So you've soloed a few times at three or four airports, and you're feeling pretty good. And well you should! :-) You're well on your way to your check ride now. Just like getting ready to solo, though, you'll have a few skills and concepts to tuck securely under your belt before we can send you off on a trip.
____ Aviation Weather and developing your own briefing
____ Compass quirks and challenges
____ Flight solely by reference to instruments
____ our glass panel system, GPS flight planning, and autopilot use
____ Charts & Symbology
____ Flight planning (course, waypoints, distance, speed, time)
____ Dead reckoning and corrections
____ Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM) and Risk Management (RM)
____ D.E.C.I.D.E. troubleshooting model
____ aeromedical factors
____ P.A.V.E. model for planning
____ NASA ASRS and forms
____ Compass quirks and challenges
____ Flight solely by reference to instruments
____ our glass panel system, GPS flight planning, and autopilot use
____ Charts & Symbology
____ Flight planning (course, waypoints, distance, speed, time)
____ Dead reckoning and corrections
____ Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM) and Risk Management (RM)
____ D.E.C.I.D.E. troubleshooting model
____ aeromedical factors
____ P.A.V.E. model for planning
____ NASA ASRS and forms
You will also need to complete your Sport Pilot knowledge exam and review any deficiencies with your instructor before you can head out. The FAA doesn't require that, but that's standard Get Inspired Flight policy. Just as you absolutely are the pilot in command when you solo, we want you to absolutely know all of the rules and theory before you leave your instructor behind. Your test is valid for your check ride for two years, so odds are VERY good that you'll be ready before it expires even though you'll take some time after first cross-country, and then you're Off for the Check Ride!