Federal Aviation Regulations

Did you know that your new 2026 paper copy of the FAR/AIM does not contain ALL regulations that govern flights in the United States?

This is something I did not realize until I started working on my commercial certificate and learned more about different types of operations that work under rules beyond Part 91 or 61. The most well known are Part 121 or 135 which govern airline and charter operations respectivley. But there are other niche regulations that govern Part 125 operations (large aircraft not flying commercially), 141 flight schools, 91K fractional ownership, and more.

Each of these sections in the FAR I have justed listed lay out their own individual requirements to operate as a Part 141 flight school for example. 141 flight schools are required to have a Chief Flight Instructor who has to have at a minimum: 1,000 hours of PIC to oversee private pilots, a commercial pilot certificate or ATP, and 2 years and a total of 500 flight hours as a CFI; or 1,000 flight hours. For instrument students, they must have atleast 100 hours of actual or simulated instrument conditions, 2 years as a CFI or 400 hours dual given, and for commercial and beyond, they must have 2,000 hours PIC and flight training experience of atleast 3 years and a total of 1,000 flight hours; or 1,500 flight hours. These, among many other personnel or other requirements are something you wouldn't know unless you read the regs! Put some respect to your 141 Chief Flight Instructor's name!

And on the topic of flight schools, if you already were not aware, any checkride you take is open book! No, that does not mean you can Google the DPE's toughest questions. But what you can do is use any FAA resource to help you answer the question. Some helpful materials would be the current FAR/AIM, the PHAK (Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge), the AFM (Airplane Flying Handbook), the ACS (Airmen Certification Standards) or PTS (Practical Test Standards) for your checkride, and many more. You have the ability to use your resources during the test, and I'm sure your DPE will want to see that you can navigate the FAR/AIM when a question arises that you are unsure of the answer to. After all, getting your private pilot certificate is a license to continue learning. Later down the road when you encounter unfamiliar waters, you want to be able to find the correct answers in credible sources, not on Google or Reddit (however it may be a good start to put you on the correct path).

The database for every federal aviation regualtion can be found here under Title 14: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-14