Gail Sue Lapook DPE Checkride Gouges
Designated Pilot Examiner
Preparing for an FAA checkride with Designated Pilot Examiner (DPE) Gail Sue Lapook? GougeHub has 4 first-hand Gail Sue Lapook checkride gouge reports from pilots who tested. Review oral exam questions, flight test patterns, and examiner insights for CPL, IFR, and PPL checkrides.
↓ View 4 available gouge reportsGail Sue Lapook starts with documents and airworthiness on every ride. She checks the aircraft maintenance logbook entries and wants you to match inspection dates, including ADs. Know AVIATES and AVLATES, the 91.205 equipment list, and whether a 100 hour inspection can be extended. She asks about special flight permits, special airworthiness certificates, MELs, KOEL, and what experimental means.
Systems come up in detail across all three rides. Expect questions on flaps driven by an electric actuator, circuit breakers, primary and secondary controls, and trim type. She asks what runs off the pitot static system and what happens when the static port or pitot blocks. Know your fuel, useable fuel, oxygen altitudes, types of drag, and left turning tendencies. The commercial ride adds stalls and spins, spin recovery, high altitude operations, pressurization, hypoxia, and carbon monoxide.
Weather and planning get real treatment. She walked one applicant through a full ForeFlight briefing, plus PIREPs, AIRMETs, METARs, TAFs, and surface analysis charts for a go or no go call. Expect freezing rain and icing scenarios, density altitude, and the three definitions of night. The IFR ride covers VOR intercepts, 30 degree vectors, MAA, MEA, MOCA, intersection holds, feeder routes, procedure turns, DPs, and SIDs.
Her scenarios test judgment over rote answers. On a localizer circle to land with no airport in sight, she wants the straight in minimums, not a missed approach. On a lost communication after takeoff, she wants you to find nearby good weather even against the regulation. Know AVEF MEA and the right squawk for radio failure.
The flight portion on the commercial ride includes a short field takeoff, three checkpoints then a diversion, steep turns, slow flight, three stalls, chandelles or lazy eights, an emergency descent for engine fire, and an engine failure landing. As of this writing, three reports are on file for Gail Sue Lapook.
Analyzed across 113 site-wide Private Pilot checkrides in the GougeHub database, the same questions keep coming up. Here’s one of the 37 in the guide:
“How do you calculate your takeoff and landing distances for today’s flight?”
⚠ Common Pitfall: Read the chart limitations closely. They often say things like “assumes a paved surface” or “assumes 10° of flaps for takeoff.” Use less flap or a grass strip and the chart may no longer apply.
All 37 questions, ranked by frequency, with Examiner Insights and Common Pitfalls from 113 real checkrides — written and reviewed by Andrew Gray, CFI-II.
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Ratings & Checkride Types
- CPL (Commercial Pilot)
- IFR (Instrument Rating)
- PPL (Private Pilot)
FAA Designee Information
FAA Oversight Office: Greater Chicago FSDO
Status: Active Designee
- Private Pilot Examiner: Airplane Single Engine Land
- Commercial & Instrument Rating Examiner: Airplane Single Engine Land
- Flight Instructor Rating Examiner
- Ground Instructor Examiner
- Flight Proficiency Examiner
Source: FAA Designee Management System · Verify on FAA.gov →
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Transparency Disclaimer: This page summarizes patterns reported by applicants. It is not an endorsement, prediction, or guarantee of checkride outcome. Every checkride varies based on the applicant and circumstances.