The student pilot knew he would have to take a written exam as part of his journey to becoming a private pilot but was caught off guard when his instructor referred to the FAA Private Pilot Knowledge Test. He said he had been studying for the private pilot written exam using his father’s book from the 1990s.
Was there another test?
Not quite. It’s called the knowledge test because it’s done on the computer now and has been for many years. The only writing you do is signing in and out of the testing center.
The book the student was using to prepare was very outdated. It still had questions about ADF (Automatic Direction Finder) and NDB (Non-Directional Beacon), which were removed from the test in 2015.
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While the laws of physics that govern flying will not change, the rules and regulations do.
The book had questions presented in multiple-choice format. Someone, presumably his father, had highlighted all the correct answers. According to the applicant, his father said that’s how he studied, memorizing the questions and the correct answers.
Rote memorization is not the best way to study these days, as with the onset of the digital age it is much easier for the FAA to change the questions—and it does, on a regular basis, I am told. Rote memorization is the lowest level of learning and, when it comes to aviation, that lack of depth of knowledge could kill you.
On our second meeting, the applicant reported he had been having trouble finding a place that offered the knowledge test. This did not surprise me.
When his dad was in training, pilot applicants had a choice of Laser Grade, Computer Assisted Testing Services (CATS), and PSI Services. All three had FAA contracts to administer the tests. The FBOs were contractors that administered the tests. The 60-question private pilot test cost the airman applicant $70 to $80.
The FBOs downloaded the tests from the services, receiving $65 for each test they administered. The FBO staff that administered the tests had to be at least 21 years of age and specially trained.
Tests Become More Expensive, Harder to Find
In 2021 the price of the FAA knowledge exam increased to $175. In 2022 the FAA awarded PSI Services an exclusive Airman Certificate Testing Service contract.
As of January 1, 2023, the payment to the FBOs dropped to $22 per test. As a result, many FBOs discontinued testing because $22 didn’t cover their costs to administer the exams.
To find a testing center visit the FAA’s website and do a search using your ZIP code. You may have to travel to take the test and must register for it on the PSI website. You will need your Federal Tracking Number (FTN), which you would have received when you filled out the IACRA form (Integrated Airman Certification and Rating Application) to get your student pilot certificate.
Make sure to make and verify your appointment with the testing center. Often FBOs have just one or two people trained to administer the tests, and you may be working around their schedule.
On the day the test is scheduled, it is uploaded from PSI and should be waiting for you at the test site. The testing facility is usually a dedicated room equipped with a few computers and a closed-circuit video system to monitor the test takers.
You will need to bring identification that includes your photograph, signature, and home address to the testing center. For most this is a state ID card or driver’s license.
You also need to demonstrate you are prepared to take the knowledge test by presenting one of the following:
- A certificate of graduation from a pilot training course conducted by an FAA-approved pilot school, or a statement of accomplishment from the school certifying the satisfactory completion of the ground-school portion of such a course. If you have taken and passed a Part 141 course, you will be issued a completion certificate.
This starts the clock running. You have 60 days to take the FAA exam. Don’t delay. If the test is not completed during that window, you have to retake the course and get a new certificate, or find a CFI or ground instructor who is willing to work with you until you demonstrate the required knowledge for them to endorse you for the test using the language found in Advisory Circular 61-65: Aeronautical Knowledge Test: FAR 61.35(a)(1), 61.103(d), and 61.105. - A certificate of graduation or statement of accomplishment from a ground school course conducted by an agency such as a high school, college, adult education program, the Civil Air Patrol, or an ROTC Flight Training Program. Again, the 60-day window applies.
- A certificate of graduation from a home-study course developed by the aeronautical enterprise providing the study material, such as King Schools, Gold Seal, or Sporty’s.
Practice Makes for Passing
There are practice tests available online that can be accessed from a variety of providers.
You don’t have to create a full 60-question test. Do them in 10-question increments at first, keeping track of challenging areas. Go over these challenges with a ground instructor or CFI to make sure learning takes place.
The minimum passing score on the test is 70. I have a policy of not endorsing the applicants for the knowledge test unless they bring me three practice tests all done in the same week with a score of 90 percent or higher.
The reason I do this is because 20-plus years as an instructor has taught me that most people lose at least 10 points off their practice test scores when they walk into the testing center. This is particularly true when the applicant has test anxiety. Go in overprepared.
Tips for Success
Bring your own plotter and E6-B to the testing center, either the mechanical one or a dedicated electronic one. I have heard stories from applicants who were denied the use of an E6-B app on their smartphone because they were not permitted to bring a phone into the testing center.
If you are using a computer E6-B, make sure it has fresh batteries. If you’re handed a mechanical E6-B and you’re unfamiliar, do not panic. The instructions for solving the problems, such as ground speed or time en route, are printed on the instrument. If you can follow the directions on a bag of ramen noodles, you can use a mechanical E6-B.
Note the scale on the sectional excerpts in the test supplement (also issued at the testing center) doesn’t match the measurement scale on the plotter or mechanical E6-B. Use the issued piece of paper to make a ruler with the proper scale.
Read each question silently to yourself at least twice. You may find it helpful to move your lips as you read because this makes your brain slow down so you can determine what’s truly being asked. This is particularly helpful on the performance questions.
Even if you tried to memorize the questions, read them twice—Read. Them. Twice.
At the completion of the test you will be given an airman computer test report that shows your score. Make a photocopy of this piece of paper and put the original in a safe place. You will need to present this document to the DPE the day of your check ride.
If you missed any questions, the subject matter test codes will be indicated at the bottom of the paper. These codes can be found in the Airman Certification Standards, so it behooves you to have a copy of the ACS to look them up in. You may have missed just one question there, or it could be more—the codes indicate areas in which the applicant was found to be deficient.
Before the check ride your CFI should go over those areas with you and make an endorsement in your logbook indicating you have received additional instruction in these areas.
If you don’t pass the test, use those test codes to review your weak areas, and with the help of a good instructor, shore them up. You will get another endorsement and can take the test again.
Make sure you bring that endorsement when you go for the retest.
A satisfactorily completed knowledge test is good for 24 calendar months. If the practical test for that certificate or rating is not satisfactorily completed during that period, you will have to take the knowledge test again.
Try not to be that pilot.