The Expectations of Experience
The Right Experiences are the Keys to Success
By Karen Kalishek & Paul Preidecker, guest writers
When a pilot is interested in training for another certificate, it’s common to hear the question, “How much time do I need to get an airline transport pilot certificate (ATP)?” Not very many ask, “What kind of experience do I need to get an ATP?”
The time versus experience discussion has been around for as long as we have been flying. After the implementation of Public Law 111–216 in August 2013 requiring an ATP certificate to operate in the part 121 environment, much energy and debate has been devoted to this issue. It’s a topic that polarizes the industry. The regulations required to support this law are often referred to as the 1,500-hour rule. It would be more accurate to call it the ATP rule. The number of hours required to be eligible for an ATP has always been 1,500. What changed was the need for an ATP certificate to work in a part 121 operation. Before the change, only the captain required an ATP; the first officer could have a commercial certificate. Now, both crewmembers need an ATP.
There are well-known pathways under Title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR), section 61.160 that allow issuance of a restricted ATP with less than 1,500 hours. If you want details, 14 CFR section 61.160 (a-d) outlines the requirements for a restricted ATP allowing certification with 750, 1,000, and 1,250 hours based on meeting specific requirements. The “restricted” part simply means that you are not allowed to upgrade to captain (pilot-in-command) until you log 1,500 hours of total time.
Time Flies By, But Experience Lasts
The time versus experience discussion is not binary. You cannot have experience without time. In our opinion, though, the right experiences are the keys to success in flight training. The dynamics of pilot hiring and pilot training have changed over time. There was a time when airlines were hiring pilots with 500 flight hours or less. These pilots were successful and are now in the left seat at an air carrier. No one thought they were unsafe because they “only” had 500 hours. They were safe because they came with the right experience, which was then combined with quality training. That should be the focus. In a nutshell, quality training is the bridge between time and experience.
Graduates of accelerated programs and those on the pathways to a restricted ATP must build hours to meet the current regulations if they are looking for an airline job. Opportunities to build time include flight instruction, aerial surveying, pipeline patrol, and perhaps banner towing. However, building your time in the latter three will not help your instrument scan or skills. That leaves flight instruction as a common and practical pathway.
The industry is experiencing rapid growth and turnover of pilot resources. The mainline carriers are drawing pilots from the regional airlines, and the regional airlines are drawing from the flight schools. Depending on the situation, a new flight instructor may have 300 hours of total time and teach for a year before moving on. Is that enough time to get the right experience needed for an airline training program? In many cases, no. Airlines have added time to the footprint of their training program to allow for additional skill building.
The Consequences of a Time Focus
Experience has implications broader than the career path of an individual pilot. At the National Association of Flight Instructors (NAFI), we saw from field reports and research that there was an alarming drop in pilot exam first-attempt passing rates in 2022. We brought this trend to the attention of the General Aviation Joint Safety Committee (GAJSC). Statistics and anecdotal evidence indicate that it was not a short-term blip; rather, it has been a longer-lasting and concerning degradation. FAA designated pilot examiners (DPEs) share stories reflecting a general lack of training depth that is associated with higher rates of test failures.
While there are numerous factors involved, the appeal of entering a lucrative airline career has been combined with a mindset that seniority is extremely important in the airline world. The resulting market demand to meet airline hiring criteria as quickly as possible resulted in the rapid growth of accelerated flight training programs and general pressure throughout the flight training industry to provide training to a significant number of pilot candidates as efficiently as possible.
The FAA issued 134,057 pilot certificates in 2023, a 26% increase from 2022. A total of 69,503 student pilot certificates were issued in 2023 and 11,337 new flight instructor certificates. A consequence has been a growing number of flight instructors with high student loads passing through the profession for a short period. Although experience is gained incrementally through training multiple pilots, there may be little time or motivation for reflection, honing instructional skills, and further self-study. This environment lends itself to a leaky bucket in which pilots who have received marginal training become flight instructors enroute to other work. A lack of experience spreads over time to a broader group as instructors pass their ever-thinner knowledge and skills to the next generation. Pilots in training who are focused on the goal of acquiring certificates and their own rapid advancement may not recognize areas where their own training is insufficient until an examination is unsuccessful. It is not necessarily better if they pass with only marginally acceptable performance, because they move through the system to potentially become flight instructors.
