Written test - no pencils

DesertNomad

DesertNomad

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DesertNomad
I took my Commercial written test today.

I scored a 93% but I was frustrated with the fact that I was not allowed to bring nor was I issued a pencil for the test. COVID rules.

I was only given a ball point pen and two thick dry erase markers. This made it nearly impossible to do the wind correction on my E6B properly as the ball point did not want to write on the plastic and the dry erase ones make too thick of a dot.

I am sure I missed that question as it is listed in my report and I remember thinking that the wind angles for A,B,C were so close as to make the E6B impossible to determine with no fine point dot.

Has anyone else not been allowed a pencil?

The person giving my test seemed like she had never seen an E6B and didn't understand the importance of a pencil.
 
They had pencils when I did my instrument written back in... June maybe? Definitely during COVID and they had pencils.
 
Wtf? How does a pencil spread covid?
I took my ifr written in March, which was just as things were starting to go sideways. Only difference was that it took forever to get checked in and started because half the staff was out "sick".
 
DesertNomad said:
The person giving my test seemed like she had never seen an E6B and didn't understand the importance of a pencil.
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Well, it's quite likely she hasn't. Didn't the testing software have a built-in E-6B? My last knowledge test was about 7 years ago but I remember it having that.
 
RussR said:
Well, it's quite likely she hasn't. Didn't the testing software have a built-in E-6B? My last knowledge test was about 7 years ago but I remember it having that.
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It shouldn’t have been likely. You can’t just grab the line guy or gal and say today you are a test proctor. They have to go through training and they receive credentials log into the test and get the applicant started. That training includes what can be used for the test.
 
AggieMike88 said:
This wasn’t in Pennsylvania was it?

and be glad they didn’t hand you a pencil with two erasers, because that’s just pointless.
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It was in Nevada.

My wife is going to take the PPL written soon and we have decided to fly to another state to do it... Idaho or South Dakota probably. Too many restrictions here. She doesn't want to do the whole thing wearing a mask. I was the only one in the room (monitored by cameras) and they said that if my mask came off my nose at any point, the test would end immediately with a fail.
 
I just took the FOI last week, they gave me two pencils, I’m in Cheyenne but went to Fort Collins Colorado to take the test.

They gave me clear sheet, dry marker, dry eraser and two pencils
 
Aviatorbrew said:
I just took the FOI last week, they gave me two pencils, I’m in Cheyenne but went to Fort Collins Colorado to take the test.

They gave me clear sheet, dry marker, dry eraser and two pencils
Click to expand...

What did you think of the FOI test? I plan to take that soon along with the AGI test to lock in the results before digging into my CFI after my Commercial. It would seem the AGI test is pretty similar to the Commercial I just studied for.
 
That’s what I am doing, Locking in the FOI with the AGI, I still need to finish commercial, hopefully in the next 3 months

The FOI was ok, I got a 90, I used king for the ground and Sheppard to polish up and get the latest questions, alot of kings were outdated, There was probly 10 questions on the test that were not in the Sheppard test bank yet.

The test went quick, 20 min. I was satisfied what I got
 
Btw, I had to wear a mask in Colorado, there were about 7 others in the room, The only testing in Wyoming is Casper.
I am not sure what they are requiring,
 
For my recent commercial exam they gave me pencils although I used a CX2 calculator instead of an E6B so it wasn’t a problem anyway. The transparency and marker they gave me were really insufficient for the takeoff and landing performance graphs though. They really should photocopy figures on request so you can write on them with pencil.
 
"Until the sergeant came over
Had some paper in his hand
Held it up and said 'Kids...
This-piece-of-paper's-got-47-words-37-sentences
58-words-we-wanna-know-details-of-the-crime
Time-of-the-crime-and-any-other-kind-of-thing
You-gotta-say-pertaining-to-and-about-the-crime
I-want-to-know-arresting-officer's-name-and
Any-other-kind-of-thing-you-gotta-say'"

"And he talked for 45 minutes
And nobody understood a word that he said
But we had fun filling out the forms
And playing with the pencils on the bench there
And I filled out the massacres
With the four-part harmony
And wrote it down there just like it was."
--Arlo Gurthie, Alice's Restaurant Massacree
 
DesertNomad said:
What did you think of the FOI test? I plan to take that soon along with the AGI test to lock in the results before digging into my CFI after my Commercial. It would seem the AGI test is pretty similar to the Commercial I just studied for.
Click to expand...
Using SheppardAir, about 20-ish hours of focused study using SA's method, the FOI written is a cake walk.

AGI and FIA are so similar that you're encouraged to study for both and take them back to back. A small number of differences are there, but the variety and variation is small. Easy to do at same time.

