Heads up, instructors

1. CFI certificates don’t expire—but privileges do

An FAA final rule regarding flight instructor certificates signals an important change for certificated flight instructors across the nation. CFI certificates issued on or after December 1, 2024, will not have an expiration date printed on the certificate. Instead, CFIs must comply with recent experience end date requirements every 24 calendar months.

The rule also adds a three-calendar-month reinstatement period. This reinstatement period will be granted once the recent experience end date (or expiration month) has passed and the CFI did not comply with the 24-month recent experience end date (or 24-month renewal) requirements. During this reinstatement period, the CFI will not hold instructional privileges but will have the opportunity to reinstate instructional privileges via a flight instructor refresher course. If the three-calendar-month period passes without completing a flight instructor refresher course, the CFI will need to take a practical test to have their instructional privileges reinstated.

The final rule does not change the existing methods of renewal or the requirements for recent experience. However, the FAA's Wings pilot proficiency program, or another FAA-run program that may be introduced in the future, has been added to the menu of proficiency maintenance options. To satisfy FAR 61.197 (as revised), a flight instructor may opt to complete a Wings program phase within the preceding 12 calendar months, and conduct at least 15 flight activities, during which that flight instructor evaluated at least five different pilots with appropriate logbook endorsements. The CFI must also document their experience via the Integrated Airman Certification and Rating Application system .

If the CFI certificate was renewed prior to December 1, 2024, the certificate will expire as indicated, but the instructor can still take advantage of the three-calendar-month reinstatement period. Upon successful renewal, the instructor will be issued a CFI certificate without an expiration date.

The AOPA Air Safety Institute explains the changes in detail.

2. TSA requirements have changed

CFIs and flight schools must comply with new security requirements under the Flight Training Security Program Rule. All providers of training for initial pilot certification, the instrument rating, the multiengine rating, type ratings, or recurrent training for a certificate or type rating must register through the FTSP Portal, verify U.S. citizenship of trainees, give security awareness initial and biennial training to their employees, and designate a security coordinator with the TSA. Even those who train only U.S. citizens or nationals must follow these rules.

When flight training providers are training noncitizen candidates, the student generally must undergo a security threat assessment before training can begin.

Find out details of the TSA requirements for flight training providers here.

3. Are you ‘person’ current?

Effective December 2, passenger currency rules change. Previously, FAR 61.57(a) and (b) required three takeoffs and landings as the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft of the same category, class, and type (if required) within the preceding 90 days in order to act as pilot in command of an aircraft carrying “passengers” and three takeoffs and landings to a full stop at night for currency to carry “passengers” at night. A new rule replaces “passengers” with “persons” and adds exceptions that allow a non-current instructor to provide instruction to a non-current trainee—but only for the purpose of the trainee regaining currency, only if the trainee is otherwise capable of acting as PIC, and only if the instructor and trainee are the sole occupants.  

The changes were included in the final rule Public Aircraft Logging of Flight Time, Training in Certain Aircraft Holding Special Airworthiness Certificates, and Flight Instructor Privileges.

4. Clarifications on elective training

The rule also amended the privileges for flight instructors and sport pilot instructors to clarify that ground training, flight training, certain checking events, and issuance of endorsements are allowed. Previously, the regulation only allowed instructors to “train and issue endorsements.” Now flight instructors may provide “training to maintain or improve the skills of a certificated pilot” (or sport pilot in the case of sport pilot instructors). This change was intended to allow flight instructors and sport pilot instructors to provide elective training not otherwise required for a certificate, rating, or operating privilege, like training to transition to a new aircraft of the same category and class, aerobatic training, formation training, or mountain flying training. This only applies to training intended to advance a certificated pilot’s preexisting knowledge or skills. Importantly, flight instructors and sport pilot instructors must not provide this elective training to non-certificated individuals (for instance, student pilots).

Questions? Contact AOPA’s Pilot Information Center at 800-USA-AOPA or [email protected].