Dear DPEs: Pilots Can't Find You (And It's Costing Everyone)

Pilots struggle to find designated pilot examiners due to outdated lists and limited information. This blog discusses the discovery problem and how examinerhq solves it.

Let Me Paint You a Picture

It’s 2 AM and I’m wide awake. My commercial checkride is in 6 weeks and I don’t have an examiner scheduled. Not because I’m not ready. Not because I’m procrastinating. But because I literally cannot find a DPE who has availability.

I’ve got a photocopied list of 8 names and phone numbers from my flight school. No email addresses. No websites. No information about who specializes in what, who’s accepting students, or what they charge.

I’ve spent the last three days:

Leaving voicemails that never get returned

Getting “fully booked through February” responses

Being told to “call back in two weeks”

Finding out one DPE retired last year (but he’s still on the list)

Discovering another only does helicopters (also still on the list)

This is 2025. I can order food, book a flight, schedule a doctor’s appointment, and rent a car in under 60 seconds. But scheduling a checkride? That’s apparently impossible.

The DPE Discovery Problem

Here’s the reality from a pilot’s perspective:

We literally cannot find you.

Most of us get a printed list of DPEs from our flight school or FSDO. That list is usually:

Outdated (people retire, move, change specializations)

Incomplete (missing contact info, rates, availability)

Generic (no info about what ratings you examine)

Regional (might cover 5 states with zero organization)

So we do what pilots have done for decades: we call around blindly and hope someone answers.

What This Costs You

Lost Revenue

When pilots can’t find you, they find someone else. Or they wait months and take their checkride elsewhere. Every unfilled slot is lost revenue.

Wasted Time

How many voicemails do you get from pilots calling randomly? How many people call asking if you do helicopter checkrides when you only do airplanes? How much time do you spend playing phone tag?

Suboptimal Students

When pilots can’t find the right DPE, they book whoever answers the phone first. That means you might get students who aren’t actually a good fit for your specializations or style. Nobody wins.

No Marketing Control

Right now, your reputation spreads through word-of-mouth only. You can’t showcase your experience, your pass rates, your specializations, or student testimonials. You’re invisible online.

What Pilots Actually Need (And You Can Provide)

From a pilot’s perspective, here’s what we desperately need:

Findability

We need to actually discover you exist. Not just “DPE in Florida” but “Commercial Multi-Engine DPE in Tampa who’s accepting students and charges $650.”

Availability Transparency

Are you booked out 6 months? Taking students next week? On vacation until December? We need to know before we waste your time calling.

Specialization Information

What ratings do you examine? PPL? Instrument? Commercial? CFI? Multi-Engine? ATP? Seaplane? We’re guessing right now.

Rate Information

Some DPEs charge $500. Others charge $900. We call 10 examiners to find out. Just tell us upfront.

Student Reviews

We want to know you’re professional, fair, thorough, and not the “gotcha examiner” everyone warns about. Reviews build trust.

What examinerhq Does for DPEs

Here’s what we built specifically for you:

Get Found by the Right Students

Pilots search “Commercial Multi-Engine DPE in Tampa under $700” and YOU show up. Not a generic directory. Not a phone list. Your profile, front and center.

Control Your Information

Update your availability in real-time. Mark yourself unavailable when you’re booked. Show your specializations, experience, rates, and service area. You control your image.

Save Time

Students see your rates, availability, and specializations BEFORE they contact you. No more voicemails asking if you examine helicopters when you clearly don’t.

Build Your Reputation

Students leave reviews. You showcase your experience. You prove you’re professional and fair. Word-of-mouth becomes visible and permanent.

Analytics

See how many pilots viewed your profile, where they’re from, what they searched for. Understand demand and adjust accordingly.

Priority in Search

Enable location access and nearby pilots see you first. List your specializations and you show up when pilots search for them. The system works FOR you.

Real Examples of What This Looks Like

Example 1: The Booked DPE

You’re fully booked for 3 months. Right now, you’re getting 20 voicemails a week from pilots who don’t know this. With examinerhq, you mark yourself “unavailable until January” and the calls stop. Students see you exist, favorite your profile, and check back later.

Example 2: The Specialist

You only examine seaplane ratings. Right now, you’re getting calls for every rating under the sun. With examinerhq, you list “Seaplane only” and only seaplane students contact you. Everyone’s time is saved.

Example 3: The Available DPE

You’ve got slots opening up next week. Right now, nobody knows. With examinerhq, you mark yourself available and pilots searching right now see you first. You fill slots faster.

Example 4: The New DPE

You just became a DPE. You’re not on anyone’s lists yet. You’re sending emails to flight schools hoping they’ll refer you. With examinerhq, you create a profile and pilots find you immediately through search.

What This Costs (And What You Get Back)

Cost: $14.99/month

That’s it. No setup fees. No contracts. Cancel anytime.

What You Get Back:

One checkride = $500-900 = 33-60 months of subscription covered.

