Pilot setup · Free, no account
What do you need help with?
Most people get stuck on paperwork long before they get stuck on flying. Pick the thing in your way. Each answer is a short, plain-language guide with the official FAA source behind it.
Every guide here is permanently free, works on a phone, and prints cleanly. We never ask for your medical history, your FTN, your IACRA login, a certificate number, or your exact location.
Free · Available now
Do I need a medical certificate, and how do I get one?
What a medical certificate is, which class matches the flying you intend to do, and the order of the steps from MedXPress to the exam.
Open the medical guide →Free · Available now
What is IACRA and how do I get a student pilot certificate?
IACRA and the FTN in plain language, when the certificate is actually required, and the applicant steps in order.
Open the IACRA guide →Free · Available now
How do I log a flight?
The fields 14 CFR 61.51 requires, what each one means, and a worked educational example you can follow.
Open the logging guide →Free directory · Early
How do I choose a flight school?
A free directory of schools you can filter by state, city, and airport, with Part 61 and Part 141 explained.
Browse schools →Free directory · Early
How do I find an instructor?
Instructor profiles with the ratings they hold and what they teach. Verification status is always shown.
Browse instructors →Free · Available now
What does the whole path look like?
The ordinary U.S. airplane sequence from no experience through the airline stage, with the FAA source behind each stage.
See the full path →
If you only do three things
- 1. Read the medical guide and, if anything about your situation is uncertain, call an Aviation Medical Examiner’s office before you file anything.
- 2. Read the IACRA guide so the student pilot certificate is not what delays your first solo.
- 3. Talk to a school or an instructor and book an introductory conversation.
This page is written to print cleanly — use your browser’s print command if you want it on paper.
- Hub version
- start-hub-v1.0
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-31
Something wrong or out of date? Write to fly@pilotmethodaviation.com.
What this is, and what it is not
- Who it is for
- A pre-solo student or prospective student stuck on the paperwork: medical, IACRA, and logging time.
- What you finish with
- Work out which medical class applies to you, complete the IACRA student certificate sequence in order, and log a flight correctly the first time.
- Included today
- AME and medical-class walkthrough that stores nothing
- IACRA / student pilot certificate step checklist
- A worked §61.51 logbook example you can copy the structure of
- Try it first
- All three walkthroughs run in your browser and are interactive right now; nothing you type is sent anywhere.
- Version
- start-hub-v1.0 · last reviewed 2026-08-31
- Who reviewed it
- Written in-house against the linked FAA and eCFR sources on the review date. No AME, DPE or FAA endorsement is claimed or implied.
- Limits
- Not a medical opinion. Only an AME can assess your certificate eligibility.
- Not affiliated with the FAA or IACRA; we never ask for FTN, IACRA credentials or certificate numbers.
- Found an error?
- Tell us and we will correct it or say why we disagree: fly@pilotmethodaviation.com