Outlook for Pilots in North America COVID-19 has represented a great challenge for the world economy, the arrival of the pandemic has generated a great impact in various industries and aviation has not escaped its effects. In fact, for the year 2020, it suffered a considerable decrease in its expected earnings per year derived from the closure of the borders and the abrupt drop in air travel, due to the restrictions on flights as a measure to prevent the spread of the virus. Consequently, there was a reduction in the need, therefore, in the hiring of pilots and technicians. Many of the pilots were suspended, the airlines during that year worked to a minimum, but with an oversupply of trained personnel who are inactive in their work. However, state subsidies, and incentives for early retirement, and reduction in working hours, these measures had negative effects that in many cases led staff to seek another type of occupation. Is still worth a career in aviation? For those who wonder if this panorama shows the decline of the aeronautical industry, the answer is no. Despite these circumstances, the airline profession has not lost its appeal and its strengthening and positioning in the coming years are estimated. By 2019, being a pilot or holding a position within the aeronautical industry was one of the most attractive occupations due to its profitability within the labor market, as a consequence of the shortage of active pilots whose percentage has decreased by 5% and of technicians whose availability has been reduced by 3.9% due to the high demand for this personnel. Therefore, a progressive expansion is estimated that will allow the aeronautical industry to quickly recover 80% of the losses generated by the pandemic in three years. It is even expected in the next ten years the hiring of 260,000 new pilots. However, the challenges it must face are showing an increase in its profitability. Even though in the coming years there is a 1,2% reduction in the requirement for pilots and technicians if compared to 2019, in these next ten years it is hoped to have a workforce that has 763,000 active pilots and 739,000 maintenance technicians. These are encouraging figures for personnel whose work is suspended given that they will soon be able to return to their positions within the industry either civilian or within the ranks of the State once the flights are restored. In this sense, it is valuable to make a career as a pilot, this is due to the high demand for flights, based on the increase in users who must travel around the world and who require this service to shorten distances, circumstances that will be appreciated once the current restrictions are lifted. Hence, there is considerable growth that demands more pilots and air personnel. Among the main reasons, the hiring of more than 20,000 pilots is expected only in 2021 with an increasing need because in the next few years the retirement due to age of around 80,000 pilots is expected, who meet the statutory 65 years for it. These mandatory recalls continue to grow so the pilot shortage remains. Another factor that influences the shortage is the complexity of their training during two years that require many flight hours to complete the professional preparation. New Pilots education The aeronautical industry is a market in full expansion that will continue to change, it is not the first time that it has to face serious challenges that shock the nations of the entire world, these times of financial crisis have allowed its innovation in the transformation of the industry. This increase in the requirement of air service demands great efforts and investment and trust in new technologies that allow redefining the process of industrial advancement. Thus, a modification in the training of the pilots is foreseen to ensure that they are adequately trained. For this, the use of technological resources such as artificial intelligence to optimize security measures and others that currently allow the training of pilots is not suspended through virtual reality programs that can be used from home to complete the required flight hours, but safely, since they have no risk of contagion. It proposes a more flexible instruction that adjusts to the learning needs of the students. This has to focus on proposing virtual and individual assignments that personalize the preparation of students, according to their strengths, weaknesses, and current demands. Students mustn’t suspend their instruction given that properly trained professionals will have ample job opportunities once these three years of post-pandemic recovery are completed. It is observed how these types of scenarios that break the continuous march of events, serve to find ways to improve the industry as they challenge human inventiveness to avoid losing market space and that is where the personnel training schools have to aim. aerial. For this reason, the true challenge of the industry worldwide lies in motivating people, not only pilots but also cabin members and technicians to continue their training, since they are a key element in the development of aviation. The main challenge is to motivate the number of people requesting certificates and licenses to rise to satisfy future demand. At the moment, airlines have the opportunity to continue operating and offer new destinations to users, using current staff. The favorable outlook for the industry will allow new positions to be opened that offer a better service.
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This page is informational in nature and is designed to assist pilots and aircrews for flight planning and familiarization. It may be used in conjunction with other pre-flight information sources needed to satisfy all the requirements of 14 CFR 91.103 and is not to be considered as a sole source of information to meet all pre-flight action. Pilots can receive a complete preflight briefing from a Flight Service Station (1-800-WXBRIEF) or online at 1800wxbrief.com.
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What Is the FAA Airmen Certification Standards?
All through school, there is a standard that the first day or two is all about discussing the rubric and what the class is going to be about. Flight school is essentially a trade school, so there is a rubric for flying as well. This document was created by the government instead of the teacher though. It helps with the standardization of certifying pilots and has made aviation the safest form of travel worldwide.
The “rubric” used by the FAA for the certification of pilots is called the Airmen Certification Standards (ACS).
Essentially, the ACS, as it’s more commonly called, is what you need to know from your flight training. It’s also the exact things that you will be tested on by the Designated Pilot Examiner, again using the acronym, more commonly referred to as the DPE.
What Happened to the Practical Test Standards?
