Initial CFI Checkride

[fussle]

I just passed my CFI checkride at the FSDO today!! WOHOAA!! I appreciated everyone that shared their experiences on this board, and the advice they gave. So here is how my ride went. My oral was about 2-2.5 hours, and the flight portion was about 1.5 hours. The exam started at 8:30 in the morning. The first thing I had to do was prove that I was eligible to take the flight test (current flight review, endorsements, etc.). Then we went right into the FOI, and I was asked about the levels of learning, along with the teaching processes. After that we moved into the flight instructor's responsibilities (endorsements, regulations, etc.). In this part I was asked alot of questions in the scenario format. For instance, you have a student who did 6 landings well, but messed 2 of them up...are you going to endorse him for solo flight? Really not too bad. The main part of my oral was teaching about aerodynamics (four forces, lift, left turning tendencies, etc.), and flight maneuvers (chandelle, 8's on, s-turns) on the dry-erase board. I was also asked about the compass errors. I had to show him that the airplane was flight worthy (100 hour, etc.), and answer some basic airplane system questions. Really a straight forward oral. He was especially pleased that I made my own flight plans ahead of time. Also, he said from the very beginning there was no problem if I had to reference something. He said I could do it all I wanted. I just had to teach the material. Then we went out to fly, and I did a short field takeoff, short field landing, no flaps landing, and crosswind takeoff/landing. I then did slow flight and a power-off stalls. Next was steep turns, 8's on pylons, s-turns, and chandelles. I also had to teach straight-and-level flight. Then I put on the hood and we did basic flight on instruments, and recovery from unusual attitudes. Finally, we came in and he flew the airplane and landed while I taught. Really a nice guy, and fun to fly with. Offered a lot of new info; overall a fun checkride. The most important thing he said, and what he liked the most is that I continually talked, and explained the maneuver. He said he has had so many applicants who do not talk! Basically, what I did was treat him as a student the whole time. You tend to take things for granted, and not even think about teach straight-and-level flight because it seems so obvious and is so natural to you. But you must teach everything! Hope this helps someone out there, I know how stressful it can be getting the CFI.

 

[Lead Sled]

Congratulations ! ! ! You have just passed the most difficult checkride the FAA has to offer - it only gets easier from here on out. Your challenge from now on out will be to be the kind of pilot that your students think you are.

Lead Sled

 

[JAFI]

Also Congrats,

Now the fun starts. You will find 27 different ways to explain each teaching point. I recommend you read a copy of "Seven Kinds of Smart" a non-aviation book but an educators book. It will open your eves on how people learn depending on their personal background. It hepled me.

JAFI

 

[as739x]

Congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Flyboy758]

Nice going, what FSDO did you take it with?

 

[rumpletumbler]

It wasn't the Atlanta FSDO. They are about a million times more thorough than that. I failed my 1'st CFI ride with them 3-4 hours into the oral because I described a prop governor the way I had been taught it (multi governor) but I happened to be flying a single engine airplane. The CFI that taught me didn't know the difference and neither did I. Now I do.

 

[IrishFlyer]

Well done Fussle. Time wise that sounded like a fairly relaxed ride compared to some. I have mine coming up shortly, though I’m not exactly sure when. I believe there is a delay at the San Antonio FSDO right now.

"He was especially pleased that I made my own flight plans ahead of time."

What sort of flight planes did you come up with? Did you outline the likely way the flight portion would go?

Any other hints or tip would be greatly appreciated,

Congratulations again,

IF

 

[fussle]

I took the ride at the South Bend FSDO in Indiana. Irish flyer, the main thing was knowing how to teach. What I couldn't understand for awhile was that this checkride is not to judge your flying ability, but your teaching ability. If you make mistakes, which I did, say why or what happened. Constantly explain yourself, and unless you screw something up really bad, there shouldn't be a problem. The biggest thing he said he was impressed with was that I continually taught him, even in "dry" portions of the flight when you may think there is nothing to talk about, but always talk about something. As far as the ground, I would say what I have consistently heard is be able to prove you and your plane are eligible, know aerodynamics (favorite among CFI examiners), FOI, flight instructor responsibilities know the maneuvers in depth (PTS tolerances, how to perform), and know systems (mainly landing gear, and prop). Thing to remeber is every examiner is different, each one has there own little quirks. The way I prepared is creating a binder by taking detailed notes over each section of the PTS. I tabbed them therefore I could just reference that real quick instead of the books. They could also be used as an outline to teach ground. Like I said, he was more than happy to let me look stuff up. That's what you have to do. He just wanted me to teach everything right. So if you don't know look it up. Also, I watched the King Schools CFI checkride course, and went through the ASA CFI Oral book. Good Luck on the ride! PM me your email address, and I can email you some examples of my lesson plans.