The Sport Pilot Ruling
Sport Pilot Ruling
The new FAA ruling for sport pilot certificates provide the easiest and least costly way to fly for fun and recreation. When I was a student pilot working on gettng my private certificate some 18 years ago, the cost was under $2000 for everything. I passed my medicaI exam, bought the best books available and studied for the written test night after night until my eyelids were drooping. After 15 or 20 hours of flying with my instructor, I attended a good weekend seminar that ended with taking the FAA written exam. Then there was another 20 hours of solo that included a 3 point cross country flight. When 40 hours of flight time was completed and all the signoffs were in my logbook, I took the practical test. I am certain the cost to do this today would be far more than double my costs.
The FAA has decided that people who are flying aircraft that have certain limitations do not need to go through all of the 40 hoursof training and medical examinations required to get a private or commercial pilot certificate. The final ruling has reduced the practical training to 20 hours and your driver’s license serves for your medical. The members and leaders of the Experimental Aircraft Association along with the FAA need to be commended for their efforts. There are many factors that all add up to make this change for the better possible. Just think of the high quality of interactive training material available today that wasn’t around even 20 years ago. The student pilot can quickly gain comprehensive understanding.
I remember dreaming of the days when I would be able to go long distances in a short time. I actually drove to the local airport, preflighted the Cessna 150 that I soloed in and flew 90 miles to Lewis University for classes. By the time I got the plane parked and tied down, then walked across the tarmac, through the terminal building and across campus to the classroom, it took longer than if I drove. The clique ”If you got time to spare, go by air” took on a new meaning. That, which I thought was just a bit of hanger humor actually had a bite of reality. Living here in the middle of Illinois where the land is flat and the roads are straight made my travel time savings seem pretty insignificant. From that point, I knew that my flying was going to be a recreational activity unless a trip was going to be 200 miles or more. Traveling that distance or further was something I didn’t do often. As costs continued to rise, flying was something that I gave up.
Alas, the Sport Pilot Certificate. A great place to start. Also a great place to pick up where you left off some years back. There are a few restrictions, but a person can get into flying without breaking the bank.
Here are the minimum required training times for the different light sport aircraft categories:
- Airplane: 20 hours
- Powered Parachute: 12 hours
- Weight-Shift-Control (Trikes): 20 hours
- Gliders: 10 hours
- Rotorcraft (gyroplane only): 20 hours
- Lighter-Than-Air: 20 hours (airship) or 7 hours (balloon)
To earn a sport pilot certificate, one must:
- Be at least 16 to become a student sport pilot (14 for glider).
- Be at least 17 to test for a sport pilot certificate (16 for gliders).
- Be able to read, write, and understand English.
- Hold a current and valid U.S. driver’s license as evidence of medical eligibility. This is providing that the FAA has not denied, revoked, or suspend the last medical certificate. On the other hand, you can use a third class airman’s medical to establish medical fitness.
- Pass an FAA sport pilot knowledge test.
- Pass a FAA sport pilot practical (flight) test.
There are two very good places to visit on the web for the training information you’ll need to get started.
King Aviation has courses on DVD at http://www.kingschools.com/
Sporty’s Pilot Shop has equally good material at http://www.sportys.com/pilotshop/
