So Much to Know So Little Time

[Smokehouse]

The more and more I study the more I realize how little I know.

I'm not a dumb guy, but I decided to open up the study guide for the Private Pilot Oral Exam and good god how in the world do you remember all that stuff. The knowledge exam seems fairly straight forward, I try and do a chapter a day on that one, just to get familiar with and understand the questions, but the oral exam seems to be the knowledge exam times 10. Anybody have any tips on taking these tests, I'm not doing badly at all with the knowledge exam, granted I only have about 14 hours so far, but how do you do this!!!
Is the oral made worse by worrying about it, or is it really that tough?
Please calm my nerves hehe .

Oh yeah, is there an average length of time that the oral exam should last for PPL?

 

[UnstableAviator]

You have the right idea, just start studying. The more you fly, talk with your instructor, and involve yourself in aviation the more the things you read will make sense. Don't expect to know everything you need for your oral exam right away, it takes time.

The more and more I study the more I realize how little I know.

I think that rings true for anybody in just about any field. It comes down to how much you really want to know. The bare minimum, fine. As much as possible...even better!

 

[KickSave]

Smokehouse, relax, you're in the normal mode for this stage of the training. I'm working on my 4th rating, and each one felt overwhelming at first, especially the private. There's a reason why you need 35 or 40 hours to get a license, it can't be learned in 14 hours. Just keep studying, learn individual sections of the oral study guide and written test prep guides at a time, and by the time you have your 40 or so hours, you will be ready.

Your oral exam should last between 1 and 2 hours. You can generally make it easier on your self by being over prepared - If you impress the examiner on his first few questions, he/she will be less likely to grill you later on. If you stumble early, they will really dig down deep and test you more thoroughly. Either way, there is a certain minimum list of stuff they are going to cover - it's all on the PTS and the Oral Exam guide. Right now you are just developing flying skills and slowly starting to build confidence. By the time you are close to finishing the training, your instructor will start to prepare you for your exams. Worry about what you don't know then... right now you just need to focus on the next lesson... the best advice I could give would be to fully master each lesson as you approach it, and not try to jump ahead or get to the finish line early. It will all come to you in time. Good luck, you'll do fine.

/Dave

 

[stillaboo]

Smokehouse, it'll get easier with time. If you want something to do that's definately going to help you on your oral, go get your sectional out.

Close your eyes, put your finger down on the map. Now, tell me the airspace (class A, B, C, D, E, G) from the ground all the way up to space. What are the visibility and cloud clearance restictions in each? What are the altitudes I, as a private pilot, can fly at (both cruising altitudes and the lowest altitude AGL, it's trickier than you might think)

Look at the boxes over the navaids, and the writing describing the airports. What does ALL of it mean, without looking at your map key?

Now that you've mastered your map, take it to your CFI and ask him to ask you anything on the map. Also, try to stump him. I have yet to run into a pilot who knows everything on a map, and, by finding the tricky stuff that may stump him, you'll be teaching yourself too.

If you can do this, you'll know your maps pretty well. You will be asked map questions on your oral, and, by learning your map, you'll learn alot too, like:

-How wide's a victor airway?
-How high does class B normally go to?
-How big's a mode C veil usually?
-Where's the upper shelf of class C, and what am I expected to do there when inbound, and what's ATC expected to do for me?

Good luck. Glad to see your posts on this board.

-Boo!

 

[tarp]

Smokehouse,

Everyone and I mean EVERYONE goes through the same thing. 7 ratings, 2 jets and I still go through that "How will I ever learn all this stuff?" phase.

There are three ways to attack (breakdown) your study material.
1. Chapter by chapter in the book
2. Do it as your CFI assigns it, or
3. Buy/download the Private Pilot PTS (Practical Test Standards) and follow the ouline in there.

Whatever you do, share your thoughts with your CFI and let him/her guide you. You guys are a team preparing for your test.

Two other comforting thoughts:

A. The PPL is considered a "licence to learn". You are not going to be an expert in anything - your examiner will test to see that you understand the subject matter and then, as is written in the PTS, he will determine if you "exhibit sound judgement". It will be your dedication to operating safely and within the regulations that will win you the prized rating.

B. Then there's the old joke - "What do you call a medical student who gets a 'D' on his final exam?..............Doctor!" I'm not advocating being a slacker - but - the idea is that you probably will not give your best performance under the stress of a flight test. If you train to 'A' standards and then give any performance better than 'F', you get a rating and a licence to learn.

