Training News and Notes

AOPA Action

‘Unfortunate consequence’

Student pilot requirements affect sixteenth-birthday solos

AOPA has asked the FAA to remedy an “unfortunate consequence” of new procedures for issuing student pilot certificates that—as worded in a rule that went into effect April 1—preclude student pilots from soloing on their sixteenth birthday.

The new student pilot application requirements took effect April 1. It is no longer possible to obtain a combined student pilot certificate and medical certificate from an aviation medical examiner. Student pilots have to apply for their certificates through their certificated flight instructor or other authorized individuals.

The person processing the application must ensure that the student’s eligibility requirements—including a provision that the applicant be “at least 16 years of age for other than the operation of a glider or balloon”—are met.

The opportunity for a sixteenth-birthday solo will not be possible because the application must then be sent on to the FAA. About a three-week wait is expected for the certificate to be issued and returned to the applicant.

AOPA suggested that the FAA consider implementing a procedure allowing student pilots to apply for the certificate no earlier than 30 days prior to their eligible birthday. The FAA could then issue a certificate with a limitation similar to that which aviation medical examiners currently place on combined medical and student pilot certificates in such instances, noting that the certificate is not valid until the date of the sixteenth birthday.

Until a permanent solution is implemented, AOPA recommends that student pilots who are seeking to solo in an airplane on their sixteenth birthday work around the problem by applying for a student pilot certificate under the glider category, in which the minimum age to solo is 14. The FAA will issue the student pilot certificate, which is not specific to any particular category or class of aircraft. The student’s flight instructor can then endorse the student’s logbook for solo flight in an airplane on his or her sixteenth birthday.

FAA restores sim time for instrument rating

Sims provide cost-effective training

By Dan Namowitz

An FAA final rule that took effect May 12 made it possible, once again, for pilots training for the instrument rating to count up to 20 hours of use in an approved aviation training device (ATD) toward their time requirements.

AOPA and much of the flight training industry advocated for the new rule, which doubles the amount of approved ATD time previously allowed. The rule restored the amount of approved ATD time pilots counted toward the instrument rating until early 2014, when an FAA policy statement cut the hours to 10.

In December 2014, the FAA fast-tracked a rulemaking proceeding to restore the 20-hour limit—but that process ran into procedural obstacles when two adverse comments required that the FAA withdraw the rule, which it revised and recently resubmitted.

The rule allows instrument students to credit a maximum of 10 hours using a basic ATD (BATD) and a maximum of 20 hours using an advanced ATD (AATD). Using a combination of the two, however, credit may not exceed 20 hours.

Allowances have been increased for Part 141 programs as well. Students training for an instrument rating in a Part 141 program may credit no more than 40 percent of training toward total time requirements in an AATD. The limit for using a BATD will increase to 25 percent of total time requirements, and the limit for the combined use of both types is 40 percent. Previously, Part 141 training time was limited to 10 percent for either type, or both combined.

The now-final rule drops a requirement for students to wear a view-limiting device when logging instrument time in an approved ATD, if the student is operating solely by reference to the instruments and the device is representing instrument meteorological conditions.

ASI NEWS

Need guidance with the new student pilot certification process?

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Fly safe, set personal minimums in advance

Write them down

Astute decisions are much easier to make when not preoccupied with flying an airplane, because factors that influence our decision-making abilities change when our minds are busy with complex tasks (like piloting an aircraft). That’s why writing down personal minimums in advance is so important.

If during the heat of the moment in flight we rely on feelings to guide our decisions, then the decision making becomes a mental negotiation clouded by emotion and hopes of a successful outcome. So document personal minimums—and consult them before each flight. This becomes the basis for a contract with yourself, your passengers, and your family to fly safely and within your personal minimums.

Download the VFR Pilot and IFR Pilot Personal Minimum Contracts from the AOPA Air Safety Institute’s Aeronautical Decision Making Safety Spotlight. Remember to update your personal minimums regularly to reflect your current proficiency level in the aircraft you’ll be flying. In addition, if you’ve recently earned a new certificate or rating, ask your CFI to help you determine a reasonable baseline to match your new skills.

UAS sightings reported to the FAA, January 2016

There were 582 drone sightings reported between August 21, 2015, and January 31, 2016, according to a report from the FAA released in late March.