E202 - Ask the DPE - Part I

In this episode of Behind the Prop, Bobby interviews DPE Wally Mulhern in Ask the DPE Part I. They cover what makes an applicant look ready before walking in the door, including flight time reasonableness on the 8710, IACRA applications, solo versus PIC time, and required cross country, night, and instrument time. Wally shares signs that someone was sent too early, such as last-minute urgency and poor planning. They discuss communication preferences like email or text with full details including FTN, paperwork mistakes like missing logged ground school and class totals, dress and appearance expectations, pet peeves including answering the question directly, whether DPEs try to intimidate applicants, the meaning of questions like are you sure about that, open book orals, looking things up, maneuver tolerances per the ACS preamble, asking for breaks, and whether the DPE hopes applicants pass.