A few months back there was a water leak in my apartment that caused a section of our carpet and wall to get moldy (gross!). Maintenance came over to investigate the problem and decided the leak was coming from our old shower head. They replaced the shower head and called it good. A few days later, we noticed the carpet was still soaking wet, as well as the wall now, and mold had started growing. We called maintenance again and they came over only to realize they hadn't really fixed the leak. After tearing apart the wall they found a leak in one of the pipes. It was a quick fix, but a section of our carpet now had to be replaced as well as a huge section of our wall. Had maintenance fixed the issue the first time, they could have avoided tearing apart such a huge section of our wall, and having to replace and clean our carpet- it ended up being a much bigger deal than it needed to be. How does this relate to aviation, you might ask? The same goes when taking a checkride- do it right the first time and you can avoid a lot of wasted time and money (and emotional stress).
A lot goes into preparing for a checkride, so why take the test before you are ready? I've mentioned in a previous post (click HERE to read that post) that I failed my instrument checkride; I feel that if I had just waited one more week and practiced my flying skills a little more, that would have given me the confidence I needed to pass, and I would have passed my first attempt. Of course I learned a lot from failing, but I still think it's better to just pass the first time.
If you take the checkride before you are ready, you still have to pay for the examiner and airplane, then pay your instructor again for additional training, then pay the examiner and airplane fees again (though most examiners will do the retest fee at a lesser rate). You will spend more money if you take your checkride before you are ready because you are paying for a checkride twice. Maybe that doesn't seem like a big deal, so let me throw out some numbers here. Most examiners charge $400 for the checkride, and airplane rentals cost around $150 per hour (checkrides are usually 1.5 hours). That's $625 you will never get back and that could have been saved had you waited until you were ready.
If you fail a checkride, it goes on your record forever. I don't say that to scare you, but it is a fact of life. Every aviation interview I've had asked me about "Have you ever failed a checkride?" It would be so awesome to be able to say "No." But if you can't, have an explanation of why you did, what you learned, and how you improved and became a better pilot because of it.
I flight instructed for 5 years; it was very easy for me to know if a student was ready or not for a checkride. If your instructor doesn't think you are ready (and your instructor really does have your best interest in mind) then don't take the checkride until you have their stamp of approval. Instructors put just about as much energy into you passing the checkride as you do- they want you to pass. They want you to feel the joy of succeeding at something you've worked so hard to get to. If they think you need a couple more flights, then you probably need it.
Of course there is still a possibility of failing, but it will just be bad luck, not that you didn't prepare properly. Through all my years of instructing, I had only one student not pass on the first attempt, and it was on a maneuver I wasn't even worried about- short field landings. The winds were just different enough that day, the turbulence just distracting enough, and the heat out-of-control, that he didn't land on the spot. It wasn't that he hadn't prepared properly for his checkride, it was just a bit of bad luck. So even if you are ready, and you still don't pass, don't be so hard on yourself. You'll get it right the second time.
Before I would take a checkride myself, or send my students on checkrides, I would make sure I (or my student) could talk about each technical subject area in the PTS, and fly each maneuver on one flight within PTS standards. If you can do that, you are ready!
If aviation is the career you want, I want you to succeed! I want you to find checkrides enjoyable and rewarding. I want you to pass the first time! So study hard, and train hard.
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