Similar comment for IGI and FII.
 
DesertNomad said:
I took my Commercial written test today.

I scored a 93% but I was frustrated with the fact that I was not allowed to bring nor was I issued a pencil for the test. COVID rules.

I was only given a ball point pen and two thick dry erase markers. This made it nearly impossible to do the wind correction on my E6B properly as the ball point did not want to write on the plastic and the dry erase ones make too thick of a dot.

I am sure I missed that question as it is listed in my report and I remember thinking that the wind angles for A,B,C were so close as to make the E6B impossible to determine with no fine point dot.

Has anyone else not been allowed a pencil?

The person giving my test seemed like she had never seen an E6B and didn't understand the importance of a pencil.
Click to expand...
Just asking, where did you take it? I took mine at the Test Center of Pensacola Jr College a while back. No problems. Did you complain? Did it get to the FSDO?
Little off topic: One of the testees in the room was a Blue Angels pilot in his flight suit.
 
Maxnr said:
Just asking, where did you take it? I took mine at the Test Center of Pensacola Jr College a while back. No problems. Did you complain? Did it get to the FSDO?
Little off topic: One of the testees in the room was a Blue Angels pilot in his flight suit.
Click to expand...

PSI in Nevada. I only needed it for one question and the two people at the front desk where much more concerned with my mask than anything else. I just wanted to take the test and get out of there so I didn't push the matter.
 
Wow that's just awful. I run a testing center and the only thing we've changed for COVID is we only allow two testers at a time because the stations are so close together.

I hope you filled out the pencil thing on your survey because that is not allowed per PSI rules. We are required to issue 2 pencils, scratch paper and noise protection if it

The mask thing is technically required by PSI and we had to put it in our "directions to testers" section of the registration email you get. I won't tell you what we may or may not enforce, but you can use your imagination. Located in South Dakota.

I totally get it. Running a testing center sucks especially right now because there is almost no support from PSI. There wasn't great support a year ago either but at least there was something. Now we wait days if not weeks for answers to simple questions and I've been waiting for them to onboard a new proctor for me for SIX MONTHS. But even all that said, that's no excuse for not providing pencils.
 
My favorite part was when I blew my nose for two seconds and they nearly went ballistic. Apparently I need to immediately throw out my tissue in each case...
 
The other thing I learned is not to schedule appointments early in the morning Eastern Time. The FAA sold out to PSI and PSI is in California and nobody answers the phones there until they wake up (Pacific Standard Time). I ended up drinking a lot of free coffee at the local A&P school while they waited for someone to answer the phone to correct some technical issue so I could start my test.

On the other hand, once you get a hold of them PSI is pretty nice to deal with. I also took some FCC exams there and the FCC rejected my applications but PSI customer support beat on them on my behalf and got them issued.
 
I know an E6B is needed for the IR written. Can anyone tell me if a plotter is also required. It's been so many years since I used one not sure I could find it. :confused2:
 
Archer Jack said:
I know an E6B is needed for the IR written. Can anyone tell me if a plotter is also required. It's been so many years since I used one not sure I could find it. :confused2:
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I didn't need it on mine (fairly recent), but the E6B is a must. They still do those "calculate fuel used from TAS and course" type questions, but with an IFR focus. Didn't ever see any VFR charts, so no need for the plotter I brought.
 
Archer Jack said:
I know an E6B is needed for the IR written. Can anyone tell me if a plotter is also required. It's been so many years since I used one not sure I could find it. :confused2:
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I don't think so. The navigation questions tend to revolve around airways shown on the provided IFR enroute charts with distances and bearing on the chart.
 
Archer Jack said:
I know an E6B is needed for the IR written. Can anyone tell me if a plotter is also required. It's been so many years since I used one not sure I could find it. :confused2:
Click to expand...
For IFR? Nope. At least not when I took it. You took the headings off the airway marked radials on the charts or the partially completed flight plan forms. The only thing I brought with me was a couple of pencils and my ASA CX-2. It's a dumb enough device that they don't have any issues with you using it. I never use it for anything else.
 
Just took IFR. Passed without issue. I couldn’t bring a pencil apparently but I was issued one. Also had my CX-3 which I never used.
 
DesertNomad said:
I took my Commercial written test today

Has anyone else not been allowed a pencil?
Click to expand...

In the last month I have taken the Commercial Airplane, AGI, and FIA and for all three I was given two pencils.
 
RussR said:
Well, it's quite likely she hasn't. Didn't the testing software have a built-in E-6B? My last knowledge test was about 7 years ago but I remember it having that.
Click to expand...
I thought they did in the past, but on the commercial written last year, it just had a calculator.
 
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