Last week FSANA brought together DPEs, future DPEs and flight training industry members in Phoenix for the second annual Designated Pilot Examiner (DPE) Symposium.

“It was our pleasure to bring together DPEs, those who are seeking to become DPEs, flight training providers, and FAA staff for two days of discussion regarding best practices and concerns related to practical tests in the United States,” said Bob Rockmaker, FSANA President & CEO. “This represents the second time DPEs from around the country have assembled as a group to share information in a way that has never been done before.”

Key to the success of this effort was the inclusion of FAA representatives to help update attendees on current policy, expected changes coming soon, and what trends they are seeing around the country. A goal is to have the attendees of this event take what they have learned back to their local areas and improve the collaboration between training providers to enhance standardization and efficiency.

A key factor in the pilot training completion process is the certification event. In the United States, this doesn’t happen without the help of DPEs. FSANA has been actively engaged with supporting DPEs, the work they do, and helping integrate these service providers with flight training providers.

Many flight training providers are experiencing backlogs in flight testing needs. Bringing DPEs together also helps share their knowledge of things that hold up or derail the testing processes with the flight training community. A goal is to experience minimal wasted examiner resource time to maximize the ability to provide tests without delays.

FSANA remains committed to efforts to enhance efficiency and standardization in this sector of flight training. A special thanks is due from FSANA and the attendees to the support of the FAA team members that helped provide information and support to the symposium and to all the DPEs around the United States.

Airman testing is something that regularly brings about debate about pricing and availability. FSANA knows that pilot training providers, CFIs, and the applicants for certificates and ratings are investing heavily in their time and financial resources to complete their certifications. The price of the individual “checkride” (practical test) event is the most directly visible cost associated with these events, but there is no doubt that delays in the ability to source these tests from authorized FAA Designated Pilot Examiners (DPEs) certainly cause additional training costs as applicants work to remain current awaiting a testing event.

FSANA has been tracking the costs associated with airman testing and how long it takes to source a test for the past few years. This past August, FSANA again surveyed the flight training community regarding what they are currently experiencing. Here are some highlights of the findings.

Overall pricing per event has increased over the past six years.

The most common practical tests, typically taking approximately a half day, such as private and commercial pilot certificates and instrument ratings, have increased in price. Over 65% of respondants indicated that the average pricing for tests were over $650 while in 2018 only about 17% indicated the same. From the current survey data it appears average pricing is now more frequently ranging in the $7-800 range.

When the same evaluation is given regarding the initial CFI certificate, we see that in 2018 approximately 45% of tests were over $750 while in 2022 that number now is over 66%. It is if note that an initial CFI practical test typically takes a full day, so it is expected that the base price will be higher than other tests, but the overall price per event is increasing on this test as it is on others.

In general, the same increases in testing are being experienced in “add on” practical tests, in tests in rotorcraft, and in retest fees also.

How examiners allow applicants to pay for their testing services is modernizing much like the rest of our industry. Even just a few short years ago most DPEs accepted cash or check only as payment for their testing services. The recent survey indicates that more DPEs are now allowing test applicants to pay through credit or debit cards, digital payment methods such as PayPal, Cashapp, Zelle, and others is increasing. As technology allows payment directly between parties on mobile devices, it appears many examiners are adopting these digital payment methods.

A significant increase in reporting that they are accepting payment through the flight training provider. As sourcing of practical tests has become constricted in many areas, flight training providers themselves have in many cases engaged in sourcing DPEs to provide services for their customers. In these cases, many DPEs are directly billing and being paid by the businesses that are providing the training. This appears to be most common in university and collegiate operations, large scale academy style training events, and 141 training programs that are providing training for customers who are using loans or other funding sources.

Approximately five years ago FSANA and a workgroup of industry representatives met with FAA staff and began working on discussions for potential changes to practical test provision in the United States. One of the key concerns at that time was a backlog of practical tests that was increasing. At that time, the group targeted a wait time of no longer than 14 days from the time an applicant was signed off for a practical test to the time they could source such a test.

