(818) 290-8249 · Open 9 AM–9 PM, 7 Days a Week · ★★★★★ 4.9 · 500+ Reviews · Van Nuys Airport
To earn an airline transport pilot (ATP) certificate for multi-engine airplanes, you must be at least 23 (21 for a restricted ATP), hold a commercial pilot certificate with an instrument rating, log 1,500 hours of flight time, complete the ATP Certification Training Program, and pass the ATP knowledge test and practical test. The rules are in 14 CFR Part 61, Subpart G, sections 61.151 through 61.171.
The ATP is the top level of FAA pilot certification and is required for both pilots at U.S. Part 121 airlines.
14 CFR 61.153 sets age 23 for a full ATP and 21 for a restricted ATP under 61.160.
Including 500 cross-country, 100 night, 75 instrument, 50 in class and 250 PIC hours under 61.159.
Multi-engine applicants must finish the ATP CTP before taking the knowledge test, under 61.153(e).
For CTP graduates, the ATP multi-engine knowledge test is valid for 60 calendar months under 61.39.
Acting as pilot in command under ATP privileges requires a first class medical certificate.
Under 14 CFR 61.153, to be eligible for an ATP certificate with an airplane category rating you must:
The certificate requirement can also be met with qualifying military experience under 14 CFR 61.73, or a foreign ATP or commercial license with instrument privileges from an ICAO member state without geographic limitations. For most civilian pilots, though, the path runs through a U.S. commercial pilot license with an instrument rating.
The 1,500-hour requirement has specific parts. Every one of them must be in your logbook before the practical test:
Credit rules matter here. Up to 100 hours of the total may come from full flight simulators or flight training devices used in an approved training course. Up to 25 of the 50 class hours may come from a full flight simulator in an approved Part 121, 135, 141 or 142 course. Simulator credit toward the 75 instrument hours is capped at 25 hours, or 50 if the training is at a Part 142 center. Once you have 20 night takeoffs and landings to a full stop, each additional one can count as one hour of night time, up to 25 hours.
The restricted ATP under 14 CFR 61.160 lowers the total to 750 hours for qualifying military pilots, 1,000 hours for graduates of approved bachelor's degree aviation programs, and 1,250 hours for approved associate degree programs, with 200 hours of cross-country instead of 500. Read our guide to airline pilot hours for how pilots build that time.
Since 2014, pilots seeking an ATP with a multi-engine class rating must complete the ATP CTP before taking the knowledge test. Under 14 CFR 61.156, the course must be given by an authorized Part 121, 135, 141 or 142 training provider and include:
When you finish, you receive a graduation certificate that you present at the testing center. Many pilots complete the CTP shortly before they expect to be hired, often through an airline's own training program.
Under 14 CFR 61.155, the ATP knowledge test covers federal aviation regulations for air carrier operations, meteorology including windshear and weather detection, weather and NOTAM systems, instrument navigation, air traffic control procedures, weight and balance, aerodynamics, human factors, aeronautical decision making, crew resource management and the CTP subject areas. For CTP graduates who pass the multi-engine ATP knowledge test, the result is valid for 60 calendar months before the month of the practical test under 14 CFR 61.39, compared with 24 months for most other knowledge tests. Our FAA knowledge test guide explains how testing works.
The ATP practical test under 14 CFR 61.157 follows the FAA's Airline Transport Pilot and Type Rating for Airplane Airman Certification Standards. For most airline pilots it is taken in a full flight simulator together with a type rating for the airplane the airline flies, as part of the airline's own training.
Under 14 CFR 61.167, an ATP holder has all the privileges of a commercial pilot with an instrument rating and may instruct other pilots in air transportation service, limited to 8 hours of instruction in any 24 consecutive hours and 36 hours in any 7 consecutive days. A restricted ATP holder may not act as pilot in command in Part 121 operations until reaching 23 and meeting the full 61.159 experience.
Airline pilots must also hold the right type rating. Under 14 CFR 121.436, captains need an unrestricted ATP, a type rating and 1,000 hours in qualifying operations; first officers need an ATP and a type rating.
Because the first class medical requires 20/20 corrected distant vision and other higher standards, get one before you commit to an airline track. See our FAA medical certificate page.
Training out of Van Nuys Airport means busy tower communication, nearby Class B airspace and a fleet that ranges from simple trainers to the Cirrus SR22 Turbo glass cockpit, experience that carries straight into an airline flight deck.
The road to the ATP starts with one lesson. Call our team at Van Nuys Airport, open 9 AM to 9 PM, seven days a week.
Real students, real first flights, real ratings — straight from Google and Yelp.
The fastest way to know if the left seat is for you is to stand on the flight line. Book a free consultation — or reach us whichever way you like.
Tour the school, meet your instructors, sit in the cockpit, and leave with a personal training plan and exact pricing. Your Discovery Flight fee is credited toward training when you enroll within 24 hours.
One minute, a few details, fast answers from a real person on our team.
