Alex Silva DPE Checkride Gouges

Across nine reports, applicants describe Alex Silva as patient, fair, and straightforward. He is not there to trick you or ask oddball questions. He greets you with small talk about how you got into aviation, then checks your IACRA, documents, logbook, and endorsements. The oral runs open book, so keep the ACS open and follow the references. You can look up answers from official FAA sources, but lookups should be the exception, not the rule.

He starts with airworthiness and has you walk the aircraft maintenance logbook. Know required inspections, AD compliance, and supplemental documents, and remember a 100-hour is not required for personal flying. Expect pilot and aircraft documents through ARROW or SPARROW, plus required equipment day and night using ATOMATO FLAMES and FLAPS and 14 CFR 91.213(d). He digs into currency versus proficiency under 61.56 and 61.57, BasicMed, and private pilot privileges. One common point: you cannot fly a Beechcraft Bonanza on a basic private certificate.

He leans hard on the cross country flight plan from your assigned scenario, often a trip to Vegas, Camarillo, or KHND. Bring a paper navlog and know how you found TAS, CAS, WCA, and magnetic variation. Calculate maneuvering speed for both you and Alex using the Va formula, and watch TAS versus IAS on performance charts. Weather covers METARs, TAFs, surface analysis, pressure systems, fronts, isobars, troughs, and local fog like advection and the marine layer. Weight and balance covers forward versus aft CG effects and rear baggage limits.

For systems, he wants malfunction responses, not how parts work. Expect an engine fire on start and memory items, so use your flow and your checklists. On the flight he watches checklist usage and preflight thoroughness, including elevator and rudder counterweights and hotspots. Expect a short field takeoff, a power pull on climbout, steep turns, slow flight, stalls, unusual attitudes with failed G5s, a diversion, and KSEE landings.