Taylor Deley DPE Checkride Gouges

Oral Emphasis

Deley works through the ACS line by line, making the oral very thorough and methodical. Pilots reported heavy emphasis on the following areas:

• Logbook scrutiny: He reviews your logbook in detail. Make sure all requirements are clearly documented, especially cross-country PIC time.
• Cross-country planning: He expects a full paper navlog and VFR sectional charts prepared in advance, with ForeFlight as a backup only. Be ready to explain how you arrived at your answers (headings, fuel burn, etc.).
• Commercial privileges and limitations: Expect scenario-based questions about when you can and can't accept compensation for flights.
• Airspace: General airspace knowledge questions.
• Aircraft systems: Basic systems questions on your checkride aircraft.
• Type ratings: He asked how you obtain a type rating — know the regulatory path.
• Currency requirements: Be solid on what keeps you current and legal to fly.

Common Questions

Pilots described the oral as scenario-driven and practical rather than rote memorization. Expect questions like:

• Walk-throughs of your cross-country planning — why did you choose that altitude, that route, those fuel numbers?
• Scenario questions about accepting money for flights under your commercial certificate.
• Questions about how to obtain additional ratings and certificates (e.g., type ratings).
• If you don't know something, he expects you to look it up in your publications — so know exactly where to find answers in the FAR/AIM and other pubs.

Practical Focus

The flight portion operated out of KAJO (Corona Municipal) with a transit to KRAL (Riverside Municipal). Key details reported:

• Takeoffs and landings at KAJO: Short-field takeoff first, followed by short-field landing, soft-field takeoff, power-off 180, and normal takeoff — all before departing on the cross-country.
• Cross-country: Start timing on your climb-out. He'll redirect you toward the maneuver area relatively quickly.
• Maneuver area near Lake Mathews: Steep turns, stalls (to first indication only — no need for a full break), chandelles (lazy eights were not requested in this case), emergency descent (engine fire scenario), and simulated emergency landing (plenty of flat fields in that area).
• Eights on pylons: Performed using landmarks at the southwest and northwest ends of a jutland/pier area near Lake Mathews. Have your reference points picked out.
• Transit to KRAL: Soft-field landing, then normal takeoff back to KAJO for a normal landing to finish.
• Power-off 180: This maneuver was flagged as a failure point — practice it thoroughly and have your energy management dialed in.

Examiner Style

Deley is described as a genuinely great guy who puts pilots at ease. He's an active American Airlines 737 pilot based at LAX who has been flying since he was a kid at AJO, so he knows the local area and the airplane world well.

• Conversational and approachable — not adversarial.
• Thorough and methodical on the oral (line-by-line ACS), but not trying to trick you.
• He wants to see you pass. Pilots felt supported, not interrogated.
• He's willing to discontinue for weather/winds rather than push into unsafe conditions — one pilot was discontinued for winds outside personal limits and came back on another date without issue.
• Rechecks with him were described as smooth and quick.
• Reported to do PPL through CPL checkrides (not instrument or ATP, though this hasn't been fully confirmed).

What Surprised Pilots

• The level of logbook detail he reviews — make sure every requirement is clearly logged and easy to find, especially cross-country PIC time.
• He expects a full paper navlog and sectional, not just an iPad plan. ForeFlight is backup, not primary.
• Stalls only to first indication — he's not looking for full stall recovery at the commercial level.
• The power-off 180 can be a make-or-break maneuver. One pilot failed on this early in the flight, so it's worth extra practice.
• He asked about type ratings during a commercial oral — a topic some pilots might not expect.