Katharyn Stanley DPE Checkride Gouges

Oral Emphasis

Katharyn's oral focuses heavily on your decision-making process and ability to cite sources. She wants to know where you get your information — not just the right answer, but which FAR/AIM section or resource backs it up. Key topic areas reported include:

• True airspeed vs. indicated airspeed and the effects of high density altitude
• Navigation light requirements for both day and night operations, including where to find the regulation in the FAR/AIM
• Scuba diving restrictions and their impact on flying
• Preventative maintenance rules — she specifically addressed that pilots are not allowed to pull and reset circuit breakers as a fix; the issue must be repaired or the breaker removed by a mechanic
• Cross-country planning: your chosen route, altitude selection, and the reasoning behind those choices
• Airspace identification along your cross-country nav log

Common Questions

Pilots reported that Katharyn asks "why" and "where did you find that" frequently. Expect to be asked to justify your cross-country route and altitude selections with practical reasoning. She also asks about specific regulatory references — not just the rule itself, but where it lives in the FAR/AIM. Questions on density altitude effects, lighting requirements, and maintenance limitations were common themes.

Practical Focus

The flight portion is comprehensive and covers a wide variety of maneuvers. Pilots reported the following sequence of tasks:

• Soft field takeoff followed by navigation log tracking
• Instrument work including climbs, descents, and unusual attitude recovery
• Clean slow flight (no flaps) — this is a specific emphasis
• Steep turns held to ±100 feet
• Power-off stall
• Lost procedures (without a full diversion initially)
• Engine fire simulation with a descent down to 1,000 feet AGL
• S-turns
• Power-on stall initiated during a climb from 1,000 to 2,000 feet
• Engine failure simulation
• Diversion to a nearby airport (Compton was reported)
• Soft field landing, short field takeoff, go-around, and short field landing on the numbers or within 1,000-foot markers
• Forward slip to a no-flap landing

Examiner Style

Katharyn comes across as thorough and methodical. She expects precision in both your knowledge and your flying, but pilots did not describe her as adversarial. She places clear emphasis on understanding the "why" behind decisions rather than rote memorization. She wants to see that you can connect regulations, weather concepts, and flight planning into practical reasoning. The checkride covers a lot of ground — both oral and flight portions are substantial — so come well-rested and prepared for a full session.

What Surprised Pilots

• The emphasis on clean (no-flap) slow flight — not all examiners request this configuration specifically
• Her focus on where you source your information, not just the content of the answer
• The power-on stall being introduced during a climbing transition (1,000 to 2,000 feet) rather than from straight-and-level flight
• The preventative maintenance question about circuit breakers — she drew a firm line that pulling a circuit breaker is not a pilot-authorized fix
• The breadth of the flight portion, which included nearly every landing type plus a slip, go-around, and multiple emergency scenarios