Rory Dupont DPE Checkride Gouges

Oral Emphasis

The oral exam leans heavily into commercial pilot privileges and limitations. Expect thorough coverage of:

• Common carriage vs. private carriage, wet vs. dry leases, 14 CFR 119.1(e), and operational control — know how to distinguish what's legal for a commercial pilot without an air carrier certificate.
• Cross-country flight planning with real weather integrated throughout. DuPont will present weather products (prog charts, GFA, METARs, TAFs, winds aloft) and tie them into whether you can actually make the planned flight.
• Inoperative equipment procedures — how to determine airworthiness with MELs, deferrals, and 91.213. He may present a scenario where you need to alter a flight contract or deal with airport issues to keep things legal. This section alone ran about 30 minutes for one candidate.
• Oxygen regulations (91.211) — unpressurized vs. pressurized aircraft requirements up to FL 410, the 10-minute supplemental supply rule, types of masks, and time of useful consciousness values from the FAA chart.
• Aeromedical factors, particularly the types of hypoxia, their symptoms, and corrective actions.
• Regulatory knowledge including safe altitudes over congested vs. non-congested areas (91.119), type rating requirements (61.31 Section A), high performance and complex endorsements, proficiency vs. currency, required personal documents, and flight review requirements if you haven't taken a checkride within 24 calendar months.
• Part 43 preventive maintenance — what a commercial pilot can and cannot do.
• Airport environment: runway lighting systems, hold-short markings, ILS critical areas, taxi and runway lights, declared distances, and runway stripe distances.

Common Questions

Pilots reported being asked to walk through cross-country planning with weather scenarios that challenge go/no-go decisions. DuPont may present a scenario where the planned flight isn't legal as written and ask you to alter the contract or conditions to make it work.

For systems, he uses a "you pick two, he picks two" format — you choose two aircraft systems to brief, and he selects two others. Reported examiner picks included the propeller system and engine; the candidate chose fuel and G1000. Be ready to discuss any system in depth.

He'll ask about survival considerations for off-airport landings in mountainous terrain, including planning for three days' worth of supplies.

Examiner Style

DuPont is described as efficient and professional. The ground portion lasted about 1.5 hours total, which candidates noted as well-paced and organized. He allows you to reference materials and look things up, which suggests he values your ability to find and apply information rather than just memorize. The overall vibe is businesslike but fair — he's not trying to trick you, but he expects you to know the commercial-level material thoroughly.

What Surprised Pilots

• The "you pick two, he picks two" format for aircraft systems was a notable detail — it gives you some control but also means you can't skip systems you're weak on.
• The depth of the inoperative equipment and flight-planning legality scenarios stood out — 30 minutes on INOP equipment and scenario-based contract adjustments is more involved than some candidates expected.
• The survival gear question (three days of supplies for a mountain crash scenario) was an area some pilots didn't anticipate being tested on at the commercial level.