Prepare for: Checkride Prep Flights
The final dual flights before your practical test: flying every task to ACS standards and getting the endorsements you need.
Your CFI's syllabus and your airplane's POH come first. This page is a general study aid to help you show up prepared.
What you'll do
- Fly each ACS task with your instructor, starting from preflight and ending with postflight, as if it were the real checkride.
- Get feedback on anything outside the ACS standards and repeat it until it's consistent.
- Private requirement (61.109(a)(4)): 3 hours of flight training with an authorized instructor in preparation for the practical test, within the 2 calendar months before the test.
- Before the test you'll need (61.39): the knowledge test passed within the past 24 calendar months, your instructor's endorsement for the practical test, the endorsement for areas you missed on the knowledge test, and the 61.109 aeronautical experience.
- Fill out the application in IACRA with your instructor, and collect your photo ID, logbook, medical certificate and the airplane's documents and maintenance records for the examiner.
The standard you'll be held to
Quoted from the current FAA Airman Certification Standards for each level that tests this.
There's no ACS task for this lesson. It's covered by 14 CFR and your instructor's syllabus.
Prepare the night before
- Do a mock checkride on this site and the examiner-mode oral practice.
- Review your knowledge test report and study every area it lists.
- Read the checkride lesson and the checkride day checklist.
Common mistakes
- Practicing only the maneuvers you're good at.
- Leaving the IACRA application and endorsements until the last day.
- Forgetting the airplane's maintenance records.
Questions to ask your instructor
- Am I flying every task within ACS standards?
- When do you want to do a stage check or mock checkride with another instructor?
- Can we review my knowledge test missed areas together?
Check yourself
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