Do Flight Hours Expire When There's a Lapse in Training?

When returning to flight lessons, don't confuse experience with proficiency.

Meg Godlewski

Wednesday, October 23, 2024 at 12:08 PM ET

Verified

Edited By: tccjeremy

Pilot logbook [Credit: Carly Chamerlik/FLYING Archive]

Key Takeaways:

Properly logged and endorsed flight hours do not expire and will count towards a pilot's certification, regardless of how much time has passed.
Although logged hours remain valid, a returning pilot's skills and knowledge will likely have become rusty over time.
It is recommended that returning pilots work with a CFI to review flight maneuvers and knowledge (including pre-solo and cross-country concepts) to identify and address "soft spots," ideally using a syllabus.

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Question: I am a return-to-flying client. I pursued a private pilot certificate years ago then had to stop when life got in the way. It’s been 10 years since I last flew. I was doing solo cross-country flights when I was forced to quit. I still have my logbook with my hours. When I went to a local flight school to see about finishing my training, the CFI I spoke with—and who looked at my logbook—told me that none of my hours would count and I would need to repeat everything. Is this correct?

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Answer: Provided the previous flight experience was properly logged and endorsed if required, those hours should count toward certification. They don’t expire. However, skills and knowledge do get rusty.

The prudent thing to do for both you and the CFI is to review the flight maneuvers and knowledge for pre-solo, along with a dual cross-country flight to determine the soft spots in your training so you can come up with a plan of action. Insist on the use of a syllabus to hold both you and the CFI accountable. Congratulations on your decision to return to the sky!