Broad trends do not, of course, reflect individual circumstances. Many relatively inexperienced instructors are excellent at teaching. These instructors have a professional attitude, realizing that primary training, which is most of their work, is the foundation for every pilot and passenger’s safety. They understand that they are role models for their learners and take their instructional responsibilities seriously. Although they may be active as flight instructors for a relatively short period, they approach the position with respect for its importance and do their utmost to provide the best possible outcome to those they educate.
Regrettably, our industry also includes active instructors who have somehow achieved flight instructor certification without some of the skills required of a private pilot. It includes those who, for example, have never filed a VFR flight plan and cannot use or teach VOR navigation effectively. DPE get-togethers abound with stories of candidates who indicate that an aircraft engine has one cylinder, depart in the wrong direction under pilotage, and quickly become lost, and a multitude of other failings. While there remains pressure to increase throughput in the pilot pipeline, the truth is that degraded training clogs the system with those who are under-trained back for retraining and retesting.
Technology Matters
It’s important that we, both as individuals and as an industry, leverage technology to create the path to experience. Advances in simulation technology and attractive pricing make this option more available for everyone. Even if you use a flight training device (or aviation training device) that does not count as credit toward time for a certificate or rating, you are still building skills. Flight training devices are an excellent way to practice emergency procedures that would be difficult, if not impossible, to perform in an actual aircraft safely. Flight training devices offer the chance to fly a more complicated arrival or departure procedure. They help with your scan and are a very efficient use of time compared to the actual aircraft where you might be sitting for 15 minutes or more with the engine and clock running, waiting to depart from a busy airport. Combining flight simulation technology with scenario-based training helps you add experience to your time.
Some well-known part 141 flight schools have incorporated virtual reality (VR) technology into their training programs. Currently, there is no approved time credit from the FAA for pilots who use this technology. However, as the schools have discovered, the absence of credit does not mean the absence of proficiency and safety training benefits.
Experience Is the Value of Time
We all have our reasons for becoming involved in aviation. Many opportunities are available. If you choose flight instruction as a path to another career, take that time to be the best possible instructor you can be by setting good examples of leadership, professionalism, and knowledge. You’ll be encouraging those you teach to do the same. We all win with the right experience. Experience and dedication to training excellence matter.
Experience Matters
— Paul Preidecker
When I was a flight instructor at Middleton Municipal Airport (C29) near Madison, Wisc., the owner had created a nationally known instrument training program called Morey’s West Coast Adventures. Hundreds of pilots took advantage of the unique training offered by this program. Two pilots arrived for each “adventure” with a minimum of 20 hours of basic attitude instrument flying. Then, in a turbo Cessna 182RG, we launched across the U.S. towards Seattle, along the coast to the Los Angeles basin, and back to Wisconsin, having crossed the Rocky Mountains twice. The trip took six days, with 40 approaches, and about 45 hours split between the two pilots. At the end, the pilots received a practical test. I was the instructor pilot on 23 of those trips in 24 months. This method of training was meant to immerse pilots in the experience of instrument flying. When I applied to a regional airline, the chief pilot looked at my resume and said that while I did not meet all the time requirements (no turbine time), I more than made up for it with experience. What kind of experience? Cross country, pilot-in-command (PIC), and instrument flying in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC). I had a class date three weeks after my initial contact with the airline and quickly moved into the airline’s training department.
Paul Preidecker has been a flight instructor for almost 34 years. Retired from a regional airline as chief instructor, he has served on various industry committees, was co-host of FAA Safety Briefly Live, and is president of the National Association of Flight Instructors. Paul is also president of his own company, FlightDeck Insights, where he develops and promotes best practices and SOPs for the general aviation pilot.
Karen Kalishek is a flight and ground instructor, ATP, NAFI Master and FAA Gold Seal Instructor, and DPE. She is chair of the National Association of Flight Instructors, a major in the Civil Air Patrol, 2019 National FAASTeam Representative of the Year, and active in numerous FAA and industry groups. Before aviation, Kalishek was a banking executive, taught graduate school, and spent over 20 years as an international consultant.
