How Many Hours is Average to Earn a Pilot Certificate?
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Private pilots have an average of 76 hours when they complete their certificate.
A few years ago, I went back through a bunch of practical tests I had given and came up with some averages of how many hours people had when they completed practical tests. With a couple more years of tests completed, I figured was time to update the sample size and see where the data falls with more input.
The goal was to answer the question, how many hours does a pilot typically have when they complete a private or commercial pilot certificate and instrument rating? So, I compiled hours for each event from each practical test I have given through the end of 2023 and this is what I found.
Private pilots have an average of 76 hours when they complete their certificate.
While the FAA minimum is 40 hours (less potentially in an FAA-approved 141 program), few complete their certification at that low of hours. Most take a few more hours.
I then broke down the difference between those who completed their training in a 141 program versus in more traditional 61 pilot training.
- 78 hours were the average for 141 private pilots; and
- 72 hours were the average for 61 private pilots
When it came to instrument ratings, the numbers flipped.
Instrument pilots average of 141 hours to get to the completion of an instrument rating.
In this case, those who completed their instrument ratings in 141 programs did so on average with significantly fewer hours.
- 127 hours were the average for 141 instrument ratings; and
- 253 hours were the average for 61 instrument ratings
[Editor’s Note: To be eligible for an instrument rating under Part 61 (§ 61.65), the applicant must have 50 hours of cross-country flight time as pilot-in-command. Part 141 does not have this requirement.]
When it came to initial commercial pilot certifications, the 141 pilots again had fewer hours on average than those who complete their certifications under part 61 training.
- 320 hours were the average for 141 initial commercial single-engine certificates; and
- 382 hours were the average for 61 initial commercial single-engine certificates
A more specific example related to initial commercial pilot certificates issued for applicants who completed a multiengine commercial certificate as their initial commercial certification. All but one of my sample sizes did this in a 141-training program.
Applicants for initial commercial multiengine certificates did so at an average of 200 total hours of flight time.
Applicants for initial commercial multiengine certificates did so at an average of 200 total hours of flight time.
This is an example of how 141 programs do shine and end up having the products of their training complete their initial commercial pilot certification at significantly lower hours than the total 250 hours that would be required for pilots who do not complete their training in a 141 program. This allows them to then proceed from this point frequently to an added commercial single-engine certification and on to a CFI certificate after that.
There are a few other points of data here that I collected that may be of some interest, relating to how much PIC time, how much total instrument time, how much simulator time, or even how much overall instruction was received for students on average and broken down between students in 141 versus 61 training programs. Feel free to dig through the data points here and see what you find interesting.
I can’t say that this data is an example of what happens everywhere, but with a general sample size and a variety of locations where I provide tests, I thought it was at least an interesting set of data to share.
You may be reading this and thinking about how you compare to these numbers. Whether you have more or less hours than these averages. But in the end, does it really matter?
It isn’t about the hours, it is about when you were proficient and had the knowledge, skills, and risk management abilities to meet the requirements for the particular certificate or rating. Plus, if you are doing the training for a career path goal, they are all hours that count toward that eventual ATP certificate anyway. And that one requires a few more hours on top of these.
- How Many Hours is Average to Earn a Pilot Certificate? - December 16, 2024
- Excuses to Proceed with a Checkride (You Probably Shouldn’t be Using) - July 15, 2024
- Round Out Your Pilot Skills with an Instrument Rating - February 19, 2024
Very good article took a little bit of work to put together will help a lot of people a had some insensitive for some thanks
Jason.
An even more interesting statistic would be hours based on age of the applicant. We found that Sport Pilots required about 10 + age in years at our flight school.
Best
Vince
Mmm
[email protected]
I’d be interested in first time pass rate 61 vs 141.
Me too!…Wasn’t something I had an easy compile for unfortunately
In 1969 I received my Private Pilot Certificate with exactly 35 hours. In fact, my instructor had me go out and fly around for 45 minutes just to get to that magical number.
Jason, Thanks for taking the time to put this data together. It was interesting to read from the perspective of an old pilot. I have often wondered about the difference between 61 and 141 schools…you answered some old lingering questions. Nice job!!! This will actually help some young people that have asked me this question recently!!! TW
Thank you. I found the article very interesting. There are many paths to earn a certificate, all with their pros and cons. Time,
money and lifestyle always factor into a clients decision.
I’m not surprised by any of the numbers. I’ve been telling people for years that the typical private certificate takes 65-75 hours, and that the low hours required by 141 and 61 are illusory.
For myself, I had 68 hours for the private. Because the VA required that I get my commercial before my instrument, I had just over 300 total when I got it, then another 90 hours to get my instrument. I don’t recall how many more hours before I got my CFI and CFII. Never did I feel like it took me “too long” to get any of them. As others have and will say, it’s not the number of hours that it takes, but the quality of the training that counts.
