A private pilot’s license or PPL is a major accomplishment for many people and an excellent goal to pursue. What exactly is a PPL? It’s a license designation that allows a pilot to operate almost any aircraft (in which they are rated) as the pilot in command, solo or, with passengers (without accepting compensation) For a complete list of what one can do with a private pilot’s license, we have an article covering 14 different things you can do with a ppl!
So, how difficult is it to get a private pilot’s license?
If you look at the entire process as one tangled conglomerate, getting a private pilot’s license (PPL) is pretty difficult. However, any flight school worth its salt can break down the process into more easily managed pieces, making the process simpler and all-around enjoyable.
In general, it’s going to take anywhere from two to six months of training and approximately $10,000 in costs. However, there are many factors that affect these numbers, most of which depend upon the student.
In this article, we’re going to take an in-depth look at what is required to get a PPL, including flight and knowledge requirements, medical certificates, and testing procedures. We’re also going to discuss the easiest— and the hardest parts of becoming a pilot.
We’ll start with the basic requirements!
Table of Contents
The Basic Requirements
The basic requirements for a PPL are to:
- Be at least 17 years old (16-year-olds may begin as a student and fly solo)
- Read, write, speak, and understand English
- Hold at least a third-class medical certificate
- Be able to learn and apply basic arithmetic
Not so bad right? Those are the requirements to begin the process of earning your pilot’s license. The biggest holdup on that list to most is the third class medical certificate. More information on that can be found here.
The First Step To Getting a PPL!
If you google the requirements to become a pilot, you’ll be bombarded with information on what it takes, if it’s worth it, and online debates about the best way to learn. The sheer volume of information can be overwhelming. Luckily, it isn’t necessary to learn much, if any of that, to start.
The best way to start is by walking into a flight instruction center and ask questions. If you like what you hear, ask to go on a first flight. Background research before this on determining the best sort of flight training for you can certainly be helpful— but any good flight instructor will be happy to fill you in on that. For more information on choosing the best flight school, read here.
My Own Story – How My PPL Journey Started!
When I was looking into getting a PPL, I googled “flight instruction in my area” and found an instructor about an hour from where I lived. I assumed I didn’t really have the time to get a PPL, but I’d always been curious so I called them up and asked if I could come check the place out and ask some questions—they told me to come by anytime and they’d be happy to help me out.
When I showed up, the flight instructor explained to me the different types of training, about how long it usually took there, and the expected costs. He also explained some basics about the aircraft and what kept it in the air.
As he finished up, he asked: “So, wanna go up on a first flight!?” That was it, no other formalities needed. We went up, he let me take-off (I found out within a couple of weeks that while I was manipulating the controls, the instructor was actually carefully keeping everything safe from his side), fly over my own hometown, and finally land. The whole flight lasted about an hour.
I was hooked. As soon as we landed, I bought a logbook from their shop and scheduled my ‘next’ lesson for the next day. Less than 3 months later I was flying that same airplane around by myself.
What’s the Hardest Part of Becoming a Private Pilot?
This is almost entirely subjective, however, the most complicated part is probably the solo cross-country flights. A student is required to fly at least three hours of solo flight at a distance greater than 150 nautical miles and land at multiple airports.
These flights are the most ‘complicated’ because they require the most planning. Days of careful planning and rehearsal are spent between the student and the instructor. An instructor will only sign off on the flight plan if the student has shown a SIGNIFICANT amount of attention to detail to all parts of the flight, the potential weather, and the aircraft worthiness.
While this phase of flight training requires the most planning, it is also the aspect that students have been most prepared for. Instructors work closely with students to ensure they have all the tools and knowledge necessary to effectively plan out a successful flight.
