A&P Maintenance Records Oral Exam Questions and Answers

October 13, 2026 · Based on FAA-S-ACS-1, 14 CFR Part 43 and FAA-H-8083-30B, General · Updated October 18, 2026

Maintenance records oral exam questions cover maintenance entries, inspection entries, FAA forms and return-to-service documentation in General Subject I of the Aviation Mechanic ACS. Separate what work was done from who may approve it. These practice questions use the ACS, the General handbook and the current eCFR rules.

What belongs in an aircraft maintenance record entry?

An ordinary maintenance entry identifies the work, completion date and the responsible people. Read §43.9 as a set of separate fields instead of memorizing an example signature block. In practice, answer the field requested first. Then distinguish the work description from the approval statement. Naming a form does not answer a question about the authority of the person signing it.

A maintenance entry includes a description of the work or a reference to data acceptable to the Administrator. The maintenance entry includes the date the work was completed. If the person who performed the work differs from the approving person, the entry includes the performer’s name. For satisfactory work, the approving person signs and identifies the certificate number and kind of certificate. That signature approves return to service only for the work performed.

14 CFR 43.9

For the wider exam structure, read the A&P oral and practical exam guide. Use the General oral questions overview for the full section, and the ACS codes guide to read the ACS codes on your Airman Knowledge Test Report (AKTR).

Which terms should I distinguish?

Keep these terms separate so your spoken answer describes the right entry, field or responsibility.

When does Form 337 enter the answer?

Under the general rule in Appendix B(a), the person performing a major repair or major alteration executes Form 337 at least in duplicate. Under that general rule, the owner receives a signed copy of Form 337. Under Appendix B(a), a copy is forwarded to the FAA Aircraft Registration Branch within 48 hours after approval for return to service. Appendix B has separate provisions for certain major repairs by certificated repair stations (paragraph b), major work by a person authorized in §43.17 (paragraph c) and extended-range fuel tanks in the passenger or baggage compartment (paragraph d).

14 CFR Part 43 Appendix B

State that this is the general rule in Appendix B(a), not an exception-free rule for every possible situation. Before answering a forms scenario, identify the type of work and the applicable paragraph. Read Appendix B as a whole when checking an actual record. Keep the ordinary maintenance entry, the major-work form and the authority to approve the work as separate questions.

Which maintenance records oral exam questions can I practice?

The following ten practice questions are built from specific ACS knowledge elements; they are original study prompts rather than advance access to your assigned oral test.

FAA-H-8083-30B, General, pp. 2-15–2-17 (recordkeeping background). Where the handbook and the current eCFR differ, the eCFR controls.

1. What does the work-description field need?

ACS: AM.I.I.K3

A maintenance entry includes a description of the work or a reference to data acceptable to the Administrator. Name the work or its acceptable data reference clearly.

14 CFR 43.9

2. Which date belongs in the maintenance entry?

ACS: AM.I.I.K3

The maintenance entry includes the date the work was completed. Do not substitute a planned start date for the completion date.

14 CFR 43.9

3. When must the entry name the person who did the work?

ACS: AM.I.I.K3

If the person who performed the work differs from the approving person, the entry includes the performer’s name. Distinguish the performer from the approving person.

14 CFR 43.9

4. What identifies the person approving satisfactory work?

ACS: AM.I.I.K3

For satisfactory work, the approving person signs and identifies the certificate number and kind of certificate. Keep the identity fields together in your explanation.

14 CFR 43.9

5. Does one maintenance signature approve everything on the aircraft?

ACS: AM.I.I.K3

That signature approves return to service only for the work performed. State the scope of the work covered by that entry.

14 CFR 43.9

6. What information describes an inspection?

ACS: AM.I.I.K4

An inspection entry identifies the inspection type and briefly describes its extent. An inspection entry includes the inspection date and aircraft total time in service.

14 CFR 43.11

7. Who signs an approval or disapproval following an inspection?

ACS: AM.I.I.K4

The person approving or disapproving return to service after the inspection supplies a signature, certificate number and certificate kind. Name the inspection decision, not just the name of a form.

14 CFR 43.11

8. What follows a disapproval after inspection?

ACS: AM.I.I.K4

If the inspection finds the aircraft unairworthy, or not meeting its type certificate data, airworthiness directives or other approved data, the person who performed it must give the owner or lessee a signed and dated list of discrepancies. Explain the discrepancy list as part of communicating the inspection outcome.

14 CFR 43.11(b) · FAA-H-8083-30B, General, p. 2-17

9. What is the general Form 337 copy and timing rule?

ACS: AM.I.I.K5

Under the general rule in Appendix B(a), the person performing a major repair or major alteration executes Form 337 at least in duplicate. Under Appendix B(a), a copy is forwarded to the FAA Aircraft Registration Branch within 48 hours after approval for return to service. Check the exceptions in Appendix B before applying that general rule.

14 CFR Part 43 Appendix B(a)

10. Where does a mechanic’s return-to-service authority come from?

ACS: AM.I.I.K1

Under §43.7(b), the holder of a mechanic certificate or an inspection authorization may approve an aircraft or component for return to service as provided in Part 65. Read the relevant Part 65 privileges and limitations for the rating and work.

14 CFR 43.7

How do I answer it out loud?

Use a short answer outline: definition, why it matters, the procedure or check, and the relevant handbook location.

For a logbook-entry question, use “what, when, who” as a speaking outline. For an inspection entry, say the inspection type, extent, date, total time and decision. For a Form 337 question, first name the applicable recording rule and any relevant exception. Finish by distinguishing the person doing the work from the person authorized to approve it.

Begin by answering exactly what was asked. Then add one relevant check or limitation. If you notice that you are listing names without explaining their relationship, stop and restate the function in plain English. Keep the technical term accurate, but do not try to make the sentence sound complicated. This is a study method, not an FAA scoring rule.

Check for an answer that lists the correct fields but never defines the scope of the approval. Also check whether you silently treated a maintenance entry and an inspection entry as interchangeable. In your next attempt, begin with the type of entry. If your scenario does not say whether the repair is major or minor, ask for that information rather than assigning a form by guesswork.

How should I check my practice answer?

Check the answer against the cited source before rehearsing it again.

Build a blank practice worksheet with a work-description field, a completion-date field and separate spaces for the performer and approving person. Do not fill it with invented aircraft identifiers or a pretend authorization. Explain why each space exists. Then turn the worksheet over and give the same explanation aloud. Repeat the exercise with an inspection entry and say which information changes.

Use the handbook while reviewing the explanation, then close it for the spoken rehearsal. Reference material is not allowed for answering the oral questions.

“the applicant is not allowed to use any reference material to answer the oral questions asked by the examiner.”

FAA-S-ACS-1, Appendix 1, Applicant Responsibilities.

Which guide should I read next?

Use the related guides to connect this focused subject with your wider study plan.

• Mechanic Privileges Oral Exam Questions
• Weight and Balance Oral Exam Questions

Which sources support these answers?

Use the linked primary sources to check the terms, procedures and rules; the FAA handbook references are study references rather than substitutes for aircraft-specific instructions.

• 14 CFR 43.11
• 14 CFR 43.7
• 14 CFR 43.9
• 14 CFR Part 43 Appendix B
• FAA-H-8083-30B, General
• FAA-S-ACS-1, subject AM.I.I and Appendix 1

About this guide: drafted with AI from the FAA sources listed on this page and checked claim by claim against them. Not reviewed by an A&P mechanic or DME. How we make our guides