Enjoy - this stuff really is fun!

 

[bobbysamd]

Training

You bring up a point that many people fail to realize when they begin flight school. There is quite a bit of new and unfamiliar book learning to be absorbed when learning how to fly. It's much tougher if you're attending an accelerated course and really do have little time in which to learn it.

Just keep reviewing and reviewing it. Ask for explanations on things you don't understand. Usually there is a logical explanation for each thing you have to learn and it helps if you can connect the two. There is also a great deal of straight memorization required. Sometimes you can contrive a logical explanation for some items; others you just have to memorize. There are a lot of memorization devices that have come out through the years to help you remember those items. Your instructor probably has a few.

I think that you would benefit if you can attend a formal Private Pilot ground school. Preparing for class and interacting with the instructor and other students greatly facilitates learning instead of only sitting at home and trying to learn strictly by reading. I did both and learned far more when I had a class to attend.

Your Private training lays the foundation. Learn it as well as possible. Subsequent ratings build on your Private knowledge and do get easier as you become more accustomed to the routine of learning.

Good luck with your training.

 

[midlifeflyer]

You're still early in your flying. A lot of the studying you're doing now simply has no relevance to the flying you're doing.

The knowledge test is a matter of study, practice, and multiple-guess test taking ability (I've never tested this out, but I wouldn't be surprised if a good standard test taker could pass on the first try without even knowing anything about flying!)

The oral exam is different. ATC doesn't call you and say, "Traffic 12 o'clock, 2 miles, opposite direction, your altitude. Do you want to (a)....." . The oral is part of the "practical" test. Discussions of performance and airspace and regulations are put into the context of a flight. What are the weather reports telling you about your route? How do you tell if the airplane is airworthy? Who do you have to talk to as you pass near this airspace? What do you have to watch out for as you descend into this area? When you see an airplane coming head on, what will you do?

You will learn the information in two ways. One is by studying it. The other, much more effective, and just like the oral, is by using it.

Point is that the knowledge associated with flying is a lot like the knowledge associated with everything else. Much of the studying you are doing is in a vacuum; out of context. They will begin to make sense when the knowledge you are picking up becomes integrated into the flying you are doing.

 

[Smokehouse]

WOW, thank you all for such wonderful responses, I have thought about taking the ground school they offer to supplement my "Cleared for Takeoff" syllabus. I like John and Martha King, but did you know the guy from who wants to marry a millionaire is one of the "instructors" on the videos? That was a shock, I didnt think that guy was smart enough to flip a light switch, I guess if he can do it, so can I.

Thanks for the advice, I think I will begin by taking the oral guide and try to learn a page a day just form memory and of course practical expierence, the pratical itsels, seems like that may be a little less stressful, opposed to sitting across form someone while they grill you on wha it means to be a pilot

I know I'm not the first one to go through this, but it sure is overwhelming in the beginning.

Thanks again!

KGB

 

[KickSave]

Snoke, one suggestion. Don't burden yourself with memorizing the Oral Exam guide just yet. If you do, you will be learning rote memorization, which is not always the level that examiner will be looking for. When you do take your practical test, the examiner will most likely not ask questions in the exact wording that the oral guide gives them in. Some questions might not even apply at all if they airplane you are testing in isn't the same one the study guide refers to.

What I would suggest instead, is go through the majority of your training, where you will actually learn the required material by doing it (not by memorizing the answers) and you will understand the material much better. If you do that, when you get closer to taking the test, you will find that studying through the exam guide is much simpler and easier, because you have been exposed to everything in there already, and you will simply know the answers, instead of trying to recite the answers out of memory.

So I'd suggest studying the oral exam guide around two weeks before your test. By then, it will seem like you already know whats in there, and you will just be confirming it.

Oh yeah, Rick Rockwell is a tool, ain't he? His jokes almost made me want to quit flying! I thought "are all pilots as dorky as this guy, or is it just him"? I used the Cleared for Takeoff videos also, they do work. Along with your instructor, and the effort you already seem to be putting in, you'll do fine.


/Dave

 

[avbug]

If it makes you feel any better, I have five different FAA certificates, and I still can't figure out how to open the **CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED****CENSORED** airplane door, yet.

Can anybody tell me what ever happened to AN range legs? I can't seem to tune them up.