The path to becoming a professional pilot has evolved a lot in the past eight years, following the implementation of new regulations and testing guidance governing how pilots of transport-category aircraft obtain certification. While it’s possible to fly professionally with a certificate for commercial single-engine operations, most pilots intending to fly for the airlines, commuter ops, or a corporate flight department will go one step further.
ATP Requirements for Your Certificate
Key Takeaways:
- The path to becoming a professional pilot, particularly for airlines, significantly changed after the 2009 Colgan Air crash, leading to new regulations aimed at enhancing safety.
- Key regulatory updates, implemented between 2010 and 2014, mandated that airline first officers hold an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate with increased flight hour minimums (1,000-1,500 hours) and stricter duty and rest period rules.
- A significant new requirement for obtaining a multi-engine ATP certificate, introduced in 2014, is the costly Airline Transport Pilot Certification Training Program (ATP-CTP), involving extensive ground instruction and full-motion simulator training.
- While the ATP-CTP presents a substantial hurdle due to its cost and complexity, impacting pilot supply, a single-engine ATP certificate can still be obtained at a lower cost without this specific training program.
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