Most people know that it takes a minimum of 40 hours to receive your pilots license. However, you can’t just fly for 40 random hours and go for your checkride. You are required to by law to spend some hours doing performing certain tasks. There are other requirements that must be fulfilled in order to obtain you private pilots license. NOTE: These requirements are specifically for the single engine airplane. Some requirements are different for other machines (balloons, gliders, etc.).Part 61 specifies the requirements and certification for pilots, flight instructors, and ground instructors. More specifically, Subpart E of Part 61 outlines the requirements for the private pilot rating. To keep things simple, we’ll break down the requirements into sections; Eligibility, Knowledge, proficiency, and experiance.
Eligibility (§61.103):
There are some prerequisites that must be met foremost. These are probably the simplest of all the requirements to becoming a pilot. You must be 17 and be able to read, write, and understand English. You are also required to complete the knowledge test, receive a logbook endorsement (from a certified instructor) that you are prepared to be a private pilot, and demonstrate to an FAA designated examiner that you are proficient in aviating, navigating, and communicating.
Knowledge (§61.105):
You must pass the knowledge test on the following topics. The test is 60 questions and covers an array of topics. You have a total of 2 hours to complete the test. You must know the Federal Aviation Regulations (airplane law), how to report aviation accidents to the NTSB, how to use the aeronautical information manual, how to use aviation charts, radio protocol, critical weather situations, effective collision avoidance, aircraft performance, weight and balance calculations, basic aerodynamics, stall, spin, and spiral awareness, aeronautical decision making, and proper preflight procedure. You must be able to also explain this to the examiner during an oral examination (this is part of the checkride).
Proficiency (§61.107):
In order to take you checkride, your instructor will have to certify that you are proficient in the operation of an aircraft. The FAA requires you to know how to preflight your aircraft, airport operations, how to takeoff, land, and go-around, performance maneuvers, ground reference maneuvers (S-turns), navigation, slow flight and stalls, basic instrument flying, emergency operations, night operations (in most cases), and postflight procedures. Again, you will be tested on the above during your checkride.
Experiance (§61.109):
Before you take your checkride, you must have the necessary hours required by the FAA. As I mentioned before, you can’t just go up for 40 hours and be eligible. You are required to spend your hours doing certain tasks. 20 hours of your training must be with a certified instructor. The other 20 hours must be solo flight. The instruction hours must include 3 hours of cross-country training, 3 hours of basic instrument training, 3 hours of checkride preparation, and 3 hours of night training with 10 takeoffs and landings as well as a cross-country flight of over 100 miles. The solo flight must consist of 5 hours of solo cross-country flight, a cross-country of over 150 miles (3 full stop landing points with a 50 gap between two airports), and three takeoff and landings at a controlled airport.
Evan Krueger
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