Flight Instructor Program · policy
Ticket: 42. Checkride document checklist
Story: US-8.3
Gate: Phase 4. Run at lesson 39, at least a week before the scheduled test
ACS axis: FAA-S-ACS-25, effective May 31, 2024, Appendix 1 and Appendix 3
Regulation verified against live eCFR: 2026-08-14, title 14 up to date as of 2026-08-12
Issued: 2026-08-14
Every endorsement, record, test result, and form the practical test requires, checked off against the regulation that requires it, with the candidate present, at least a week before the test.
Nothing on this list is difficult. That is the point. A candidate who has flown thirty-eight lessons and can teach every maneuver in the ACS does not fail for lack of skill on the morning of the test. They fail because a knowledge test report is in a drawer at home, or because an endorsement says "received training" where the regulation requires "instructional proficiency", or because the airplane's transponder inspection lapsed while they were busy learning to teach.
This checklist is run once at lesson 39, and confirmed again the day before the test. Both are recorded below.
At least one week before the scheduled practical test, and with the candidate in the room.
Not on the morning of the test, which is the entire point of US-8.3. A missing item found a week out is a phone call. The same item found at the examiner's desk is a lost slot, a second examiner fee, and in the worst case an expired knowledge test.
Not by email, and not by the instructor alone. The candidate is present because half of these items are in the candidate's possession and only they know where. An instructor ticking boxes from memory is producing a document about what they believe, not about what exists.
The physical items are seen, not described. The logbook is open on the table. The test report is in hand. "I have it at home" is not a tick, it is an action item with a date.
Filled in every time this checklist is run for a candidate. Both rows are required before the test.
| Run | Date | Run by | Candidate present | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lesson 39, at least one week before the test | ||||
| Day before the test, confirmation pass |
The day-before pass is a confirmation, not a repeat. It checks the items that can change between lesson 39 and the test: the aircraft inspection currencies, the recommendation endorsement's own currency window, and that the physical documents are in the bag rather than in the house.
Source requirements are re-verified against the live current edition on the day this checklist is issued to a candidate, per cross-cutting requirement 4. The citations below were verified on 2026-08-14 against live eCFR at title 14 currency 2026-08-12, and against FAA-S-ACS-25 read from the live FAA server the same day. Do not inherit that date. Part 61 moves, and sources/FAA-SOURCES.md records a pending amendment against 61.51.
| # | Item | Source requirement | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.1 | FAA Form 8710-1, Airman Certificate and/or Rating Application, completed and signed | 61.13(a)(1), and 61.39(a)(7) requires a completed and signed application form | [ ] |
| 1.2 | The application is submitted the way this examiner wants it, normally through IACRA, and the candidate knows their own FTN | 61.13(a)(1) requires a form and manner acceptable to the Administrator. The manner is the examiner's to specify | [ ] |
| 1.3 | The instructor's portion of the application is completed and signed by the recommending instructor | 61.13(a)(1). 61.195(i) prohibits self-endorsement, so the recommending instructor is not the applicant | [ ] |
Item 1.2 is the one that turns into a scramble. IACRA accounts, FAA Tracking Numbers, and examiner preferences are all knowable a week out and none of them are knowable at eight in the morning. Ask the examiner how they want the application when the test is booked, not later.
| # | Item | Source requirement | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.1 | Fundamentals of instructing knowledge test report, or documented evidence of the 61.183(e) exemption | 61.183(e). Test code FOI per FAA-S-ACS-25 Appendix 1 | [ ] |
| 2.2 | Flight instructor airplane knowledge test report | 61.183(f), on the areas listed in 61.185(a)(2) and (a)(3). Test code FIA per FAA-S-ACS-25 Appendix 1 | [ ] |
| 2.3 | The original reports, presented at the time of application | 61.39(a)(2) requires the applicant to present the knowledge test report at the time of application | [ ] |
| 2.4 | Each report was passed within the 24 calendar months preceding the month the practical test is completed | 61.39(a)(1)(i) | [ ] |
| 2.5 | Every ACS code listed on each Airman Knowledge Test Report is recorded as closed, by a named instructor on a named date | policy/KNOWLEDGE-TEST-DEFICIENCY-CLOSURE.md, US-7.3. This is North Aero policy. The regulatory hook is 61.39(a)(6)(iii) | [ ] |
Item 2.3 says original, and it means it. A photograph of a test report is not the test report.
Item 2.4 is counted back from the month the practical test is completed, not from the month it is booked, applied for, or begun. That is the misreading policy/KNOWLEDGE-TESTS.md warns about, and it bites hardest on a candidate who took a test before enrolling and then took a break.
Item 2.5 is not optional and it is not only North Aero being thorough. FAA-S-ACS-25 Appendix 1, read 2026-08-14, states that the required minimum elements to be tested from each applicable task include any elements in which the applicant was shown to be deficient on the knowledge test. The examiner is required to test your missed codes. 61.39(a)(6)(iii) separately requires the recommending instructor's endorsement to certify that you have demonstrated satisfactory knowledge of the subject areas you were deficient in. Both point at the same log.
