Pilot Path · Builder
Five questions. One path.
No aviation knowledge assumed — if a term is unfamiliar, the plain-language meanings are one tap away. Answer honestly about the ordinary week rather than the ideal one. Everything runs in your browser, and you can restart at any point.
New to aviation? Plain-language meanings of the words on this page
- Certificate
- The main FAA pilot credential — think of it as licence-style, in plain terms. It defines what kind of flying you may do, within its own privileges and limitations.
- Rating
- An add-on to a certificate, such as the instrument rating. It adds specific privileges — and specific requirements — rather than replacing what the certificate already covers.
- Knowledge test (the “written”)
- A multiple-choice exam taken at an authorized testing center. It is one milestone in training, not the training itself.
- Checkride
- The FAA practical test with an examiner: a spoken part on the ground and a flight. Passing it is how a certificate or rating is issued.
- CFI
- Certificated Flight Instructor — a pilot certificated by the FAA to give flight instruction within the ratings on their own certificate.
- Ground school
- The classroom or self-study side of training: weather, regulations, systems, and planning, learned outside the airplane.
- ACS
- Airman Certification Standards — the FAA document describing the knowledge, risk-management, and skill areas an applicant must demonstrate on a practical test.
- AME
- Aviation Medical Examiner — an FAA-designated doctor. Only an AME or the FAA can tell you whether you personally qualify medically.
- Part 61 / Part 141
- Two FAA training frameworks. Part 141 schools follow an FAA-approved syllabus; Part 61 allows more flexible training. Each has its own eligibility and experience requirements.
Question 1 of 5
Where are you today?
Pick the closest description. If none of it is familiar, the first option is the right one. Nothing here is stored or shared.