What a commercial certificate lets you do
A commercial pilot can be paid to fly: aerial photography and survey, banner towing, pipeline patrol, ferry flights, and (with the right operator certificates) charter work. It's also a prerequisite for becoming a certificated flight instructor, the most common way pilots build time toward the airlines.
FAA requirements (airplane single-engine)
Under 14 CFR Part 61, you must be at least 18, hold a private pilot certificate, pass the FAA commercial knowledge test and practical test, and log at least 250 hours of flight time, including:
- 100 hours in powered aircraft, of which 50 must be in airplanes.
- 100 hours as pilot in command, including 50 hours in airplanes and 50 hours of cross-country (at least 10 in airplanes).
- 20 hours of training, including:
- 10 hours of instrument training.
- 10 hours in a complex, turbine-powered or technically advanced airplane (TAA).
- A 2-hour day cross-country and a 2-hour night cross-country, each over 100 nm straight-line distance.
- 3 hours of checkride preparation within two months of the test.
- 10 hours of solo flight (or performing the duties of PIC with an instructor on board), including a cross-country of at least 300 nm with landings at three points, one leg at least 250 nm straight-line, and 5 hours of night VFR with 10 takeoffs and landings at a towered airport.
Without an instrument rating, a commercial pilot can't carry passengers for hire on cross-country flights over 50 nm or at night. That's why almost everyone earns the instrument rating first.
What you'll train
- Commercial maneuvers: chandelles, lazy eights, steep spirals, eights-on-pylons, and power-off 180° accuracy landings.
- Systems knowledge at a professional level, including complex or technically advanced aircraft.
- Commercial regulations and decision-making: what you can and can't do for hire, and how to manage risk like a pro.
Building the hours
Most of the 250 hours is time you build yourself after your private certificate. We'll help you make those hours count with cross-country trips across New England, the instrument rating, and structured practice. Getting from about 60 hours to 250 is often the longest part of the journey, so ask us about planning it efficiently.