Understanding the FI(A) development process may be difficult for a pilots starting the career of flight instructor. What are the FI(A) privileges and how to extend them. That is quite common question asked by many new instructors. There are many ways how to extend the FI(A) privileges. Some of them requiring the additional training, some of them checking with a Senior Instructor, while some of the FI(A) extension requiring assessment of competence with an EASA Examiner.

Once obtained, your flight instructor certificate is so-called restricted. To expand your FI(A) to its full capability, you need to get an experience, training and additional checking.

It is very important to mention that all the privileges mentioned herein are merged into single licence endorsement. So eventhough there are many other instructor certificates, all the privileges constituting into single FI(A) endorsement with one single expiry date.

Let's have a look how to grow the flight instructor career path.

Scroll down to see the Roadmap

Download FI(A) Development Roadmap (PDF)

Restricted Flight Instructor

To become the Flight Instructor you first have to meet the FI(A) training pre-requisites and to meet following training requirements:

• 25 hours Teaching and Learning
• 100 hours Theoretical Knowledge instruction
• 30 hours aircraft training
• Assessment of competence with EASA FIE(A)

Upon the completion of the FI(A) training course and successfully passed the FI(A) assessment of competence you get your flight instructor certificate endorsed into your licence. 

Your initial privileges are to provide the training under DTO or ATO in single-engine aeroplanes - SEP(land) towards the LAPL(A) or PPL(A). Since you are authorised to provide training towards SEP(land), your FI(A) also includes the CRI privileges for SEP(land).

Your so-called restricted privileges are subject of FCL.910.FI. The restriction means you will not be allowed to sign-off the student for the first solo flight or first cross-country flight. All your activity is subject of the supervision of senior instructor which will be appointed by the particular flight school.

Unrestricted Flight Instructor

First major milestone on the Flight Instructor career path is the removal of the restricted privileges. To remove your FCL.910.FI restriction you have to gain the instructional experience.

Namely, you need at least 100 flight hours as a instructor under supervision of the senior instructor. In addition you need to supervise at least 25 solo flights under the supervision of a senior instructor. Once you demonstrate this experience your restriction will be shifted. There is no additional training nor the checking required.

VFR Night Instructor

Being able to instruct in Night is another step in the career of the flight instructor. It is usually a very nice change after flying  monotonous traffic pattern PPL training with students. As a holder of Commercial Pilot Licence an instructor should be already holder of the VFR Night rating. To extend the instructional privileges to provide VFR Night training an instructor needs to comply with FCL.905.FI(f). There are no requirements for minimum flight time nor the minimum instruction time to obtain the FI privileges for VFR Night.

Only requirement is to demonstrate your ability to provide VFR Night training to the instructor authorised to provide Instructor trainings. By signing the logbook and filling-out the application form, the issuing authority will endorse the instructor certificate with new privileges.

Aerobatic Instructor

To become an aerobatic instructor a holder of FI(A) needs to hold the aerobatic rating first. Similarly like a VFR Night instructor extension, also for the aerobatic instructor in accordance with FCL.905.FI(g) there is only one requirement to be met.

An applicant for Aerobatic Instructor extension has to demonstrate the ability to provide aerobatic training to the instructor authorised to provide Instructor trainings. By signing the logbook and filling-out the application form, the issuing authority will endorse the instructor certificate with new privileges.

It is important to mention that aerobatic FI(A) extension is not that common like VFR Night FI(A) extension.

Aerotow Instructor

To provide the training towards Aerotow rating a pilot has to be a holder of aerotow rating first. Similarly like a VFR Night or Aerobatic instructor extension, also the Aerotow instructor has to meet the requirements of FCL.905.FI(g) and fulfill the simple requirement.

An applicant for Aerotow Instructor extension has to demonstrate the ability to provide aerotow training to the instructor authorised to provide Instructor trainings. By signing the logbook and filling-out the application form, the issuing authority will endorse the instructor certificate with new privileges. 

CPL Flight Instructor

Instructor wishing to provide training towards the Commerical Pilot Licence only needs to gain the instructional experience. Minimum 200 hours as instructor are required to be completed. By having this experience the evidence needs to be sent to the authority along with the application form. There is no need to attend additional training nor the checking.

Multi-Engine Instructor

To obtain the multi-engine instructor privileges is for many pilots one of the most complicated and most expensive extension of the Flight Instructor certificate. Reason is the minimum command time on the multi-engine aeroplane required to commence the training for extension of FI(A) privileges. The extension of privileges to MEP(land) is subject to FCL.905.FI(i).

Minimum experience of 30 hours as a pilot-in-command is required to be enrolled into the extension training. Unless an applicant has some prior command experience in multi-engine aeroplane, this flight time usually has to be flown and self-paid by an instructor.

The extension of FI(A) to multi-engine aeroplanes consists of:

• 10 horus of technical training
• 5 hours of flight training

Upon the completion of the training CRI MEP(land) assessment of competence with an EASA FIE(A) is required.

Final product and privileges of the extension equals to the CRI MEP(land) Instructor certificate, however also in this case the CRI MEP(land) is merged into the FI(A) certificate.

IFR Instructor

Becoming an IFR Instructor requires additional skills and experience. Minimum requirement to be enrolled into the FI(A) - IFR extension training is 200 hours under IFR as required by FCL.905.FI(j). This is usually quite easy to obtain for a pilots flying in commercial air transport - either bizav pilots or airline pilots. 

The extension of FI(A) to IFR trainings consists of:

• 10 horus of technical training
• 5 hours of flight training

Upon the completion of the training IRI assessment of competence with an EASA FIE(A) is required.

Final product and privileges of the extension equals to the IRI(A) Instructor certificate, however the IRI(A) privileges are included in one common FI(A) certificate endorsement.

Recent revisions of Part FCL brought so-called Competency-based Instrument Rating as well as Basic Instrument Rating trainings which could be provided by an IFR Instructor directly. Nice thing on this FI(A) extension is that a holder is granted the privileges to provide training towards both - CB-IR(A) and Basic Instrument Rating. So he could start providing the training also outside of flight school environment.

Instructor for Instructors

Being authorised to teach the instructors is one of the very serious responsibility. By training future instructors an instructor is actively contributing on overall safety and also partially on the quality of the training for the future trainees.

The privilege to teach an instructors could only be obtained by having an extensive instructional experience as instructor. Minimum 500 hours as instructors are required. In addition the future instructor of instructors has to attend the special assessment of competence with EASA FIE(A). 

By passing that assessment of competence instructor will obtain the privileges to teach towards all the instructor certificate he holds - e.g. towards FI(A), IRI(A), CRI SEP(land) or CRI MEP(land).

Download FI(A) Development Roadmap (PDF)