Checkride

'Be prepared' is more than a Boy Scout motto

You couldn't sleep last night. You could barely force yourself to eat any breakfast. Your mind is racing over the hundreds of things you need to remember while you sit, hands sweating and stomach churning, as the designated pilot examiner (DPE) enters the room to begin your practical test. If you've taken a practical test before, you recognize these symptoms. If you have not, what you're feeling now could be quite frightening. But be assured, to some extent these feelings are normal. The good news is you do have some control over the severity of the stress and anxiety you are currently experiencing.

First, how could these awful feelings possibly be considered normal? If you bear in mind that a practical test is a somewhat stressful and threatening situation, your body is experiencing a completely normal reaction to that stress. Whether a threat is real or imagined, your brain is reacting normally by activating hormones, quickening your heart rate, constricting certain blood vessels, and accomplishing many other physiological changes. This is often referred to as the fight-or-flight reaction. And in your present situation, taking flight is exactly what you'd like to do.

As intimidating as some may appear, all DPEs, through their own experiences, will be understanding and sympathetic to your anxiety and will attempt to help relax you as much as possible. In fact, the FAA is so well aware that practical tests produce huge levels of stress, it provides that the very first order of business a DPE shall undertake upon meeting you is to, "Put the applicant at ease." The FAA does not elaborate on how a DPE should accomplish this task but relies instead on the examiner's abilities to be friendly, courteous, and personable. Obviously, some are better than others at this, but no examiner wishes to intensify an applicant's stress or anxiety levels during a checkride.

Having witnessed hundreds of checkrides from both sides of the table over the years, it is often quite easy to see why some applicants arrive for checkrides more stressed than others. The common factor leading to a relatively high-stress checkride typically is overall checkride preparation, or lack thereof. As painfully obvious as it might seem, it is usually this simple: An applicant who is very well prepared will have the added confidence that yields, as a bonus, a lowered stress level. You may have experienced similar situations during school where you knew the material so well that you were actually eager to take the final exam. These are the fun, low-stress tests.

Conversely, an applicant who has not done the homework will usually be aware of that fact, thereby adding to his or her already high stress level the nagging and impossible hope that the examiner will somehow not notice any weaknesses. An interesting but unfortunate parallel to this occurs when an applicant is not aware of just how ill prepared he or she really is. This unawareness frequently creates a false pre-test sense of confidence that quickly vanishes as the oral questioning begins, producing lots of blank stares and head scratching on the applicant's part. This situation is frequently a result of one or more factors, including rushed or incomplete training; pressure to complete by a specific date; spotty training extended over a long period of time (possibly years); a lack of effective pretest evaluation by the recommending CFI; or a combination of similar factors.

Before you announce your general checkride preparations complete, be sure you spend whatever time is necessary to become fully comfortable with your aircraft maintenance logs, inspection records, and forms. And rather than simply allowing your CFI to show you the required log entries, make sure you can accomplish this log inspection task as the pilot in command (PIC). That is precisely what your DPE will expect from you. Too often, an applicant shows up for the practical test having been handed the aircraft logs just minutes beforehand and is now expected to prove to the DPE, in a timely manner, that the aircraft is airworthy. Applicants who have not adequately prepared for this required checkride event would experience a huge spike in their stress levels.

Equally important is your ability to locate and explain the weight-and-balance data that is required to be carried in every aircraft. Quite alarming is how often an applicant has obviously never even seen this required document during his or her training, relying instead on the flight school's supplementary data sheet-which frequently relays outdated or inaccurate weight-and-balance information.

As one would expect, the first and foremost method of reducing your checkride stress begins with your own thorough preparation. Be advised that even after you have properly prepared for your checkride, you will undoubtedly still feel some stress and anxiety. Just remembering that these feelings are normal may help. And finally, during the days preceding your checkride, be sure to take a few (hundred) deep, cleansing breaths, and get plenty of rest, relaxation, and some exercise. Even more important, try to get a good night's sleep and eat a healthy breakfast before heading out to the airport on your checkride day.

The complete elimination of stress during your practical test is simply not going to happen. But once you have thoroughly prepared, and taken care of yourself-mind, body and soul-you will arrive for your checkride about as relaxed as humanly possible.

Bob Schmelzer is a Chicago-area designated pilot examiner and a United Airlines Boeing 777 captain/line check airman. He has been an active flight instructor since 1972.