What does the CFII ride involve?

[suswims]

Any want to post their experience with the CFII checkride?... Ground and/or flight would be helpful!

 

[unreal]

Well, as you know, everything that's going to be on the ride will be in the applicable PTS. Nothing should be a surprise on checkride day.

I'd give you an overview of my ride, but I honestly don't remember a whole lot about it. I think I did a partial panel VOR approach, then went missed for some unusual attitudes, and taught an ILS somewhere in there. I dunno...been a couple years.

 

[woutlaw]

Well, mine was a piece of cake. YMMV though.

Presented a board lesson on holding, talked about compass turns (OSUN, northerly turning error, ANDS), very basic GPS theory, required equipment for IFR (GRABCARD), currency requirements and that was about it.

The oral probably lasted no more than 35 minutes.

In the air we did an ILS then went partial panel and did compass turns and unusual attitudes. We finished up with a partial-panel hold and partial-panel VOR approach with a circle to land.

The only tricky bit was when the DE turned off my DME and number 2 nav, which meant I had to keep switching frequencies and the OBS on number 1 to identify the holding fix (which was also the FAF when we flew the approach).

Even though the radio was turned off I stuck one of the VOR frequencies in the number 2 as a reminder so I didn't have to keep looking the damn thing up, which the DE liked.

A partial-panel hold with a single nav, no GPS or DME is a bit of a bastard and I would have killed for a flip-flop radio instead of the old KX-170B. I explained that real-world I'd tell ATC to figure something else out because I wouldn't fly the hold that way in IMC.

It was the most fun I've had on a checkride.

When he turned off the DME and number 2 nav I had to think about how I could fly the hold and approach for a bit, then looked over at him and said "Bill, why that's just cruel. I can't wait to use that on a student."

He got a kick out of that.

Just keep talking, have fun and explain every thing you're doing in the air and it'll go just fine.

 

[pgcfii2002]

Oral was 3 questions, flight portion was a VOR approach and some steep turns.

Easy!!!

 

[Princedietrich]

From personal past experience, I'd say that you will probably experience something very similar to your instrument rating checkride. However, the emphasis of evaluation will not be on your stick and rudder skills. The DPE is going to be looking for your cognitive/judgement abilities and your decision making skills as well as your ability to take what you have in your brain and transplanting it into the other person's brain in an effective manner. This is what I've noticed in the majority of instructor checkrides. The DPE knows you already know how to fly and have already demonstrated how to fly, now you're being evaluated on your ability to teach and keep your student and yourself alive and in one piece.

 

[minitour]

My -II was my initial. Started with paperwork, FOI, Static system, charts, some regs, vacuum system.

Flight:
ILS, Hold, LOC Partial Panel circle to land.

Pretty straight forward.

Check the PTS...it's all in there and GOOD LUCK!

-mini

 

[JAFI]

Oral was 3 questions, flight portion was a VOR approach and some steep turns.

Easy!!!

Now there is quality control for ya. Why did the DE even bother. You could of just mailed him the check. Was it the 141 school DE? Was there a reason the DE did not follow the PTS?
JAFI

 

[SPilot]

Oral:
I was asked details on how to properly teach the inside of the instruments, difference and definitions of MSA/MEA/MOCA/OROCA/MAA/MRA/MAA, when one needs to begin climb around an MRA, MCA, or enroute change in MEA,... instrument Part 61 hour requirements and endorsements (why 60-day endorsement is required although it aint so easy to find in the 61.65E). Spin awareness + partial panel recovery, SVFR, certs&docs + when I can log actual/simulated instrument time as an instructor. My examiner also asked me what I would do if I was out in IMC flying on radar vectors in the practice area and lost communication, and I went off about 91.185...then he stopped me and told me what I really would do would be to proceed to where VFR conditions exists... and that I should reinforce to my students the importance of always knowing where VFR exists.

Flight:
Due to busy airspace and fairly busy radio communication it was and still is difficult to properly teach instrument flying while under ATC control. I did one VOR hold, which proceeded to partial panel immediately after the entry, then full VOR approach partial panel, GPS approach full panel, then DME arc without airspeed indicator, then partial panel ILS. I tried to explain my actions and demonstrate teaching as often as I had the time to talk, but was fairly occupied communicating with ATC and stuff. I think the examiner understood that it wasnt easy to teach when the radio chatter never stopped, at least he wasnt upset after the flight.