If examinerhq gets you ONE student who wouldn’t have found you otherwise, you’ve made back 2.75-5 years of subscription fees.

Why We Built This

I’m a pilot. I’ve dealt with the DPE search nightmare multiple times. Every pilot has.

But here’s what I realized: it’s not your fault. You’re busy examining. You don’t have time to build a website, manage SEO, answer a thousand voicemails, or market yourself.

The system is broken. We fixed it.

examinerhq makes you discoverable, automatically. No marketing required. No phone tag. Just a profile that works 24/7 to connect you with students who need exactly what you offer.

What Makes You Different from CFIs

CFIs have ongoing relationships with students. They teach for months. DPEs have one-time interactions. That actually makes discoverability MORE important for you.

Every single student is a new student. They all have the same problem: finding you.

CFIs can rely on word-of-mouth over time. You need immediate discoverability because every interaction is transactional and time-sensitive.

That’s why we built AI search specifically for this use case. Students search “available DPE for instrument checkride in Arizona next month” and you show up if you match. Instantly.

The Current Alternative

Right now, your options are:

Option 1: Do Nothing

Stay on the outdated lists. Answer voicemails. Hope students find you through word-of-mouth. Probably fine if you’re always fully booked, but you’re leaving money on the table.

Option 2: Build a Website

Spend $2,000-5,000 on a website, manage SEO, pay for Google Ads, maintain it yourself. Most DPEs don’t have time for this.

Option 3: Join Other Directories

Most are free (and terrible), outdated, ad-filled, and no one actually uses them. Or they charge more than we do and provide less.

Option 4: Join examinerhq

$14.99/month. Set it up once. Update when needed. Let the platform do the marketing for you.

What Happens Next

Here’s the roadmap for DPEs on examinerhq:

Now:

Create your profile

List your specializations, rates, service area

Get discovered through AI search

Receive reviews from students

Coming Q4 2025:

Scheduling integration - students book checkrides directly through your calendar

Direct messaging - communicate with students without phone tag

Enhanced analytics - see who’s searching for DPEs in your area

Coming Q1 2026:

Mobile apps with push notifications

SMS updates for bookings

Integration with flight school systems

Checkride prep resources you can share with students

We’re building the infrastructure DPEs actually need.

The Elephant in the Room: Why Aren’t More DPEs Online?

Because the current tools suck.

Building a website is expensive and time-consuming. Most directories are spam-filled garbage. Social media is a full-time job. Flight schools already refer you students.

But here’s the problem: that only works if you’re already known. New DPEs struggle. DPEs who move to new areas struggle. DPEs with specializations struggle to find the RIGHT students.

We’re not asking you to become a marketer. We’re asking you to create a profile once and let technology do the rest.

What Students Are Saying

We’re hearing this from pilots constantly:

“I called 15 DPEs before I found one with availability”

“I had to delay my checkride 4 months because I couldn’t find anyone”

“I paid $200 more than I should have because I didn’t know my options”

“I drove 6 hours for a checkride because the local DPEs are fully booked”

This isn’t a small problem. This affects thousands of pilots every year.

You have the solution. You’re available. You’re qualified. You’re professional.

We just need to connect you with students who need you.

A Personal Ask

As a pilot who’s been through this frustration multiple times: please join.

Not just for your business. Not just for revenue. But because the current system is broken and you can help fix it.

Every DPE on examinerhq makes the platform more valuable for pilots. Every profile helps students find the right examiner faster. Every availability update saves pilots from wasted phone calls.

This is infrastructure aviation desperately needs. And it only works if DPEs like you are on board.

How to Get Started

Go to examinerhq.com/register

Create your profile (takes 10 minutes)

Add your specializations, rates, and service area

Update availability when needed

Let students find you

That’s it. No complicated setup. No ongoing maintenance unless you want to update something.

Risk-Free Trial

Don’t take my word for it. Create your profile. See if students find you. If it doesn’t provide value, cancel anytime. No contracts. No commitments.

But I’m betting you’ll get contacted by students you would never have reached otherwise.

The Bottom Line

You became a DPE to help pilots advance their careers and maintain safety standards. Not to play phone tag and manage marketing.

Let us handle the discovery problem. You handle the checkrides.

We need you. The platform doesn’t work without DPEs. Pilots don’t get their ratings without you. The system stays broken unless you join.

Help us build something better. For you. For pilots. For aviation.

If you’re a DPE and this resonated with you, email me at andrew@weflyhq.com — I’d love to hear your thoughts and have something special for early adopters.

Ready to stop being invisible?

Blue skies,

Andrew Wade

Frustrated pilot who just wants to find a DPE

Founder, examinerhq

P.S. Serious question: How many voicemails did you get this week from pilots who weren’t a good fit? How much time did that waste? Imagine if students saw your specializations and availability BEFORE calling. That’s what we built. Join us: examinerhq.com/register