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NEW REGULATION: For flight training in aircraft that weigh 12,500 pounds or less, as currently written, the rule requires every student and certificated pilot to prove his or her citizenship status (including U.S. citizens) prior to undertaking flight training for a new or the addition of a certificate or rating. Foreign flight students must complete a background check process with TSA. *Basic Requirements
to Obtain a Private Pilot Certificate: Q&A for Private Pilots Q. Where can I get flying lessons? A. Contact any airport that handles private aircraft or the nearest FAA Flight Standards District Office (for example, call 817-680-4075 at Spinks Airport). Q. Does my pilot training include a written test? A. Yes. Before flying solo, you must be familiar with some of the FAA’s rules and with the flight characteristics and operational limitations of the make and model of the aircraft you will fly. Your flight instructor will give you some materials to study, and then test your knowledge. If you pass, your instructor will endorse your student pilot’s certificate for solo flight. The endorsement means that your instructor thinks you are competent to make solo flights. Q. When do I have to get the endorsement? A. Within 90 days of your first solo flight. Q. After I’ve soloed, can I fly cross-country alone? A. Not right away. Your instructor must review your pre-flight planning and preparation for solo cross-country flight and determine that the flight can be made safely under known circumstances and conditions. The instructor must also endorse your logbook before cross-country flight stating you are considered competent to make the flight. [Note: The relevance of the following sentence is not clear.]Under certain conditions, an instructor may authorize repeated solo flights over a given route. Q. As a student pilot, can I carry passengers with me before getting my recreational or private pilot’s certificate? A. No. Q. Must I have an FCC radiotelephone operator's permit to operate an aircraft radio transmitter? A. No. Q. What is the difference between a recreational pilot’s certificate and a private pilot’s certificate? A. As a recreational pilot, you have to fly within 50 nautical miles of the airport where you learned to fly, you have to fly during the day, and you can’t fly in airspace where communications with air traffic control are required. A private pilot doesn’t have these limitations. It usually takes fewer lessons to get a recreational pilot’s certificate than a private pilot’s certificate. Recreational Pilot’s and Private Pilot’s Certificates Q. How old do I have to be to get a recreational pilot’s certificate or a private pilot’s certificate? A. You must be at least 17 years old. If you want to be a private glider pilot or be rated for free flight in a balloon, you must be at least 16 years old. Q. What tests do I have to pass to get a recreational pilot’s certificate or private pilot’s certificate? A. You have to pass both a written knowledge test and a practical (flight) test. See below for more information about these tests. Recreational Pilot And Private Pilot Knowledge Tests
A. At least 15 years old. If you want to pilot a balloon or glider, you must be at least 14 years old. Before taking the knowledge test, you may have to show proof of age, such as a birth certificate. Q. How should I prepare for the knowledge test? A. You should study the materials identified by your flight instructor or included in a home-study course. For the recreational pilot test, the materials are based on section 61.97 of the FAA’s rules. For the private pilot test, the materials are based on section 61.105 of the FAA’s rules. Q. What document or documents must I present before taking a knowledge test? A. You have to present identification that includes your photograph, signature, and home address. AND One of the following: A certificate of graduation from a pilot training course conducted by an FAA-approved pilot school, or a statement of accomplishment from the school certifying the satisfactory completion of the ground-school portion of such a course A written statement from an FAA-certified ground or flight instructor, certifying that you have satisfactorily completed the required ground instruction Logbook entries by an FAA-certified ground or flight instructor, certifying satisfactory completion of the required ground instruction A certificate of graduation or statement of accomplishment from a ground school course conducted by an agency such as a high school, college, adult education program, the Civil Air Patrol, or an ROTC Flight Training Program. A certificate of graduation from a home-study course developed by the aeronautical enterprise providing the study material. If you can’t provide any of the above items, you can have the home-study course you have completed reviewed by an FAA inspector to assure you are competent to take the desired knowledge test. Contact the local FAA Flight Standards District Office to get an appointment with an FAA inspector. The inspector will review your study material and may question you on some of the material. If you are found qualified to take the test, the inspector will issue FAA Form 8060-7, Airman's Authorization for Written Test. You must present this form when you take your knowledge examination. If you have to take the test over again, you must present either the unsatisfactory AC Form 8080-2, Airman Written Test Report, or an airman computer test report (if the test was taken at an FAA- designated computer testing center). Q. If I fail the knowledge test, is there any way to