Some of the more interesting conversations we have with pilots are how best to get the training required for an upgrade in their pilot skills and/or privileges. Whether it is a new pilot certificate or rating or an endorsement to fly tailwheel or high-performance airplanes, it’s almost invariably going to be an expensive proposition and will require a serious investment of time and effort. The question is how best to go through the process without going broke and with a minimum of problems and distractions.
We’ll look at the matter of upgrading our pilot skills while getting something tangible to show for it in the context of acquiring an endorsement to be allowed to fly as PIC in an airplane we are otherwise rated to fly, adding a rating and getting an appropriate checkout to fly a new-to-you airplane that you’ve purchased.
We’re the first to admit that it can be challenging to find the right CFI or flight school for training as smaller operators—especially those that rent airplanes that aren’t plain vanilla—have slowly been disappearing and big-time flight schools may be reluctant to do one-off training, preferring to cater to those who are seeking to get all of their ratings enroute to an airline career.
The Requirements
No matter what it is that you seek to do, the first step is to sit down with a copy of the FARs and (if appropriate) the ACS (Airman Certification Standards). This is the cheap part of your upgrade program. The research shouldn’t cost you a cent as the material you need is on the FAA’s website.
With the regs in hand, look at what is required to obtain the endorsement or rating you desire—or check to see that you have the necessary endorsements and/or ratings for the airplane you are planning to buy.
Read carefully, because Part 61.31 that applies to endorsements needed such as high-performance and complex airplanes has a title that can be confusing: “Type rating requirements, additional training and authorization requirements.” Plus, the regs have to cover all types of airplanes and sometimes specific requirements can catch you by surprise. For example, everyone “knows” that a complex airplane consists of an airplane with a controllable pitch propeller, flaps and retractable gear. However, under Part 61.1, where complex airplane is defined, a seaplane with flaps and a controllable pitch propeller is also a complex airplane—there’s no requirement for retractable landing gear.
If you don’t have a complex airplane endorsement and you get a seaplane rating in a seaplane with a controllable pitch propeller and flaps, you are entitled to a complex airplane endorsement. That might save you some bucks when you pick up a seaplane rating (which counts as a flight review as well) and you don’t have to go someplace else and spend potentially an equal amount of money on an old Cherokee Arrow or Cessna 172RG for the complex airplane endorsement.
When you get a complex airplane endorsement, it’s good for all types of airplanes.
That’s just an example as to why it’s important to make sure that you know precisely what is required for the rating or endorsement you desire. It’s also wise to think creatively when you seek an endorsement. For example, when going for one, speak with your instructor because the odds are that she or he can have you do a little extra in the air and on the ground so that you get a flight review sign-off as well. Don’t miss an opportunity because you didn’t read the FARs carefully. (But do it at the beginning of training; don’t try to ask the instructor to add the FR endorsement when she is signing you off at the end of the originally agreed training.)
Where to go
Knowing the requirements you are facing as to type of airplane needed, any minimum flying time and completion standards, you can go into your search for schools and instructors intelligently. Use all the sources available to you in the search: the internet, word of mouth, and—in our opinion, one of the best if you need an airplane checkout associated with a purchase—type clubs.
We have been repeatedly impressed with the resources available to members of airplane type clubs, notably the big dogs, Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association (COPA, cirruspilots.org) and the American Bonanza Society (ABS, bonanza.org), as well as small ones that have gotten our attention such as the Cessna 150/152 Club (cessna150-152club.com).
Websites for training organizations will often provide much of the information you need to decide whether to contact them. At a minimum, the website should describe the company’s fleet, the training offered and the costs involved. Some will also provide their syllabus for endorsement and rating training. If you are going to have to travel, the flight school should be able to give you recommendations for places to stay nearby.
We’ll interject right here that it’s been shown time and again that the most effective and least expensive way to train for an endorsement or rating is to do it in a minimum amount of time—with short intervals between flights. The military has done it that way for over 100 years and the major flight schools do it the same way.
Write down the questions you have for any flight school or CFI you are going to contact, then reach out and talk with them. If they don’t return calls, it’s a red flag—that’s unprofessional and they may have other bad habits that can make your training miserable.
The school/CFI should be able to answer all of your questions right away, or find answers to ones they don’t know. They should not resent the time spent talking to you unless you are one of those who can turn a 10-minute conversation into a two-hour phone marathon.
Ask for and get a copy of the school’s syllabus right away. Find out details about the school’s fleet. The worst problems we’ve seen regarding school airplane fleets have been with aircraft availability for the multi-engine rating, complex airplane endorsement, tailwheel endorsement or the use of complex or TAA airplanes for the commercial rating. Often the school just has one of the needed airplanes. When the needed airplane breaks, the student can be out of luck and out a lot of money if it can’t be repaired in a few hours.
We’re aware of some real horror stories in multi-engine instruction—almost all are with schools with one twin, usually an old one such as an early Cessna 310, Beech Travel Air or Piper Apache. They break frequently and parts are expensive and often difficult to source.
Our recommendation is that if you need to fly a twin or a complex airplane for an endorsement or rating, do it at a school that has more than one of the type or get an agreement in writing for reimbursement for expenses and/or priority on rescheduling should the one trainer be down for more than 24 hours. After all, we see people who travel significant distances to go through a multi-engine rating course in what should take only four or five days. If the airplane breaks something expensive and hard to get during training, it’s an expensive mess for the student.
We also think that the school/instructor should have an AATD or BATD level flight simulator to allow the student/client to keep costs down and use all of the allowable time in those devices toward a rating.
