The verbose title reflects important changes to several subject areas, and everyone should read the Final Rule and the preceding Proposed Rule to understand its impacts. While the Final Rule is important to airmen flying public aircraft or experimental, limited, and primary category aircraft, this article will focus on that last subject in the title—Flight Instructor Privileges.
In the Final Rule, the FAA made several important changes that impact flight instruction. First, the FAA defined the term “passenger.” Next, the FAA replaced the term “passengers” with “persons” for recent flight experience requirements and adopted an important exception for flight instruction. Finally, the FAA added clarifying provisions to flight instructor and sport pilot instructor privileges.
To understand why the new definition of “passenger” and the changes to the recent flight experience requirements are important, let’s go back to June 2023, just before the Proposed Rule. Recall that FAR 61.57(a) and (b) required three takeoffs and landings as the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft of the same category, class, and type (if required) within the preceding 90 days in order to act as PIC of an aircraft carrying “passengers” and three takeoffs and landings to a full stop at night for currency to carry “passengers” at night. What you may not know is that FAA legal interpretations allowed for a non-current instructor to fly with a non-current trainee as neither was considered to be a “passenger” to the other. In other words, a non-current instructor could provide instruction to a non-current trainee, and either could act as PIC since neither was carrying a “passenger.”
This decades-long understanding was flipped on its head after the FAA categorically equated flight instruction with the carriage of “passengers” and rescinded these legal interpretations 30 days after the Proposed Rule was issued. For nearly a year and a half, there was no ability for a non-current instructor to provide flight training to a non-current trainee because at least one of them had to be current to act as PIC carrying “passengers.”
Then, on December 2, 2024, the Final Rule became effective, again allowing this type of training but with some notable changes. Most importantly, the FAA replaced the word “passengers” with “persons” for the general and night flight experience requirements. This revision was deemed necessary given the new definition of “passengers,” which includes any person on board an aircraft except a person receiving or providing authorized flight training, checking, or testing and certain other persons. This means that neither a flight instructor nor a trainee is considered a “passenger” to the other. However, the definition of “person” is much broader than the new definition of “passenger” and includes any individual and various legal entities. Although no longer “passengers,” a flight instructor and a trainee are certainly “persons,” and the carriage of “persons” is prohibited unless current.
Fortunately, the rule also added specific exceptions that allow a non-current instructor to provide instruction to a non-current trainee, but only for the purpose of the trainee regaining currency, only if the trainee is otherwise capable of acting as PIC, and only if the instructor and trainee are the sole occupants. Additionally, another new exception clarifies that the recent flight experience rules do not apply to an examiner or applicant during a practical test.
The rule also amended the privileges for flight instructors and sport pilot instructors to clarify that ground training, flight training, certain checking events, and issuance of endorsements are allowed. Previously, the regulation only allowed instructors to “train and issue endorsements.” More importantly, the rule was amended to allow flight instructors to provide “training to maintain or improve the skills of a certificated pilot” (or sport pilot in the case of sport pilot instructors). This change was intended to allow flight instructors and sport pilot instructors to provide elective training not otherwise required for a certificate, rating, or operating privilege, like training to transition to a new aircraft of the same category and class, aerobatic training, formation training, or mountain flying training. But this only applies to training intended to advance a certificated pilot’s preexisting knowledge or skills. Importantly, flight instructors and sport pilot instructors must not provide this elective training to non-certificated persons (e.g., student pilots). Finally, the new rule provides reciprocal prohibitions against “conduct[ing] operations that would otherwise require an air carrier or operating certificate or specific authorization from the [FAA].”
Again, everyone should review the Final Rule and Proposed Rule to understand the nuances behind these regulatory changes. If you still have questions, AOPA is here to help.