Since the FAA took over the certification process of pilots, they have created a document of the standards that were to be met by the student pilot before they were able to fully exercise the privileges of being the pilot in command.
All of aviation is about innovation and increasing safety.
That means every single aspect of aviation is constantly being reevaluated to better the process. This includes the standards that pilots must meet in order to become certificated pilots. It also includes all the processes such as how to perform a power-off stall, the best practices for planning a cross-country flight, and even just doing a walk-around preflight check.
So, this update is exactly what happened with the Practical Test Standards (PTS). It got reevaluated and updated to be the ACS.
As of June 12, 2017, the ACS precedes the PTS when it comes to the requirements of pilot testing.
What’s in the ACS
For this part, we won’t delve into the details of the exact document because the document exists and has everything listed in it. Instead, this article will cover more of how it’s set up and how you can use that to your benefit.
For starters, when you look at the ACS, you will see a table. The table will have 6 different topics. They are:
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Task – This is the technical term of the actual task you are expected to know and be able to perform
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References – Here is a list of documents where you can find guidance for the task. There will be references to the task that goes into deeper context and provides deeper knowledge that will help you fully understand the task at hand.
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Objective – Similar to the task, this outlines the actual goal of the task. The task is the technical name, but the objective is a more in-depth look at what specifically is the desired outcome.
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Knowledge – When it comes down to brass tax, there is still a knowledge test that must be taken. The knowledge section is describing the actual knowledge you will be tested on. For each certificate, there is a knowledge test. It’s what will be on your written (computer-based nowadays) test when you have to take those.
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Risk Management – In aviation there are a ton of things that could go wrong. Risk management is all about knowing the most common things that could go wrong and how to mitigate that risk and handle the situation if something does go wrong.
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Skills – Finally, this is the part that matters the most to pilots who just want to fly. It’s not the most important, it’s just what pilots want to do: Fly. The skills are exactly what pilots want to demonstrate the most. For the sake of the ACS, it’s what you need to know how to do correctly to accomplish the objective.
Keep in mind that the ACS is more of a reference rubric. It doesn’t tell you the actual down-and-dirty details, but it tells you where to find more information and how to perform the skills.
The ACS works amazingly when it comes to planning out your training. It’s the exact document that the DPE will use to test you, so use it to your advantage.
How to Use the ACS
One of the most difficult things to do, especially when you don’t have a background of going to college and using a rubric, is to use the ACS as a basis for study.
That’s exactly how to use it though, as a study guide.
When you’re doing the ground school, it gives exact resources from FAA-written textbooks (which are all free on the FAA website) to give you the answer that is most correct. It explains EXACTLY what you need to do and how to do it.
These may not be the best resources for you personally, but knowing where to get a general understanding is useful for you to find a CFI to explain it to you better. There are also a ton of resources on YouTube that may explain the concept in a way that may make more sense.
Having this as a resource shows you exactly what you need to study in order to ace your checkride. It also can be used for a personal checklist of what you feel confident in doing without any correction.
Essentially the ACS is the ultimate study guide for pilots. It’s applicable to all certificates you will be getting as a pilot, so it’s the best resource to help you on your pilot journey.
FAA Airmen Certification Standards (ACS) Guides
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Airline Transport Pilot and Type Rating – Airplane (FAA-S-ACS-11 Change 1)
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Remote Pilot – Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (FAA-S-ACS-10A)
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Aviation Mechanic General, Airframe, and Powerplant (FAA-S-ACS-1)
FAA Practical Test Standards (PTS) Guides
Private Pilot
How to review your missed FAA test questions
Why you should review your missed FAA test questions
Reviewing your missed FAA test questions is an important part of the learning process. It helps you to improve both your knowledge base and test-taking ability. The best way to do this is by using a practice test or question bank that includes explanations for all answers. This will help you understand why some answers are correct, while others are incorrect. If there is no explanation, then it’s likely that the question was too difficult and requires further study.
Instrument Pilot
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Commercial
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How to Become a Pilot
A certain exhilaration comes when you are in an airplane and feel the force from the engines pulling you forward. You fall back into your seat and watch as the trees speed up outside the window, growing to a blur. Then suddenly, you feel a slight lean backward and the wheels leave the ground.
You’re in the air!
You’re flying!
The feeling of taking off is always so exciting. Whether it’s the beginning of your vacation, or heading home, taking off in an airplane is always fun.
But one way to make take-offs even more exciting is to be the pilot doing the take-off.
Overview to Get to the Airlines
When it comes to becoming a pilot, there are a few career options that can get you paid to be a pilot. There are fewer where you can share the joy of take-offs and the magic of flight with other people than being an airline pilot.
But to get there it takes some time and dedication. There are multiple certificate requirements before you are going to be allowed to fly an airliner jet. For the sake of brevity, here is a broad overview of what this process would look like.
