What Are Requirements for Solo Flying?

Evaluating a student pilot for this endorsement takes more than laps in the pattern.

Meg Godlewski

Wednesday, August 20, 2025 at 11:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

Solo flying experience builds both skill and confidence. [Shutterstock]

Key Takeaways:

An endorsement for a student pilot's first solo flight after only two laps in the pattern is likely illegal and improper according to cFAR 61.87.
cFAR 61.87 mandates that a student must demonstrate satisfactory aeronautical knowledge (including a written test) and proficiency in 15 specific pre-solo flight maneuvers, which cannot be assessed in just two laps.
The original CFI should discuss the procedures with the endorsing CFI and, if the student does not meet all safety standards and experience metrics, void the improper endorsement before issuing a proper one.

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Question: I’ve been working as a CFI for about three months, and I just got my first private pilot candidate ready for their first solo. I asked another CFI, a retired airline pilot who has returned to teaching and is new to the flight school, to fly with the student to “check my work” before I signed the student off. It was my day off when they did this.

When I came back the next day, I learned the CFI did two laps in the pattern with the student and then endorsed him for solo flight. Is that legal? I thought there was a lot more to it than that. I am working at a Part 61 school if that makes a difference.