Part 135 Section 299 Check Ride

Dick Karl

Friday, April 13, 2012 at 09:13 PM ET

Verified

** Capt. Jason Hepner and FAA's Robert
Donahue after a successful 299 check ride.**

Key Takeaways:

The article details a mandatory annual Part 135 flight check (Section 299 ride) for Captain Jason Hepner, with the narrator reluctantly serving as an inexperienced First Officer due to his lack of recent flight time in the specific aircraft.
The narrator experienced significant anxiety and initial struggles during pre-flight preparation, highlighting his rustiness with the Lear 31A's procedures and first officer duties.
Despite initial trepidation and a minor technical snag (a sticky door light), the actual check ride was executed smoothly, with both pilots demonstrating professionalism and effective crew resource management.
The FAA inspector highly praised their performance, commending their structured approach, exceptional checklist use, and teamwork, a surprising outcome given it was their first time flying together.

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Forget about flight reviews and instrument competency checks. Part 135 operations are conducted in a thicket of regulations. Among them are the requirements of Section 299:
**
a)** “No certificate holder may use a pilot, nor may any person serve as a pilot in command of a flight, unless, since the beginning of the 12th calendar month before that service, that pilot has passed a flight check in one of the types of aircraft which that pilot is to fly. The flight check shall:

1) Be given by an approved check pilot or by the administrator.