determine the areas in which I need additional work so I can study for a retest? A. Yes. You will receive either AC Form 8080-2, Airman Written Test Report, or an airman computer test report (if the test was taken at an FAA-designated computer testing center). The test report will contain your test score and will also list the subject matter codes for the knowledge areas in which you were found deficient. An outline of the subject matter codes is located in the appendix of each written test book. You may refer to the appropriate written test book to determine the areas in which further study is needed. Q. If I pass the knowledge test, will I receive the same information concerning weak areas as I would if I failed the test? A. Yes. (Refer to the previous answer.) Q. How long is a satisfactorily completed knowledge test valid? A. A satisfactorily completed knowledge test expires two years from the day it was taken. If a practical test is not satisfactorily completed during that period, another knowledge test must be taken. Q. Will my instructor review the areas in which the test report showed I was deficient? A. Yes. Your instructor must review the areas in which you were deficient and must endorse the written test report or provide a written endorsement indicating this review has been completed. Recreational
Pilot And Private Pilot Practical Tests A. Yes. You must provide an airworthy aircraft with equipment relevant to the pilot operations required for the practical test. Q. What papers and documents must I present to the FAA inspector or FAA-designated pilot examiner prior to my practical test? A. You must have the following items available for inspection: The aircraft's registration certificate The aircraft's
airworthiness certificate The aircraft’s equipment list Weight and balance data for the aircraft Your FCC radio
station certificate AND Any applicable airworthiness directives. You must present the following items to the inspector: Your FAA Form 8710-1, Application for an Airman Certificate and/or Rating, (with the flight instructor's recommendation) Your satisfactory grade on an AC Form 8080-2, Airman Written Test Report or an airman computer test report (if the test was taken at an FAA-designated computer testing center) Your medical certificate (when required) and student pilot’s certificate endorsed by a flight instructor for solo, solo cross-country (when appropriate), and for the make and model of airplane to be used for the practical test Your pilot’s
logbook; Your graduation certificate from an FAA-approved school (if applicable) Q. What does the practical test consist of, and how will my performance be evaluated? A. The test standards are described in the Recreational Pilot or Private Pilot Practical Test Standards. Your instructor should have a copy of the practical test standards and should review them with you prior to your practical test. If your instructor doesn’t have them, you can buy them from the Superintendent of Documents or US Government Printing Office bookstores. Q. When can I take the recreational pilot or private pilot practical test? A. You can take the test as soon as, in your instructor’s judgement, you are ready. By endorsing your test application, your flight instructor is making a written recommendation to this effect. Your flight instructor's written recommendation shows that you have met all the prerequisites for the practical test. Q. Where can I take the practical test? A. The FAA Flight Standards District Offices conduct practical tests for pilot certification either at the office’s location or periodically in cities within the district. The offices are usually located on or adjacent to an airport. The FAA has also designated many flight instructors as pilot examiners. You should make an appointment for your practical test to avoid wasted time. Q. Is there any charge for taking the practical test? A. If you take the test from an FAA inspector, there is no charge. If you take the test from an FAA-designated pilot examiner, you will have to pay. This is because the pilot examiner conducts tests without pay from the FAA. Q. May I exercise the privileges of my pilot’s certificate immediately after passing my practical test or must I wait until I receive the actual pilot’s certificate? A. You don’t have to wait. The FAA inspector or FAA-designated pilot examiner will issue a temporary pilot’s certificate effective for a specific time period. The FAA will issue your permanent pilot’s certificate after we have reviewed your qualifications. Q. Is there a charge for issuing the pilot’s certificate? A. No. We don’t charge for issuing the original pilot’s certificate. However, we do charge to replace any pilot’s certificate or medical certificate. As noted already, you may have to pay for certain other services, such as a physical examination. Limits on the
Recreational Pilot’s Certificate A. You must select readily identifiable landmarks that are well beyond the boundaries of the airspace where contact with air traffic control is required. During your training, your instructor will tell you how to identify this kind of airspace. Q. I already have a recreational pilot’s certificate, and I want to get an additional certificate or rating. For training purposes, can I fly beyond the 50-nautical-mile limit, after dark, or in airspace where I have to contact air traffic control? A. Yes, if your instructor has given you the required instruction in these areas and has endorsed your pilot's logbook for each flight. You will have to carry the logbook with the required endorsements on these flights." |
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