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CFI 709 ride

Asked by: 2706 views Flight Instructor

If a CFI has a low pass rate say 50% could they get a 709 ride? Would the ride be for all their certificates or just their flight instructor? Do you know of flight instructors getting a 709 ride solely based on pass rate. 

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2 Answers



  1. Mark Kolber on Jan 23, 2021

    It’s possible. The authority to re-examine for competence applies to any airman certificate. I have heard if it happening to CFIs (mechanics too) but don’t t know if it was pass-rate related. All 709s are targeted to specific certificates and ratings based on the triggering event. So, if the reason for the 709 is a gear-up during instruction, both pilot and CFI certificate *might* be involved. No guarantees but, for pure insufficient pass rate I would expect only the CFI certificate to be involved.

    I suspect your question was triggered by the recent reports of the NTSB being concerned that the FAA is not adequately dealing with instructor competence.

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  2. KDS on Jan 28, 2021

    As Mark said, the FAA “could” reexamine any certificate at any time for any reason. However, the practical answer is the general aviation inspectors are so understaffed they do not have enough time to do their required tasks, much less go looking for more work. I know of two FSDO’s where there was only one general aviation operations inspector for the district.

    I have never seen or heard of a CFI being subjected to a 44709 reexamination purely on pass rate. The closest to it was one CFI who consistently made improper endorsements. The DPE tried to explain to him that he was doing it wrong, but he kept on doing it that way anyway. The DPE then spoke to his POI at the FSDO and the CFI was called in for an oral 44709 on the subject of endorsements. Every other CFI reexamination I know of has been the result of an accident, incident, or regulation violation.

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