If item 2.1 is an exemption rather than a report, the evidence is the certificate or the employment that grounds it: a part 61 flight or ground instructor certificate, a State, county, city, or municipal teacher's certificate authorizing teaching at 7th grade or higher, or employment as a teacher at an accredited college or university. Bring the document, not the claim.
All four are in the logbook, and all four are separate endorsements. This is the section where a candidate most often has three of what they need.
| # | Item | Source requirement | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | Fundamentals of instructing endorsement | 61.183(d), on the fundamentals of instructing listed in 61.185 | [ ] |
| 3.2 | Areas of operation endorsement for the rating sought | 61.183(g), on the areas of operation listed in 61.187(b). For airplane single-engine land that is 61.187(b)(1)(i) through (b)(1)(xiv) | [ ] |
| 3.3 | Spin training and instructional proficiency endorsement, from the external provider | 61.183(i)(1). See the dedicated section below | [ ] |
| 3.4 | Practical test recommendation endorsement | 61.39(a)(6) | [ ] |
| 3.5 | The recommendation endorsement certifies training received and logged within the 2 calendar months preceding the month of application | 61.39(a)(6)(i) | [ ] |
| 3.6 | The recommendation endorsement certifies the applicant is prepared for the practical test | 61.39(a)(6)(ii) | [ ] |
| 3.7 | The recommendation endorsement certifies the applicant has demonstrated satisfactory knowledge of the subject areas they were deficient in on the knowledge test | 61.39(a)(6)(iii) | [ ] |
| 3.8 | Every endorsing instructor's certificate was current and appropriately rated on the date they signed | 61.1(b) definition of authorized instructor, conditioned on 61.197. 61.195(i) prohibits self-endorsement | [ ] |
Item 3.5 carries a live clock and it is the item most likely to expire quietly. The training has to have been received and logged within the 2 calendar months preceding the month of application. A candidate who finishes lesson 42 and then waits for an examiner slot can walk past this without noticing, because nothing about it feels like an expiry date. If the test slips, this is the item that has to be re-checked, and it is on the day-before confirmation pass for that reason.
Item 3.2's citation form matters. 61.187(b) uses roman-numeral subparagraphs under (b)(1) for an airplane single-engine rating. The areas of operation are 61.187(b)(1)(i) through (b)(1)(xiv), and not 61.187(b)(1) through (b)(14), which is a form the regulation does not use. sources/FAA-SOURCES.md records where that error was found in this program's own lessons and corrected, and program/check.py check 17 now fails if it returns.
Its own section, because it is the item most likely to be missing, and because it is the only document on this list that comes from an instructor who does not work for North Aero.
| # | Item | Source requirement | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4.1 | An endorsement in the logbook, signed, not a course completion certificate and not a receipt | 61.183(i)(1) | [ ] |
| 4.2 | It certifies the applicant is competent and possesses instructional proficiency, not only that training was received | 61.183(i)(1) | [ ] |
| 4.3 | It covers stall awareness, spin entry, spins, and spin recovery | 61.183(i)(1) | [ ] |
| 4.4 | The training was given in an airplane certificated for spins, and the endorsement identifies it | 61.183(i)(1) | [ ] |
| 4.5 | It names the endorsing instructor, their certificate number, and its expiration date, and is dated the date of the training | 61.1(b), 61.197 | [ ] |
| 4.6 | The Supervising Instructor has checked it against policy/EXTERNAL-SPIN-MODULE.md and recorded that check, with their name and the date | Cross-cutting requirement 9. North Aero policy | [ ] |
| 4.7 | A scan of the logbook page is in the candidate's records file | policy/EXTERNAL-SPIN-MODULE.md step 4. North Aero policy | [ ] |
Item 4.2 is where money gets spent twice. A provider can give genuine, high-quality spin training and endorse only that training was received. 61.183(i)(1) requires competence and instructional proficiency. An endorsement missing those words does not satisfy the regulation, and the fix is a conversation with an instructor who is now far away and may not remember the flight.
What the endorsement does and does not buy on the day. 61.183(i)(2), read live 2026-08-14, requires the applicant to demonstrate instructional proficiency in those areas, and provides that upon presentation of the (i)(1) endorsement an examiner may accept it as satisfactory evidence of that proficiency. The word is may, not must. And it does not apply on a retest following a failure for deficiencies in those areas, where 61.49(b) requires the applicant to bring an airplane certificated for spins. N41459 is not established as approved for intentional spins, so that retest would need an airplane North Aero may not be able to supply. See policy/DISAPPROVAL-AND-DISCONTINUANCE.md.
