Credit for staying proficient
Wings program recommended for pilots and flying clubs
Many flights have a similar profile and don’t allow us to practice all the skills we had to master for the checkride. Wouldn’t it be nice if there were a proficiency program that made it easy for pilots to stay sharp? The FAA has a program that does just that. It’s called the FAA Safety Team Wings program.
The FAA Wings pilot proficiency program is a way for general aviation pilots to ensure they stay competent, confident, and safe in their flight operations. Studies have shown that pilots who participate in regular proficiency training are much less likely to experience accidents. The FAASTeam website is the portal to an array of courses, videos, links, and more. Wings not only encompasses “knowledge” activities, but also flight activities. Use the search options to narrow down, to, say flight activities for a basic phase of Wings and you’ll be able to find a syllabus and often a worksheet for each flight activity.
- Wings is the FAA’s pilot proficiency program.
- Wings is most beneficial if training is not conducted all at once but rather spaced out throughout the year.
- The Wings “Topic of the Quarter” is an easy way to pursue regular proficiency training.
- Completion of any phase of Wings satisfies the FAR 61.56 requirements for flight reviews.
- A cadre of WingsPros is available to assist flight instructors and pilots with the Wings program.
Of particular interest to flying club safety officers is the recently updated Safety to Go section. If you are interested in using the FAASTeam Wings program with your flying club, contact AOPA You Can Fly Flying Club Liaison Steve Bateman, who is a lead representative and WingsPro and uses the program in his club, at [email protected].
Drew Myers is the manager of the AOPA You Can Fly Flying Clubs initiative.
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