This survey indicates that 77% of respondents indicated a need to wait more than 2 weeks to get a practical test scheduled. A full 38% indicated that a wait of more than a month was needed. When considering initial CFI practical tests, 83% indicated a need to wait more than 2 weeks. Considering the frequently short footprint during which initial CFI training is conducted, a wait of 2-4 weeks to then source a practical test represents a significant delay in the then emplacement of a CFI candidate into the workforce. Retest time periods were similarly delayed in the survey data.

Of interest in this survey is who responded. While responses from practical test respondents, CFIs, and the training providers is valuable, we found that in this particular survey a large percentage of respondents were DPEs themselves. Over 150 DPEs, representing more than 15% of the DPEs in the United States, provided input. If anyone knows how long or how much it takes to get a practical test, these are the people.

In the most simple sense, a scheduled practical test event is a critical part of the infrastructure of our pilot training pipeline. The ability of an applicant and their training providers to source a scheduled event in a timely manner and at a fair price is a milestone in the training progression of future professional and personal pilots. While our industry continues to attempt to manage shortages of pilots (and other professional staff) this remains an important part of the training infrastructure. Like some other critical pieces of the training pipeline, if the ability to source tests is decreased or delayed, so is the entire source of future professional pilots.

FSANA has previously surveyed the same community with the same questions in 2018 and 2020 which allows this data to be compared with previous trends. FSANA will continue to survey this data and report it to the aviation community.

Plan now for the 14th Annual International Flight School Operators Conference. The 2023 conference is returning to the Rosen Plaza in Orlando, Florida, on March 1-3, 2023.

You can now register for the 2023 conference.

Registration includes:

FSANA is pleased to again have the conference return to the Rosen Plaza in Orlando, FL for 2023. Rooms can now be booked at a special conference discount.

For FSANA dates February 28 and March 1-3, 2023, reserve rooms by Monday, February 6 for a special rate of $189.00 single/double plus tax. Daily resort fee is waived. After this date rates may be higher or rooms may not be available.

On Tuesday February 28, 2023, FSANA is offering a first-of-its-kind 1-day seminar the day before the start of the FSANA annual conference and trade show in Orlando.

The seminar is providing an opportunity for participants to gain insight into the key points of the accreditation standards, process, and procedures. The accreditation project is planned to be completed by March 2024. Pre-accreditation is planned to open March 1, 2023 or sooner. Schools that are pre-accredited will be among the first to be eligible to enroll students who have borrowed money from the U.S. Department of Education Title IV program and/or received Pell grants.

The accreditation program will help level the playing field for all U.S. citizens who want to become career pilots since they will have access to Federal loan monies according to

Bob Rockmaker, President & CEO of FSANA.

Flight schools with the intention of becoming accredited are encouraged to attend this one-day event.

FSANA has opened registration for flight training supply chain providers to participate in the 2023 FSANA Conference and Trade Show scheduled for Orlando, Florida, March 1-3, 2023.

The supply chain plays a key part in the flight training process and attendees gain valuable insights and knowledge transfer from the many suppliers that exhibit and join panels. to learn and discuss the latest in the world of flight training.

At the 2022 DPE Symposium, FSANA officially launched a new Designee Review and Appeals Board (DRAB) that will serve as a body to review claims of DPE misconduct. This board is intended to serve as an outlet to which DPEs may appeal for further review if they feel they were terminated from service as a DPE unjustly or for the flight training community to appeal to for review of a DPE.

This board is not a part of the FAA and will have no official certificate or privilege action capacity. Still, it will serve as a recommending body to the industry in instances where wrongdoing or incorrect termination has taken place.

FSANA is establishing this board as a place where a thorough and impartial review may be conducted in the rare instances where it becomes needed.

"These cases are few and far between," said FSANA President & CEO Bob Rockmaker. "But when they do happen, the rumor mill churns quickly. A fair and impartial review of a situation can quell rumors and provide a balanced report to the industry. It may even be able to provide feedback that could be used with the FAA to generate action on their part.

First cases for review are already being considered by FSANA's appeals board and test cases will soon begin. As this proceeds, FSANA will report to the industry how this process works, and any outcomes that are reached.

The FSANA Designee Review and Appeals Board will be chaired by long-time aviation attorney, FSANA board member and flight training industry participant, Glen Pace. He will be joined by a number of experienced aviators who have come from flight training, have been DPEs, and have worked with the FAA for many years.

Click here to learn more about the new FSANA Designee Review and appeals Board.