| # | Item | Source requirement | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.1 | Pilot certificate, in physical possession | 61.3(a)(1)(i) | [ ] |
| 5.2 | Photo identification, in physical possession | 61.3(a)(2). A State driver's license, a Federal, State, District, territorial, or possession government identification card, a U.S. Armed Forces identification card, an official passport, a 49 CFR part 1542 SIDA credential, or another form the Administrator finds acceptable | [ ] |
| 5.3 | Medical certificate, at least third class, valid on the day | 61.23(a)(3)(iii) requires at least a third-class medical when taking a practical test in an aircraft for a flight instructor certificate. 61.39(a)(4) requires it be held | [ ] |
| 5.4 | Commercial pilot or airline transport pilot certificate with airplane single-engine land, and an instrument rating | 61.183(c)(1) and (c)(2)(i) | [ ] |
| 5.5 | At least 18 years of age | 61.183(a) | [ ] |
| 5.6 | Logbook or training record showing the required training and aeronautical experience, tabbed to what the examiner will look for | 61.39(a)(3), 61.51 | [ ] |
| 5.7 | At least 15 hours logged as pilot in command in airplane single-engine land | 61.183(j) | [ ] |
| 5.8 | If this is a retest or a resumed test: the original Notice of Disapproval or Letter of Discontinuance | 61.43(f)(2) | [ ] |
Item 5.4's instrument rating requirement surprises people. 61.183(c)(2) requires an instrument rating, or privileges appropriate to the flight instructor rating sought, for an airplane single-engine flight instructor certificate. It is an eligibility requirement for the certificate, not a nice-to-have.
Item 5.7 is small, specific, and almost never the problem for a commercial pilot, which is exactly why it gets skipped. Fifteen hours as pilot in command in the category and class. Confirm the total exists and is findable in the logbook rather than assuming it.
Item 5.3 is dated. Medicals expire on a schedule the candidate stopped thinking about years ago. Look at the date on the certificate, do not ask whether it is current.
N41459These match policy/CHECKRIDE-AIRCRAFT-AND-COST.md exactly, per ticket 42's acceptance criteria, and that document is the one that gets corrected if the two ever disagree. Repeated here because a checklist that sends the reader to another document on the morning of a test is not a checklist.
| # | Item | Source requirement | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.1 | Airworthiness certificate | 91.203(a)(1), and 61.45(a)(1)(ii) for the practical test | [ ] |
| 6.2 | Registration certificate, current | 91.203(a)(2) | [ ] |
| 6.3 | Approved flight manual or operating limitations | 91.9 | [ ] |
| 6.4 | Weight and balance data, current | 91.9, and the airplane's approved material | [ ] |
| 6.5 | Annual inspection, current | 91.409(a) | [ ] |
| 6.6 | 100-hour inspection, current if applicable | 91.409(b) | [ ] |
| 6.7 | Transponder inspection, within 24 calendar months | 91.413 | [ ] |
| 6.8 | Altimeter and static system inspection, within 24 calendar months if the flight will be IFR | 91.411 | [ ] |
| 6.9 | ELT battery and inspection | 91.207 | [ ] |
| 6.10 | Airworthiness directives compliance record | 91.417 | [ ] |
| 6.11 | Inoperative equipment handled correctly, and nothing inoperative that is required for an area of operation on the test | 91.213, and FAA-S-ACS-25 Appendix 3 | [ ] |
| 6.12 | The airplane has the equipment for each area of operation, no operating limitation prohibiting any of them, and at least two pilot stations with adequate visibility | 61.45(b)(1)(i), (ii), and (iii) | [ ] |
| 6.13 | A view limiting device, furnished by the applicant | 61.45(d)(2) | [ ] |
Item 6.11 is the one that is legal and still ends the test. FAA-S-ACS-25 Appendix 3, read 2026-08-14, states that if the aircraft has inoperative equipment and can be operated under 91.213, it must be determined whether any inoperative instrument or equipment is required to complete the practical test, and that the inoperative equipment must not interfere with practical test requirements. A correctly placarded inoperative item is still a problem if an area of operation needs it. Check it a week out, when there is time to fix it.
Item 6.13 is the candidate's to bring, not the school's. 61.45(d)(2) puts it on the applicant. Agree with the examiner before the flight when it goes on and comes off, which FAA-S-ACS-25 Appendix 3 asks both of you to brief.
Items 6.5 through 6.10 can lapse between lesson 39 and the test. They are on the day-before confirmation pass.
The sections above are organized by source requirement, which is how you verify them. This is the same content organized by what goes in the bag, which is how you pack.
N41459The last line is not paperwork and it is on this list anyway, because the ferry is a flight that has to be planned and paid for by the candidate, and it is the item most likely to be left until it is a rush. See policy/CHECKRIDE-AIRCRAFT-AND-COST.md.
A failed item is an action with an owner and a date, recorded on the checklist, not a note to self.
One item deserves its own rule. If the spin training endorsement in section 4 is missing or defective, the test moves. It is an eligibility requirement under 61.183(i), the person who can fix it does not work for North Aero, and no amount of good will at the examiner's desk substitutes for it.
N41459CONTEXT.md