Definition
The official package of documents an FAA aviation safety inspector assembles and forwards to the FAA for the appointment, renewal, or termination of a designated pilot examiner (DPE). It contains the inspector's recommendation along with the candidate's qualifications, training records, and supporting paperwork that justify the designation.
Plain English
The paperwork file the FAA puts together when it decides to appoint, renew, or end someone's authority to act as a pilot examiner.
Context Anchor
Seen in FAA material about pilot examiners and how the FAA appoints and monitors the people who conduct practical tests.
Derivation
‘Designation’ comes from the Latin designare, meaning ‘to mark out’ or ‘appoint.’ In FAA usage, a ‘designation’ is the formal act of appointing a private individual to perform a function on the FAA's behalf — in this case, conducting practical tests. The ‘file’ is the records package that supports that appointment.
Why Pilots Care
A pilot must confirm an examiner holds a valid designation so the practical test and resulting certificate issuance are legally recognized by the FAA.
Intuition Check
Do not read designation file as just any labeled folder. In this FAA context, it means the official record that supports an examiner's authority to act.
Example Sentence 1
The inspector updated the examiner's designation file before submitting it for the annual renewal.
Example Sentence 2
The FAA inspector requested the examiner's designation file during the routine audit of checkride records.