In a briefing by FAA staff working within the airman testing branch and Jackie Spanitz, from Aviation Supplies & Academics (ASA), the group was brought up-to-date on the process of updating new pilot training standards, including the transition of legacy PTS documents to ACS and updates relating to when airman knowledge test updates or handbook documents would be given.

A challenge that has been present relates to the Administrative Procedures Act and how changes to these documents relate to rulemaking processes within the federal government. Some changes to these processes in 2019 affected the implementation of a number of documents that are pending implementation at this time. Examples of these include changes from a PTS for initial CFI certification and rotorcraft sectors.

The FAA is currently working through updates to these processes in response to the changes made by the federal government and anticipates that as next revisions will be developing a new, and hopefully in the future, more expeditious process that has taken place in the past couple of years.

FSANA knows that the FAA is responding to the best of its ability to respond to the challenges posed by the changes to the administrative procedures. Working together with the industry and the FAA, there is confidence that the process is streamlined in the future and that input from the industry may actually enhance the ability of the industry to provide input into future changes and needs to enhance safety and efficiency.

Many flight training providers have been eagerly awaiting updates to FAA handbooks from which applicants for ratings and/or certificates and the standards under which training is given and that DPEs use to administrate testing. FSANA will remain engaged with this process and provide information to the training industry as it develops.

AOPA is again seeking input from the flight training community from those who have taken flight training in the past 12 months to candidly share their training experiences. The survey closes on October 31, 2022.

Survey participants include pilots of all experience levels, from new students to those earning advanced ratings or taking a flight review.

Survey results are used to select recipients of the Flight Training Experience Awards. Distinguished, Regional, and National award winners will be announced at Redbird Migration, April 11-12, 2023, at the EAA Aviation Museum in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

AeroGuard Flight Training Center, a global ab-initio pilot training group, just announced the launch of AeroGuard Arabia^SM, its first campus located outside the U.S. This new location, near Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, will service aspiring future commercial pilots from within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Middle East region, and across the globe.

AeroGuard Flight Training Center has more than 20 years of experience training commercial airline pilots, graduating more than 7,000 future airline pilots for major airlines based all around the world. With AeroGuard Arabia, AeroGuard will bring its same professionally focused structure, training environment, processes, and curriculum to Saudi Arabia, training students locally to become the next generation of pilots in the growing Middle Eastern aviation market.

The launch of AeroGuard Arabia is in support of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, a plan to focus on developing travel and other industries within the country, including a $100 billion investment commitment in the aviation industry creating 1.2 million jobs. AeroGuard shares this vision and the future potential in the region, with AeroGuard CEO Joel Davidson commenting “The market in Saudi Arabia and across the entire Middle East is a key focus for AeroGuard where we see huge potential for growth. The Region has become a high growth tourist and trade destination, translating to strong demand for highly trained and capable airline pilots.”

AeroGuard Arabia is already operational with ten aircraft and dozens of previously enrolled students and instructors on their path to airline careers. The new AeroGuard Arabia location north of Jeddah is already well equipped to immediately support the pilot requirements of Saudi and other carriers in the region.

Additionally, students from the region will have the option to train in the U.S., gaining dual licensing in FAA and GACA regulations.

More information can be found at www.flyaeroguard.com/arabia/

Dr. Daniel Smith, an Aviation Program faculty member at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, is conducting research on the standardization policies and practices of collegiate Part 141 flight schools. The study will gather data on standardization practice with particular focus on training newly hired and experienced Certified Flight Instructors, flight maneuver and evaluation standardization, and training program standardization. The survey will allow the researcher to understand how the collegiate Part 141 community is currently practicing standardization.

The population targeted by this study includes flight instructors, Aviation faculty, and administrators (to include Chief Flight Instructors and Assistant Chief Flight Instructors) associated with collegiate Part 141 flight schools. All individuals meeting this criterion are invited to complete an online survey. The survey consists of 54 questions and will take approximately 15 minutes of your time. This survey will gather background data on the participant and standardization control, flight maneuver standardization, flight training standardization, and instructor training and evaluation standardization data. Participation in the study is voluntary.

Any questions concerning this study and the accompanying survey can be directed to Dr. Smith via email at smithd3@unk.edu.