I just read the article concerning average times to earn particular ratings. I do have a few comments to make. First of all I am a former Air Traffic Controller plus I owned and operated a Part 61 flight school for many years. Over the many years having that school we consistently had students who applied themselves at the encouragement of the school earn their Private Pilot licenses with an average time of 55 hours. The Instrument rating took place as soon as they acquired their 50 hours of pic cross country and their Commercial license was earned at the 250 mark. The CFI/CFII, etc. happened shortly after that. In my many years of giving flight instruction (over 15,000 hours of my total time) I find the issue of higher times to earn ratings and licenses falling on the responsibility of the flight school or instructor not having a specific game plan in mind. There is either so much “wasted” time in the air or the mentality of “just fly around” to accumulate hours. It’s not fair to the student who sacrifices so much of their resources due to the lack of the school or instructor giving oversight to the student’s progress and being mindful that money is not a disposable thing. As instructors and flight school owners we have an obligation to not only teach but to do it in a manner that keeps the student’s finances in mind. Finally, case in point….I just acquired a student who has 75 hours of flight time and has never soloed. She came to me at the recommendation of one of my students. I have flown with her two times and have seen no reason why she won’t be able to solo very soon. And I wonder…what has been going on for the past 75 hours? Very sad. Finally, another student that came to me who had received his Private Pilot license. In reviewing his log book I question why on the second flight and on was his instructor doing cross country flights with him? All at the expense of the student’s resources. I won’t labor you all anymore but, finally, the student who came to me wanting to earn his multi rating. In reviewing his log book I found 40 hours of multi time given to him with no rating. I asked him “what had been happening over those 40 hours?” His reply….”I had two instructors wanting to build multi time to go on to the airlines.” Very sad. The responsibility clearly falls on the flight schools and the instructors. At least that’s the way I see it with over 50 years of teaching.
Tom
540-569-0977
[email protected]
Absolutely- this. You nailed it Thomas. I got my PPL at age 18 at 136 hours. (I now own a Mooney 231 and have CPL/IFR). Why so long? My absolutely worst instructor was my Ab initio one. He sat there silently, functioning more as a safety pilot than an instructor. He taught me to fly a Cessna 150 onto the runway at approach speed, commenting “another greaser”. It wasn’t until I flew with a better instructor that I learned how wrong and dangerous this actually was. As a dumb kid I didn’t have the insight or courage to fire him and move on to a better one. The school was a known clip-joint. Their standard practice was to tell students “go out and do 15 hours of circuits” – each phase of training had some arbitrary (and excessive) time requirement. Little or no ground briefings. All someone else’s fault? Nope – I was a slow learner, struggled with motion-sickness for my first 10 hours and had no natural flying ability, as well as being broke and having to do lessons irregularly as I could afford them – so mea culpa too. However a good school and skilled instructor could have overcome these common challenges. The moral of all this? Learners are all different – they respond to different instructors. Aviation is still plagued by too many substandard instructors and unethical schools – don’t hesitate to fire either if progress is not being made. And take a long hard look in the mirror – aviation builds character and responsibility – your slow progress likely has some contributions from yourself as well. A good instruction will help you figure out – and fix – these problems.
Thank you Brendan. I’m glad you got to where you are today. Enjoy the adventure that Wilbur and Orville began and fly safe.
I agree that age seems to be a factor. I would also like to see how much calendar time it took. If you fly once a week or less, as I did, it takes a lot longer than if you can fly 2-3 times a week. I trained with other retired people, and I think we approached the whole process as more of a journey to be enjoyed than a goal to be reached quickly. It may have taken me a couple of years to get a Sport (which really isn’t much different from a Private.)
Soloed in 1967 in a Cherokee 140 at 7 hours 15 minutes. Private at 42 hours.
Commercial at 217. Instrument at 265. CFI at 324. CFII at 335. ME at 378.
MEI at 402.
In my humble opinion, the flight schools are currently taking advantage of flight students who have airline stars in their eyes. And they’re allowing their instructors to build time on students to further their ATP goals while lining the school’s pockets.
I know of a young lady with over 75 hours who has yet to solo. If a student truly isn’t ready to solo by 15-20 hours, it’s time for a heart to heart recommending other pursuits.
Granted that pursuing a a pilot certificate is a more complex process today than in the last century, the number of hours now being “required “ is outrageous.
Excellent observations Nick.
Sweeping generalization: “If a student truly isn’t ready to solo by 15-20 hours, it’s time for a heart to heart recommending other pursuits.”, and it’s this type of internet sweeping generalization that causes students to lose heart.
There are a lot of factors that will affect this:
– Age.
– How often they fly.
– Familiarity with Aviation. Those from flying families have a shorter journey than those that do.
– Education. Understanding of Maths and physics helps.
– Learning style. I’ve seen people eat up the book learning, but need more time in the air.
– Risk Management. Can be a personality trait.
– Just natural adaptiveness / ability like any skill.
– How good the CFI is
– And yes.. how ‘honest’ the CFI or school is.
This is like saying if you haven’t learned to drive after 6 hours, you should give up.
The article was a great factual, researched piece shame some of the comments aren’t.
As a former flight school manager, I found a major factor determining how quickly someone finishes their training and their readiness for the check ride is *how often they fly.* Two star students come to mind that bear this out – in spades. They both wanted to finish their Private as quickly as possible. We flew twice per day, debriefing and then briefing over lunch for the afternoon flights. Both students finished their training in under three weeks, and both were ready to pass a check ride by the time they hit 30 hours, even though they still needed to tic a few regulatory boxes and also reach 40 hrs of flight time.
When someone asks me how long it takes, I respond with the question, “how often are you able to fly?” to get a better understanding and give them a better answer.
Many of the replies mention that quite a bit of flight and instructors line their pockets with somewhat unnecessary time spent to build student pilot time. I soloed in a Cessna 150 in 1986 at nearly 5 hrs and received my Private Pilot Certificate at 36 hrs. Definitely, not only I but my instructor must be credited for such achievement. I believe that first of all, the student and instructor as well as a reputable flight school has to be a good fit. Many instructors become one just to build time for the airlines, while others such as my first instructor was a retired airline pilot that had a passion to fly and teach.
On another note, in reference to lining pockets, what about those FAA Designated Pilot Examiners who fail students on check rides in order to line their pockets?
Luis, I don’t know about DPE’s failing to line their pockets but in our area $900 for a Private Pilot check ride is quite steep especially when there are two, perhaps three check rides per day. On the other hand there are some very fine DPE’s out there that do care about the students they are evaluating. It’s just that the fees are quite steep.