the DPE will just leave. Yeah, exactly believe them back somewhere else so again.
It's more about knowing how to find the information knowing how to use the books to your advantage knowing how to be a competent pilot to use those tools as always thanks for listening to behind the prop and stay behind the prop.
Thanks for listening. Thanks for checking out the Behind The Prop podcast. be sure to click subscribe and check us out online at BehindTheProp.com behind the prop is recorded in Houston, Texas. Show creator and host is Bobby Doss. Co-host is Wally Mulhearn. This show is for entertainment purposes Only. and not meant to replace actual flight instruction. Thanks for listening and remember: fly safe!