Aero-Tips!

A good pilot is always learning -- how many times have you heard this old standard throughout your flying career? There is no truer statement in all of flying (well, with the possible exception of "there are no old, bold pilots.") It's part of what makes aviation so exciting for all of us... just when you think you've seen it all, along comes a scenario you've never imagined.

Aero-News has called upon the expertise of Thomas P. Turner, master CFI and all-around-good-guy, to bring our readers -- and us -- daily tips to improve our skills as aviators, and as representatives of the flying community. Some of them, you may have heard before... but for each of us, there will also be something we might never have considered before, or something that didn't "stick" the way it should have the first time we memorized it for the practical test.

It is our unabashed goal that "Aero-Tips" will help our readers become better, safer pilots -- as well as introducing our ground-bound readers to the concepts and principles that keep those strange aluminum-and-composite contraptions in the air... and allow them to soar magnificently through it.

Look for our daily Aero-Tips segments, coming each day to you through the Aero-News Network. Suggestions for future Aero-Tips are always welcome, as are additions or discussion of each day's tips. Remember... when it comes to being better pilots, we're all in this together.

Aero-Tips 03.26.06

Got your eye on a slick Diamond D-Jet or another of the coming Very Light Jets (VLJs)? Once it’s certified and you pony up the bucks, there’s another significant hurdle before you can fly it away as pilot-in-command. You’ll need a Type Rating.

Just Your Type

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requires a type rating to act as pilot-in-command in any:

• Large aircraft (defined by the FAA as any aircraft, other than lighter-than-air, with a maximum takeoff weight greater than 12,500 pounds), and
• Turbojet-powered aircraft regardless of weight.

The requirements are in 14 CFR 61.31. You’ll need to complete training and take an FAA checkride to earn your Type Rating specific to that “type” of aircraft. There’s no FAA written, but the checkride follows the format of the Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate practical test. In fact, if you meet the other requirements of the ATP (including the ATP written), you can combine the “type ride” with your ATP checkride -- you can’t get the “type” without meeting ATP standards.

(Note: Flying on a non-U.S. pilot certificate? Check requirements for the country that issues your certificate for the rule that applies to you.)

Large and turbojet aircraft (note this doesn’t include turboprops, unless they are “large”) are usually very complex and high-performance. The object of the type rating is to ensure the pilot-in-command has fully mastered the airplane and its systems, and can handle its performance.

The Malibu Endorsement

Soon after the Piper Malibu entered service there were a number of in-flight breakups eventually traced to lack of pilot familiarity with the complexity and capability of the design. As a result the FAA modified 61.31 to add the following additional requirement for a type rating:

• Other aircraft specified by the Administrator through aircraft type certificate procedures.

This catch-all says the FAA can require a type rating for specific airplane designs that are not turbojets and not “large” aircraft. The regulation change came with a proposal to require a type rating to act as PIC of a Malibu, and possibly other airplanes as well. There was significant industry resistance; the point became moot when insurance companies added regular training as a condition of Malibu insurance, a de facto “type” requirement for its pilots. Similar insurance requirements for other high-end designs have prevented 61.31 from becoming a laundry list of airplane models with type rating requirements.

Aero-tip of the day: Required or not, hit the books and fly with a knowledgeable instructor to become “type rated” in the airplanes you fly, from a Light Sport Aircraft to a Very Light Jet.

FMI: Aero-Tips