What are some other difficult aspects of training? Here are a few examples of areas that students tend to struggle with:
- Straight and level flight– Surprisingly, this is genuinely one of the most difficult skills for pilots to master. Why? Airplanes have several control surfaces (wings, flaps, ailerons, rudder, trim tabs, elevator, etc.) and forces (gravity, thrust, drag, torque, and lift) all working together to maintain flight. In order to keep straight and level, all of these elements must be in balance. It’s generally the first skill students are taught, and often the most repeated lesson throughout training
- Landing – Less surprising, many student pilots experience apprehension, and therefore difficulties, around landing. This is nothing new to any flight instructor, and they’re very good at breaking it down and helping students master landings
- Navigation – Pilots use aeronautical charts and electronic GPS to navigate. Many students struggle with learning all (it’s a lot) the information that a chart is capable of conveying. Again, this is no problem for flight instructors to work around. Learning navigation comes different for everyone, and there are many ways to do it successfully
- Radios – Specifically, talking on the radios. It’s a necessary aspect of every flight, but it can be challenging in the beginning. Pilots and air traffic control essentially have their own language, complete with their own language structure. A combination of confusion and nervousness has left many student pilots tongue-tied.Luckily, the language pilots use is consistent and standardized. This means that as you learn it, it will become far more natural to talk on the radios.Generally, instructors will help students overcome this barrier by rehearsing the radio calls with their students plenty of times. Additionally, an almost endless amount of leeway is given to misspeaking student pilots… everyone remembers their own training days
- Airspace Laws – Actually, all of the various rules and laws required to be a pilot require a lot of memorization and application. There is a lot of information to learn.Luckily, there are also lots of resources to learn from. The FAA puts out very clear and concise publications (complete with pictures) of all the information a pilot needs to learn to get a license.
- That one flight maneuver… – Talk to any pilot about their training and they’ll most likely reveal that one flight maneuver that kept stumping them. It might be turning on a point (basically flying in perfect circles), flying a square, ascending, descending, or flying a figure-eight— whatever it is, it’s normal to struggle with it. Everyone has something. Flight instructors are there to remind you—for the 80th or so time— of exactly what you need to do!
Again, everyone has there own personal struggle. The main antidote to any difficult aspect of flight is to break it down into manageable chunks until you can master it!
What’s the Easiest Aspect of Getting A PPL?
Again, this is totally subjective to the individual. What’s easiest for student pilots is generally an area they struggled with earlier in their training. For instance, a student that choked every time they keyed the radio to speak is generally going to be a radio guru by the time they complete their training.
Probably the most universal asset to anyone wanting to get a PPL is the level of competency of flight instructors. Most instructors are not only good at what they do, they’re also enthusiastic. They’re happy to guide, teach, and help wherever they can. This makes the difficult process become simple, and most importantly fun. Most instructors know when to insist a lesson be learned right then, and when to back off and just do some enjoyable flying.
Aside from instructors, there are a lot of licensed pilots who love helping out students. A student pilot that hangs out at an airfield for a little while can usually make some friends who will happily take them up flying for further exposure.
Testing: Written Test, Oral Board, and Check flight
The best and the worst phase of flight training is the testing. To get a PPL, a student must successfully pass a written test, an oral board, and a check flight. All of these are challenging and require significant preparation.
The knowledge test consists of 60 multiple choice questions that cover subjects such as aeronautics, weather, safety procedures, airspace laws, and more. A student typically begins preparing for this test day one and will take it around a couple of months into training.
The oral board is administered by a certified FAA examiner. It takes place at the very end of your training. Any subject that relates to being a private pilot is fair ground. The examiner will run through scenarios, ask about aeronautical charts, and even delve into aircraft mechanical systems. The oral board requires a lot of training, however, your flight instructor will only sign you off to get this far if you have demonstrated proper preparation.
The check flight is both terrifying and awesome. It’s terrifying because failing it means losing out on the 600 or so dollars you spent to take it, and it means more flight training and a longer wait to get your license.
It’s awesome because at this point you are officially flying as the pilot-in-command. After about one and a half hours of showing your stuff, you get the handshake and the temporary license you’ve been working hard towards. It’s a memorable experience!
Summary
Getting a PPL takes a lot of work, focus, and money. It’s a difficult achievement, but a great one. Despite the volume of work required, flight instructors are able to break the process down to manageable and enjoyable pieces.
The most important thing you can do is to fly, learn, and train steadily throughout the entire process— training gaps = more money and time. Everyone struggles with one or more aspects of flight training, but there is a great network of flight instructors and pilots to help navigate through it. Good luck!
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