Some people were just never destined to occupy a cockpit on their own.

 

To be honest it's been so long i dont remember exactly, but it was a question about Unicoms, CTAF's, and Tower freq's when closed. Referencing the crash with GLA and another King Air in Quincy back in the day as to the reason why she failed me. Yes I answered something incorrectly, but I don't think it was a sole reason to fail me considering how the rest of the ride was going. To each their own it was my first failure, but it wasn't my last so I'm over it now. Live and learn and def won't make the same mistake twice.

 

Yeah yeah yeah.

I had a client bust his instrument checkride 4 times.

Yes, five bloody times.

On the first time, everything up to the point of the examiner getting into the aircraft was nearly perfect. I'd known he took a few tries to get his private, so I made sure he was able to perform under high workload and stress conditions. The previous instructors were not able to get him to the point of even being signed off for the ride. And he chose a particularly strong personality for an examiner, refusing our suggestion of a more laid-back personality.

The client got into the airplane, made it to the runup area, and promptly forgot his own name, as well as most everything else.

Diagnosis? A severe case of checkrideitis.

The next time I flew with the client immediately before the checkride, as well as the client having flown the previous day with the examiner. Both flights were nearly perfect. The examiner showed up, and the client forgot his own name again.

Tried a different examiner, make it to the first approach and ATC denied the examiner's request. Examiner got angry and client forgot his own name.

First DPE take three, checkride take four. Got an approach done, went missed approach, doing fine, until the examiner suggested something. Client forgot his own name.

Spent two weeks grilling the client in the sim after the client's work day. In the sim, we had the engine on fire, left wing falling off, right wing structurally compromised, thunder, lightning, passenger slumped over, flames licking at the client's feet, Air Force One behind them, two F-16s taking pot shots, lost comm, single nav, partial panel approach to 100' above HAT minimums going on with the client handling the incredible stress level just fine, put him in the aircraft on a lesson right before the DPE was to show up, and I cancelled the checkride.

Spent three days half-aircraft, half-sim, requiring the client to take two days off work to focus completely on flying. Called up ATC before the flights to arrange them assisting me with throwing the book at the client. He got partial panel in the clouds, single nav (I blocked them for him, I could still see 'em as needed), ATC doing their level best to be evil to the guy, to the point where the client finally realized his checkrideitis was silly. We got on the ground ASAP, then he immediately did a full checkride, including the oral, and passed just fine.

That client is now flying a Hawker 800 and his company just bought a Citation X.

The DPE told me after the second bust, based on the guy's performance, he'd be calling the FSDO. However, with that client and me as the instructor, he had no worries. He congratulated me when the guy did pass.

Immediately after the guy passed, I went to the FSDO to renew my CFI ticket. The Inspector wanted to see my pass-fail record. I showed him the record. He asked who the examiner was. I told him. The Inspector renewed my CFI certificate and I heard nothing further about it.

The FAA does track the first time pass/failure rate for instructors. It's going to take a lot for them to care or get involved, unless a DPE calls.

 

Yeah, don't worry about it. If a DPE threatens to call the FSDO, tell him you told your boss that the he had been flirting and trying to touch your thigh in the back office and if continues to harrass you he'll never work at that flight school again. Nothing like giving up $2000 a week in checkride fees to change a DPE's mind.

If he continues to argue, pick up the phone and tell him you're about to report his sexual antics to the police. Then ask him..."So do we still have a problem here"?

Oh wait, that's what not to do, sorry....Ha ha ha

 

T'weren't a threat in my story. It was a matter-of-fact statement from the DPE, whom I highly respect.