Pilot Examiners
There is a national shortage of Designated Pilot Examiners (DPEs). If you are going for a rating, make sure that the school/instructor can schedule your training so that you can take a checkride within two or three days of completing your training (yes, weather is always a factor).
You do not want to have to come back a week later for a checkride. You’ll have lost some of your edge and will almost certainly have to fly one or more sessions with an instructor to ensure that you’re ready.
Training Materials
If the school publishes any training materials, get them as early as you can so you can review them prior to starting the training.
If the school does not have designated training materials for a rating, we recommend purchasing either the King or Sporty’s training courses for the rating. They generally will prepare you for the written and often have guidance for the oral and flight portions of the practical exam. We’ve reviewed commercially available ground training materials over the last few decades and Sporty’s and King seem to always come out on top.
For the tailwheel endorsement, we strongly recommend Sporty’s video course taught by national aerobatic champion Patty Wagstaff.
If you are seeking to become a CFI, you will need a spin endorsement from a CFI attesting to the training you received and your ability to teach about spins, recovery and avoidance. For preparation, we recommend the free YouTube spin videos by Catherine Cavagnaro, an aerobatic instructor and university professor.
No matter what the endorsement or rating is, we also recommend acquiring a copy of the FAA’s Airplane Flying Handbook. It’s well written and is a resource that you’ll find yourself using again and again.
Paying For It
For endorsements a lot of pilots save up the money ahead of time or pay as they go. Once it’s a rating, getting a loan may be involved if you’re going to do it quickly. Not many flight schools qualify for their students to get federally supported student loans as flight schools tend to be identified as trade schools. If the student isn’t going to get a loan from a local or personal source, the flight school will probably recommend the Student Loan Marketing Association—Sallie Mae (salliemae.com). Rates vary based on the credit rating of the applicant and often you don’t have to start paying until after you graduate, although interest is still accruing.
No matter how you plan to pay for your training we recommend not putting down any more money up front than you are willing to lose. It doesn’t happen often, but flight schools have been known to go under holding very large deposits that its students never get back.
Show up Prepared
No matter what training you seek, if you want to spend a lot of money on it, show up not having flown for a while and without reading any preparatory material. Flight schools train to proficiency—yours will have to first bring you to reasonable competency before the training can start.
Make sure that you can make crosswind landings before you show up and if instrument flying is going to be involved be not only instrument current, but instrument proficient.
Finally, check on scholarships—there are a lot out there from big outfits like AOPA to type clubs to local EAA chapters. A little homework may pay off nicely.
Endorsements
The ones you are most likely to need for advanced ratings and aircraft ownership are high-performance and complex airplanes. Part 61.31 defines the requirements for the needed flight instructor endorsement in your logbook. You’re required to get ground and flight instruction (or instruction in a flight training device—almost a true simulator—an AATD or BATD will not do) to the level of proficiency set by your instructor. It’s wise to learn the CFI’s objective standards on such things as altitude, airspeed and heading control going in.
For the high-performance endorsement about half of the training involves getting used to a controllable pitch propeller (if the airplane has one). The other half is learning to deal with the increased power (“I said RIGHT RUDDER”) and speed. Even with the specialized training and this endorsement, we still see way too many loss of control crashes on go-arounds in high-performance singles due to failure to push hard with the right foot.
Figure two to five hours of flying time for the endorsement.
For complex it’s getting used to speed and learning complex systems and procedures to make sure the Firestones are extended prior to landing. Plan on 10 hours of flying.
For the pressurized, high-altitude endorsement it’s likely to be tied into transition training for a sophisticated piston bird, turboprop or jet. Insurance requirements may be involved. Plan on anything from three days to three weeks of class and simulator or airplane training, depending on the type of airplane.
The tailwheel endorsement is where you frustrate yourself mightily at first and then discover that you really can make big, appropriate control movements, learn how to handle crosswinds and that you’re having fun. Plan on 10 hours of flight time. Good ground prep such as the Sporty’s video course can reduce that time.
Ratings
It’s the ACS—that’s your bible for training. It gives all the minimum standards. That sets the bar pretty low, so plan on meeting your own personal goals for the pilot you want to be, for your self-respect and your desire to be able to fly with a degree of panache rather than be accused of “driving” an airplane (for years the worst insult that you could apply to a pilot—that she or he only thought in two dimensions).
Aircraft purchase
This is where type clubs can help you save substantial money and get training that may truly keep you from looking stupid in an NTSB report.
The American Bonanza Society (bonanza.org) has training courses and approved CFIs to help you get a solid checkout in your new-to-you Beechcraft.
Buying a used Cirrus? Cirrus will pay for your checkout with a Cirrus-approved CFI. It’s wonderful—a win-win for the company as it reduces its risks of lawsuits arising out of accidents and pilots who want a very good checkout but might be victims of the pilot’s disease—tightwaditis.
Buying a Piper? Piper Aircraft’s website (piper.com) has a list of flight schools that it recommends for Piper-specific training.
Another organization we like is the Mooney Safety Foundation (mooneysafety.com) for their training, guidance to find instructors and scholarships.
If you’re going to be flying a big-bore Lycoming or Continental engine, we strongly recommend the online course from Advanced Pilot Seminars (advancedpilot.com).
If you want your engine to last and understand how to operate it properly and use an engine monitor, take the course. You’ll probably save the price of the course in maintenance and fuel burn.
Conclusion
Spending some time doing homework regarding the training you want, the specific requirements and schools available and being fully prepared going in can make getting that endorsement or rating more enjoyable and affordable. Plus, even if the school offers a huge discount for big money up front, be very cautious about spending your money before flying.