 

[unreal]

I think the examiner understood that it wasnt easy to teach when the radio chatter never stopped, at least he wasnt upset after the flight.

Yeah, that is pretty tough. Eventually you just get a feel I think for when to talk and when not to talk. I dunno. When I first started teaching students in the pattern at my home airport (two tower frequencies on busy days), the chatter just keeps going. Yeah, you miss a call or two every once in a while because you're yakking, but you get used to knowing when they'll call and when they probably won't, so that helps.

 

[VNugget]

Yeah, that is pretty tough. Eventually you just get a feel I think for when to talk and when not to talk. I dunno. When I first started teaching students in the pattern at my home airport (two tower frequencies on busy days), the chatter just keeps going. Yeah, you miss a call or two every once in a while because you're yakking, but you get used to knowing when they'll call and when they probably won't, so that helps.

Now mix in the student missing calls, answering other people's calls, stepping on people, getting stepped on, forgetting what to say, saying the wrong thing... all the while him having the only push to talk in the cockpit, and the newbie controller getting bombarded with inbounds from all over stepping on each other and everyone else. What you get is a Barrel O' Fun

Sometimes I just wanna rip the dang thing off and toss it out he window. (The radio, not the student )

 

[taters]

my ride oral + flight was under 1 hour ,,easiest checkride ever

 

[flyer172r]

The examiner walked into the room and literally said this will be the easiest checkride you'll ever take. The hardest thing I had to do was describe how the airspeed indicator works.

On a related note, why is it that the CFII applicant has to take the checkride under the hood when you never wear a hood while giving instrument instruction.

 

[unreal]

On a related note, why is it that the CFII applicant has to take the checkride under the hood when you never wear a hood while giving instrument instruction.

Good question. I always wondered the same. I suppose some hoodwork is necessary just so you know how to fly the airplane from the right seat if you're in actual, but seriously, I think they should have you learn to do the opposite. Personally, I find it harder to fly instruments when you can see outside vs. being under a hood. That was a pretty big adjustment to me when I started teaching instruments.

 

[Goose Egg]

For everyone else: The easiest checkride they ever took; an afterthought.

For me: Four hours of pure sweet hell. I was unwittingly paired with one of the biggest arsholes in aviation that I had ever met, or met since. It was almost three years ago and I'm still a little t.o.'d.

Moral of the story: This could be the easiest ride of your life, or it could be the hardest, depending on which side of the bed the examiner woke up on. Be ready for anything. My initial CFI was far easier than the CFII.

-Goose

 

[airplane wizard]

Oral(45min) Teach: holds and DME arcs, primary/supporting inst


Flight (1.1) Teach: basic instrument flying, unusual attitudes, normal ILS
Fly: steep turns, partial panel vor approach.

piece of cake

 

[Goose Egg]

Now my CFI-G checkride, on the other hand... that was wicked easy. One question on the oral, and .6 flight... and the question came after the flight while we were doing paperwork. I guess it helped that I had done my commercial glider with the same guy a few weeks earlier...

-Goose

 

[Rally]

My ride was a little airwork. Stalls/slow flight under the hood before we did that we did a ILS then did the airwork then went partial panel then a VOR partial panel. That was it. MEI was actually harder but thats because the DPE I use thinks too many people get complacent in multis. (not that they don't in instrument conditions) MEI ride every landing was a SE.

 

[flyer172r]

Now my CFI-G checkride, on the other hand... that was wicked easy. One question on the oral, and .6 flight... and the question came after the flight while we were doing paperwork. I guess it helped that I had done my commercial glider with the same guy a few weeks earlier...

-Goose

Don't leave us hanging. What was the question?

 

[Goose Egg]

Don't leave us hanging. What was the question?

I think it was something about best L/D. I can't remember it exactly--it was almost two years ago.

-Goose

 

[bogey383]

glorified instrument ride, with certification questions. talk your way through every thing.