Private Pilot (ASEL)
Part 61 • Private Pilot Requirements
Eligibility
- Age: 17+ for airplane (16 to solo).
- Language: Read, speak, write, and understand English.
- Student Pilot Certificate: Apply in IACRA; meet with a CFI to complete/verify and have your certificate issued.
- Before solo: Hold at least a Third-Class FAA medical (issued by an AME). BasicMed is for certificated pilots and does not substitute for your initial solo medical.
- Bring ID: Government photo ID that meets FAA testing/ID rules.
Citizenship / TSA
- U.S. citizens: Show acceptable proof of citizenship to your instructor (e.g., U.S. passport or birth certificate + government photo ID). Your instructor keeps a record.
- Non-U.S. citizens: Obtain TSA Flight Training Security Program (FTSP) approval before training that leads to a certificate.
Ground Training & Knowledge Test
- Complete ground training (with a CFI or approved self-study) covering the required knowledge areas (regs, airspace, weather, performance, nav, human factors, etc.).
- Receive your instructor’s endorsement to take the Private Pilot Airplane (PAR) knowledge test.
- Pass the knowledge test (minimum 70%); keep the test report for your practical test.
Flight Proficiency (what you must be trained on)
- Preflight preparation & procedures; airport ops; takeoffs/landings/go-arounds
- Performance & ground-reference maneuvers; navigation
- Slow flight & stalls; basic instrument maneuvers
- Emergency ops; night ops; post-flight procedures
Minimum Aeronautical Experience (ASEL)
At least 40 hours total flight time, including:
- 20 hours dual (with instructor) including:
- 3 hours cross-country training
- 3 hours night training including:
- 1 night cross-country flight of > 100 NM total distance
- 10 takeoffs and 10 full-stop landings at an airport (at night)
- 3 hours instrument (basic attitude, nav systems, comms)
- 3 hours test prep within 2 calendar months before the practical test
- 10 hours solo including:
- 5 hours solo cross-country
- 1 solo cross-country of 150 NM total distance with full-stop landings at 3 points, and one segment > 50 NM straight-line
- 3 full-stop takeoffs/landings at an airport with an operating control tower
Practical Test (Checkride) Prerequisites
- Hold a student pilot certificate and appropriate medical
- Pass the PAR knowledge test and bring the report
- Meet all aeronautical experience mins (above)
- Receive required instructor endorsements
- Training within the last 2 calendar months in prep for the practical test
- Certification you’re prepared per §§ 61.107 & 61.109
- Provide an airworthy, properly equipped aircraft for the test
- Demonstrate to the Airman Certification Standards (ACS) for Private Pilot Airplane
Simple Roadmap
- Get an FTN in IACRA; apply for your Student Pilot Certificate.
- Schedule a Third-Class Medical with an AME (do MedXPress first).
- Show TSA citizenship proof (or obtain FTSP approval if non-U.S.).
- Start flight + ground training; log everything correctly.
- Pass the knowledge test (PAR).
- Complete remaining flight mins and get required endorsements.
- Take and pass the checkride (oral + flight) to earn your certificate.
Instrument Rating (Airplane)
Part 61 • Instrument Rating Requirements
Eligibility
- Certificate: Hold at least a Private Pilot Certificate (or apply concurrently).
- Language: Read, speak, write, and understand English.
- Medical: Hold an appropriate FAA medical (e.g., Third-Class) before exercising instrument privileges and for the practical test.
Citizenship / TSA
- U.S. citizens: Show acceptable proof of citizenship to your instructor; school keeps a record.
- Non-U.S. citizens: FTSP approval (TSA 49 CFR Part 1552) is typically required for instrument rating training in the U.S. Obtain approval before training that leads to the rating.
Ground Training & Knowledge Test (IRA)
- Complete ground training (CFII or approved self-study) covering IFR regs, procedures, ATC, nav systems, IFR charts, weather theory/products, human factors, etc.
- Receive instructor endorsement to take the Instrument Rating–Airplane (IRA) knowledge test.
- Pass the knowledge test (70%+); keep the test report for your checkride.
