Step by Step How to Become a Pilot

Have you always dreamed of becoming a pilot and experiencing the joy of flying? If you're like me than you have probably wanted to be a pilot since you were a kid watching Apollo 13 or Top Gun or the Blue Angels at a flight show.

So how do you become a pilot? Let's break it down, step by step how to become a pilot:

Steps To Get Your Pilot Certificate

1. Determine your goal for flying (do you want to fly as a hobby or a career) and choose the pilot certificate you want to train for (private, recreational, sport, etc.)
2. Make sure you meet the requirements set forth in FAA Regulations/Requirements 
3. Obtain the required Medical certificate
4. Obtain a Student Pilot certificate
5. Complete ground school (such as Part Time Pilot) to learn the required knowledge and take & pass the FAA written exam
6. Find a school/ flight instructor to do your training
7. Get through your flight training minimums
8. Take & pass your your check ride 

#1 Your Goal for Flying

If your goal for flying is to make a career out of it, then you will need to start with a Private Pilot certificate before getting an IFR rating and a Commercial rating. If your goal is to fly as a hobby or for fun and go on some cool trips with yourself and maybe another passenger then you can get a Recreational or Sport Pilot certificate. They have more limitations (like altitudes, airspeeds, passengers and aircraft), which we talk about in another lesson but they also have more flexibility. For example, a Sport Pilot does NOT require you to get a Medical Certificate. In fact, you only need a Driver's License. So if you are someone who knows you might struggle passing a 3rd Class Medical certificate exam (which you need for a Private Pilot certificate) then you will want to look into the Sport Pilot route. You can read more about the differences between Private, Recreational and Sport pilot certificates here.

#2 FAA Requirements to Get your Pilot Certificate

1. Be 17 years old
2. Be able to read, speak, write, and understand English
3. Have a student pilot certificate (must be at least 16 years old to get one)
4. Have the necessary medical certificate that is current & valid (not required for Sport Pilot)
5. Receive ground and flight instruction logbook endorsements from certified instructor
6. Pass aeronautical knowledge and practical tests

*NOTE: You don't need a medical certificate or student pilot certificate to start training with a flight instructor or take a ground school or even take and pass the FAA Written exam. You only need a student pilot certificate and medical certificate once you get to the point in your training where you fly solo without your instructor.

#3 Obtaining A Pilot Medical Certificate

1. Create an online application with MedXPress
2. Schedule an appointment with an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME)
3. Obtain a minimum of 3rd class medical certificate
4. Read here for more in depth detail on how to get your medical certificate and what conditions might be disqualifying

*NOTE: We recommend that if you know you want to become a private pilot that you get your medical certificate prior to doing too much flight training, if any at all. We don't want you spending a bunch of money to only find out you are medically not cleared to be a pilot. Also, as we mention here... we highly recommend being examined by your regular doctor and then calling and chatting with an aviation medical examiner (AME) BEFORE having your official exam. Too many people get denied or deferred on their medical for things that could have been avoided by a phone call or pre-exam.

#4 Obtaining A Student Pilot Certificate

1. Create an online application with IACRA
2. Schedule an appointment with a recommending instructor (RI) (this can be done with your flight instructor once you have one) to prove you are who you say you are and can read, write and speak English
3. Have the RI submit the application
4. Wait for your student pilot certificate in the mail!

#5 Complete A Ground School to Learn Required Knowledge then Take & Pass the FAA Written Exam

Determine what kind of school you are going through such as part 141 or part 61 (we recommend part 61 for most people... more on this in a future article). Once you determine what school you will be doing, complete a ground school that will meet the knowledge requirements. This teaches the fundamentals and background knowledge needed to obtain a pilot license. Once you complete this, you will receive an endorsement that will allow you to take the written exam.

A good ground school should not only prepare you for the written exam but also for your flight lessons. This makes you more competent and safe by the time you get to soloing an aircraft. It actually blows my mind that the FAA even allows students to fly solo without completing a ground school first. This, along with the fact that it will save you money in the end is why we HIGHLY recommend completing ground school prior to flight training.

In fact, the Part Time Pilot Online Ground School was designed with this exact idea in mind... to prepare are students to not only pass the Written exam (we have a 99% success rate here) but also prepare them for their flight lessons so they are flying mentally one step ahead of the aircraft at all times.

#6 Find A School/ Flight Instructor To Do Your Training

Once you have your ground school out of the way and the Written Exam out of the way you are all set to start flight training. You can start flight training whenever you want (even before ground school) but like we mentioned above, we highly recommend against this.

You can fly at a flight school, flying club or even with a freelance instructor and aircraft. Whatever works best for you and the area that you live.

#7 Meet the Minimum Flight Experience Requirements

Depending on whether you fly under Part 61 or Part 141 the minimum amount of hours and flight experience is a little bit different. We explain this in another free lesson but ultimately you need a total of 40 hours under Part 61 and 35 under Part 141. But as we explain here, that doesn't exactly make Part 141 less expensive. Be sure to read up on the differences before thinking you are going to save money.

There are other, more specific flight experience requirements underneath the overall total hours of 35/40. For example, you need to have a certain number of hours with your instructor, a certain number of hours flying solo, cross-country flights, night flights, flight with instruments and even flights in preparation for your checkride. Read the exact requirements here.

#8 Take & Pass Your Checkride!

Lastly, once all your minimum have been met and you've receive the necessary endorsements from your flight instructor, it's time to take your practical check ride! This consists of an oral exam and a flying exam that you will schedule with someone called a Designated Pilot Examiner or DPE.

During your checkride you will be quizzed on your knowledge, including what you missed on the FAA Written Exam, and then you will be tested on your skills and abilities in the aircraft. The examiner will have you walk them through the whole entire process of ensuring the aircraft is airworthy, ensuring you are fit to fly, calculating weight and balance, planning a cross-country flight, pre-flighting the aircraft, taxiing, taking off, climbing out, flying cross-country checkpoints, diverting from emergencies, lost procedures, slow flight, stall recovery, ground reference maneuvers, landings and more! And throughout the entire process the examiner will quiz you on situational based questions to try and gauge that you understand all concepts required of you by the FAA.

The Part Time Pilot Checkride Prep program is designed in the exact same format and flow of your checkride and has situational based questions you might get from your examiner (and how to answer them) throughout the material.