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Private Pilot Certificate
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Instrument Rating Add-On
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Commercial Rating
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Certified Flight Instructor (CFI)
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Multi-Engine Add-On
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Certified Flight Instructor – Instrument (CFII)
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Airline Transport Pilot (ATP)
These are the necessary flight certificates to get you to the airline level and become an airline pilot. Most of these are more than just being able to fly, though. You have the written portion of your flight training, which is a written test based on all the ground knowledge you have gained by doing your classroom (or online) training.
After the written test, you will be able to continue your training and move up to do the final checkride and get your certificates!
Pre-Flight Training Necessities
Before you ever even get set up for flight school there are a few important steps to take. Like making sure you are medically cleared to become a pilot.
There’s no reason to even get started on your journey if you won’t be able to advance due to medical reasons.
There are 3 classes of medical certificates and they are all issued by an FAA-approved doctor known as an Aviation Medical Examiner (AME).
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1st Class Medical – the required medical certificate to become an airline pilot. It has the most stringent requirements that must be met.
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2nd Class Medical – the medical certificate that is required to exercise the privileges of the commercial certificate and get paid for your work as a pilot.
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3rd Class Medical – the necessary medical certificate in order to get your private Pilot certificate. It’s most useful if your goal is to just fly for fun or short travel.
Picking a Flight School
This might be the most critical step in your training process: Picking your flight school.
The importance comes from more than just finding the closest airport with a flight school. You also need to take into account the CFI that will be instructing you.
It’s entirely possible for you to stick with the same CFI your entire flight training career. It’s not 100% likely because you might have different needs along the way, but it still can happen.
When picking your flight school, you need to take into account how they do their training. If you are with a primary CFI but fly with someone else occasionally, it could throw you off. You could also cycle through different CFI’s to get a broad perspective of how to fly and develop the best practices for you.
The last factor, or first depending on the level of importance to you, is which style of flight school you would like.
There is a Part 61 and a Part 141 flight school. The names come from the part of the Code of Federal Regulations regarding the training of pilots.
Part 61 flight schools simply follow the standards of Part 61 which outline the necessary abilities a pilot must have to attain their certificate. Following this style of the program allows for dramatic personalization where the instructor can alter what they’re teaching that day to better suit the student.
In turn, Part 141 is a flight school that follows the specific curriculum created by the FAA to train pilots. This standardization calls for a more structured style of schooling. It’s typically set up more like a college where you have classroom learning some days and the actual flying on different days.
Neither is superior to the other, it’s more of a matter of knowing your learning style and which one works better for you.
The same goes for your CFI and flight school. Sometimes you might clash with the personalities of specific instructors or just not feel that you are a good fit at a flight school.
So you should shop around before making a decision. Visit multiple flight schools. Talk to different instructors at the schools. Inspect the airplanes.
Most importantly, take a discovery flight. This will help you determine if you fit well with the instructor and it will give you a hands-on test to see if you even enjoy the actual act of being the pilot in control.
The Private Pilot Experience
When it comes to actually attaining your Private Pilot Certificate, more commonly referred to as the PPL or Private Pilot License, there are really 4 phases of training you do.
For starters, there’s the Pre-Solo flight training. The pre-solo portion can typically be completed in about 10 hours; however, everyone’s Pilot journey is unique to them and I’ve heard of it taking up to 100 (a VERY unique case).
The main goal of the Pre-Solo portion is to teach the student the basics and how to properly take off and land without the assistance of the CFI. When the CFI feels comfortable, they send you on your first solo flight around the pattern. Usually just one or two laps, but you’re the sole manipulator of the controls.
The second part is the Cross Country Flight portion.
There are certain parameters required for your cross-country flights. Two will be with your CFI in the right seat and two (or more) will be solo cross-country flights.
It’s important to remember that the primary reason you are doing these cross-country flights is to learn what it’s like to fly with just a compass, stopwatch (or some other form of a timer), and the sectional chart.
Some schools may allow you to use a GPS on your solo cross-country, but it’s just extremely important for you to know how to fly without relying on the GPS solely.
The third phase is the Checkride Prep stage of flight training. Likely, at this point, you have already done the basic maneuvers. When it comes to the Checkride, you will have to perform the specified maneuvers within the FAA set parameters.
When you’re prepping for the checkride, you will be doing all the maneuvers to perfect them and make you a better pilot. These maneuvers will make you a much SAFER pilot really. That’s the primary goal of all the maneuvers.
During this time, you will likely also get scenario practice. You will be up in the air and the instructor will say something like, “Pretend there is a fire in the cockpit. What do you do?” And you will do the appropriate performance maneuver to respond to that scenario.
The final phase is the actual Checkride itself.
It’s the most nerve-wracking aspect of your flight training because it’s the actual test to see if you are a capable pilot.
It’s broken up into two different parts: The oral portion which is done before you get to the second part, which is the practical flight portion.
The oral portion is testing your ground knowledge. It’s about KNOWING what to do and how to do things. When you get to the practical portion, it’s all about actually performing the maneuvers and applying the ground knowledge to the flight.
Finally, at the end of the day, you’ve done it. You have become an officially licensed pilot. Go celebrate with a $100 (or $200 with inflation) Hamburger!