Flight Proficiency (training areas)
- Preflight & IFR flight planning; IFR clearances & procedures; ATC communication
- Instrument departures (ODPs/SIDs), enroute, arrivals (STARs), holding
- Precision & nonprecision approaches (e.g., ILS, LOC, VOR, GPS/RNAV)
- Partial-panel & unusual attitude recovery
- Systems/automation management (AP/FD/GPS/WAAS/RAIM/alternates)
- Emergency/abnormal procedures; risk management & ADM
Minimum Aeronautical Experience (Part 61)
- 50 hours cross-country PIC (at least 10 hours in airplanes for the instrument-airplane rating).
- 40 hours instrument time (actual or simulated), including:
- 15 hours of instrument flight training with a CFII.
- 3 hours of instrument training in prep for the practical test within the preceding 2 calendar months.
- One IFR cross-country (as PIC or with CFII) that includes:
- Total distance of ≥ 250 NM along airways or ATC-directed routing,
- An instrument approach at each airport on the route, and
- Three different kinds of approaches using nav systems.
Simulator credit: A portion of instrument time may be credited in approved simulators/FTDs per §61
Commercial Pilot (ASEL)
Part 61 • Commercial Pilot Requirements
Eligibility
- Age: 18 or older.
- Language: Read, speak, write, and understand English.
- Certificate prerequisite: Hold at least a Private Pilot certificate.
- Medical: Obtain at least a Second-Class FAA medical to exercise commercial privileges (common to get it before training/checkride).
Ground Training & Knowledge Test (CAX)
- Receive and log ground training (or approved home-study) covering the required knowledge areas (regs, aerodynamics, performance/limitations, weather, systems, flight planning, human factors, etc.).
- Get your instructor’s endorsement to take the Commercial Pilot Airplane (CAX) knowledge test.
- Pass the knowledge test (70%+); keep the test report for your practical test.
Flight Proficiency (training areas)
- Preflight preparation & procedures; airport/seaplane base ops
- Takeoffs, landings, go-arounds; performance maneuvers
- Navigation, slow flight & stalls; emergency ops
- High-altitude and special operations; post-flight procedures
Minimum Aeronautical Experience (Part 61 • ASEL)
At least 250 hours total flight time, including:
- 100 hours in powered aircraft (≥ 50 hours in airplanes).
- 100 hours PIC, including:
- ≥ 50 hours in airplanes, and
- ≥ 50 hours cross-country (of which ≥ 10 hours must be in airplanes).
- 20 hours of training on §61.127(b)(1) areas, including at least:
- 10 hours instrument training (view-limiting device: attitude, partial panel, unusual attitudes, intercept/track nav systems).
- 10 hours in a complex, turbine-powered, or technically advanced airplane (TAA) (or any combination).
- One 2-hour day VFR cross-country (single-engine) with total straight-line distance > 100 NM from original departure.
- One 2-hour night VFR cross-country (single-engine) with total straight-line distance > 100 NM from original departure.
- 3 hours of checkride prep within the preceding 2 calendar months.
- 10 hours solo in a single-engine airplane or 10 hours performing PIC duties in a single-engine airplane with an instructor on board, including:
- One cross-country ≥ 300 NM total distance with landings at 3 points, and one segment ≥ 250 NM straight-line from the original departure (150 NM if in Hawaii).
- 5 hours night VFR with 10 takeoffs and 10 landings (each involving a traffic pattern) at an airport with an operating control tower.
TAA definition: An airplane with an electronically advanced avionics suite including (at minimum) a PFD, MFD, and integrated two-axis autopilot (see §61.129(j)).
Practical Test (Checkride) Prerequisites
- Meet all §§61.125, 61.127, 61.129 training/experience minimums.
- Hold required endorsements (knowledge & proficiency; recent prep within last 2 calendar months).
- Bring your CAX knowledge test report and logbook/training records.
- Provide an airworthy, properly equipped airplane (complex/turbine/TAA not required for the test unless needed for your training entries).
- Demonstrate to the Commercial Pilot – Airplane ACS (oral + flight).
Simple Roadmap
- Verify PPL and get a Second-Class medical.
- Begin ground training; pass the CAX knowledge test.
- Build required PIC and cross-country time; complete instrument training for CPL and 10 hours complex/turbine/TAA.
- Complete the required 2-hr day and 2-hr night cross-countries and the 300-NM solo/PIC-duties cross-country.
- Within 2 months of checkride: finish 3 hours of prep and secure endorsements.
- Take and pass the commercial checkride.