Sporty’s courses offer a modern solution for your flight school : Flight Training Central

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Sporty’s courses can be adopted for use under Part 61 or 141.

There are two different sections of the Federal Aviation Regulations governing flight schools and training–Part 61 and Part 141. Both set specific requirements and steps for pilots to earn certifications, but Part 141 is more restrictive in that it requires certification and approval of facilities, aircraft, personnel and training syllabi. As a result of this additional oversight, Part 141-approved syllabi can offer a variety of benefits including reduced training time.

As a student, deciding which regulatory requirements to train under may be confusing at first, but don’t let it scare you. No matter your path, you will be able to earn a certificate or rating so it’s best to choose a flight school and instructor that offers your best likelihood for success. As a student, see these additional resources for more guidance on choosing a training program:

AC 141-1B contains Part 141 training requirements.

While Sporty’s courses are the perfect fit for a Part 61 training program, if you are an instructor or flight school operator, or a student who would prefer to train under Part 141, Sporty’s courses also provide a modern, comprehensive Part 141 training solution. The requirements for Part 141 certification are contained within the regulations and further detail and guidance is provided in Advisory Circular 141-1B (Part 141 Pilot Schools, Application, Certification, and Compliance). Applicants for Part 141 certification are encouraged to consider the training course outline (TCO) and syllabus requirements at the time that a formal application is made to the FAA for Part 141 approval.

The TCO describes the content of a particular course by statement of objectives, description of teaching aids, definition of evaluative criteria, indication of desired outcomes, and duties and responsibilities of chief instructor and other personnel. Much of the content within the TCO will be unique to a particular flight school, but Sporty’s can also provide sample TCO content to help get you started.

The syllabus is an outline and summary of the topics to be covered in a training course.

The syllabus is an outline and summary of the topics to be covered in a training course. As the applicant, you’ll have to decide whether to develop and submit your own syllabus, or utilize a commercially produced syllabus like those available from Sporty’s. Each syllabus under Part 141 should use a “building block” progression of learning, with provisions for regular review and evaluation at prescribed stages. The training syllabus should also contain a description of the stage checks and end-of course tests used to measure a student’s proficiency at each stage of training. At a minimum, the training syllabus must include:

prerequisites for enrolling in the ground and flight portion of the course, including the pilot certificate and rating (if required by this part), training, pilot experience, and pilot knowledge.
detailed description of each lesson, including the lesson’s objectives, standards, and planned time for completion.
description of what the course is expected to accomplish with regard to student learning.
expected accomplishments and the standards for each stage of training.
description of the checks, stage exams, and end-of-course exams to be used to measure a student’s accomplishments for each stage of training.

The regulations require a TCO to contain a syllabus as a component, but it does not state that the syllabus must be physically included in the TCO. The syllabus may be included as a chapter or an appendix. Part 141 pilot schools using a commercially produced syllabus may provide a copy in the TCO itself or refer to the syllabus by name and current version identification number, making integration easy.

Developing a syllabus from scratch can be a daunting task, which is why the FAA encourages applicants to utilize a commercially available syllabus like those developed by Sporty’s:

Private Pilot Syllabus (Part 141)

Instrument Pilot Syllabus (Part 141)

Commercial Pilot Syllabus (Part 141)

In addition to providing a syllabus that meets all FAA Part 141 requirements for each track, Sporty’s complete training courses offer award-winning video-based content that can be applied towards the required Part 141 ground training hours. These lessons, comprised of 4K video, sophisticated animations, and interactive exercises, explain everything a pilot needs to know to earn a certificate and feel confident in the pilot’s seat. Combine that with powerful test prep tools, a comprehensive document library, and convenient app options, and you have aviation’s most desired and complete training course.

Sporty’s CFI portal shows Ground Lesson completion status for student’s using Sporty’s Online Courses

The syllabi include an “Additional Study” section for each flight and ground lesson that directs students to the relevant video(s) in their Sporty’s training course that covers the required online instruction for that lesson. Since each online course covers all of the Aeronautical Knowledge Training requirements outlined in Part 141 for the Private, Instrument, and Commercial certificates, flight schools can use Sporty’s online courses as the primary method of “ground school” for their students.

After receiving approval from your local FSDO to integrate Sporty’s online courses in your Part 141 training program, your students can count up to 20 hours of time spent in Sporty’s online courses towards the 30 to 35 hours of ground training required for each course.

Sporty’s CFI portal maintains a unique ground training record for each student, showing they completed the required online course training to satisfy each Ground Lesson in the syllabus. This greatly simplifies record-keeping for flight schools using Sporty’s online courses to satisfy a portion of the Part 141 ground training hour requirement.

Instructors, Chief Instructors and Managers can access additional admin features within Sporty’s CFI portal. CFIs can track a student’s course progress within the portal, including videos watched and FAA practice test results. The Chief or Manager feature allows a member of a flight school to see all of the instructors within the organization as well as all students connected to those CFIs (learn more about that works here).

Here is why pilots prefer the Sporty’s training experience:

Ten platforms, one price – use Sporty’s dedicated mobile apps for iPad, iPhone, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV, which allow you to download videos for offline viewing.

Sporty’s dedicated mobile apps for iPad, iPhone, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV allow you to download videos for offline viewing.

Get your written test endorsement – when you complete the course, you’ll earn the flight instructor endorsement to take the written test—instantly!
Pass all your tests—guaranteed! Sporty’s course is so complete you’re guaranteed to pass. Plus, the included Airman Certification Standards Study Guide cross-references every required task to the videos, making it easy to review for the checkride.
Dynamic in-flight video – Sporty’s courses are famous for their 4K video and 3D animations. Not a boring ground school, you’re on the flight deck for a real world look at what flying is all about.

Sporty’s courses are famous for their 4K video and 3D animations.

32 fully-narrated HD maneuvers – in addition to the comprehensive video segments, Sporty’s courses include a detailed maneuvers guide in text and animated formats.
Powerful test prep tools – ace the written test with Sporty’s interactive tools. Students can create unlimited study sessions from Sporty’s proprietary database of over 1,000 FAA test questions missed.

Study individual groups of questions with real time feedback and detailed answer explanations.

Ask a CFI – If you’re stumped by a difficult subject, talk to the experienced flight instructors at Sporty’s with just the click of a “Ask a CFI” button to send a message.
FAA resource library including up-to-date FARs – everything from the current aviation regulations (FARs) to the AIM, advisory circulars, handbooks and more is available free in the extensive resource library.

Complete training syllabus – Sporty’s courses include a syllabus with detailed outlines for both ground and flight lessons. Think of it as a bridge between your at-home study and flight training.
Free lifetime updates – students gain access to a training platform that’s always up to date and always improving. There’s no additional fee or subscription to receive these updates.

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Eric Radtke

It was his first airplane trip at age seven that made Eric decide to become a pilot. "While boarding the airplane, a flight attendant noticed my interest in the flight deck and urged me to go talk to the pilot. I give a lot of credit to that pilot for my career choice." He earned a bachelor’s degree in finance and went on to an airline career. Eric now serves as Chief Instructor at Sporty's Academy and directs the University of Cincinnati’s Professional Pilot Training Program. In addition, Eric serves as a Captain in a Cincinnati-based corporate flight department.

Sporty’s courses offer a modern solution for your flight school

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