New Private Pilot Cross Country Requirements

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SRJ

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SJ
Hello -

I'm new to PofA so apologies if my question here sounds stupid. I was reviewing the most recent update of the FAR/AIM and saw that under Part 141 Appendix B (Private Pilot Requirements), that the distance for the "long" XC solo flight was no longer 150 miles, but now 100 miles with the same required number of stops. Is that right? Hoping to get some thoughts. Thanks!!

SJ
 
Night flight xc requirement is 100 nm and the long solo xc is 150 nm. Maybe you misread.
 
I'm looking at Appendix B #5 of the Part 141 requirements and it says 100 nm for both the night and also the long XC. This is literally the new FAR/AIM update for 2017 that came out in the last 3 weeks....
 
5. Solo flight training. Each approved course must include at least the following solo flight training:

(a) For an airplane single-engine course: 5 hours of solo flight training in a single-engine airplane on the approved areas of operation in paragraph (d)(1) of section No. 4 of this appendix that includes at least—

(1) One solo 100 nautical miles cross country flight with landings at a minimum of three points and one segment of the flight consisting of a straight-line distance of more than 50 nautical miles between the takeoff and landing locations; and

(2) Three takeoffs and three landings to a full stop (with each landing involving a flight in the traffic pattern) at an airport with an operating control tower.
 
Oh wait, this is for Part 141... in that case, no idea. Kind of crazy for them to lower it more, though. 150 nm isn't that much as it is.
 
woah, "PofA".......that IS new. I kinda like it.
 
There's no change. It's been that way for Part 141 for at least several years - that's how long ago I got involved with a 141 school - so it could be much longer. Why, I have no idea, but that's what it is. Part 61 is still the (already too short, IMO) 150 nm.
 
Interesting. My flight school never told me that this was the requirement, and in fact when I asked, they said it was "reduced" to 100nm.
 
The long XC my CFI recommended was over 300nm so that is what I did. Are you just trying to do the minimum? Or just arguing regs with your school?
 
Honestly, I found it easy to do all the requirements in under the required solo time, so I needed a longer long cross country.
 
I'm trying to plan my long cross country solo flight and the most viable flight for me ends up being 111nm to airports I'm most comfortable with (in other words I've flown to them before), so it's more a comfort and confidence thing.
 
SRJ said:
I'm trying to plan my long cross country solo flight and the most viable flight for me ends up being 111nm to airports I'm most comfortable with (in other words I've flown to them before), so it's more a comfort and confidence thing.
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As a CFI I would advise NOT flying to airports/routes you're already familiar with. Get ya some "uncomfortableness" and gain and improve your confidence by flying into different places. Also called experience. IMO.
 
SRJ said:
I'm trying to plan my long cross country solo flight and the most viable flight for me ends up being 111nm to airports I'm most comfortable with (in other words I've flown to them before), so it's more a comfort and confidence thing.
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Maybe you need to break in a new airport. My long XC was to 2 new airports, one Class D and one uncontrolled(home is D so uncontrolled is more foreign to me), got to transition a class C on the way back as well.
 
exncsurfer said:
Maybe you need to break in a new airport. My long XC was to 2 new airports, one Class D and one uncontrolled(home is D so uncontrolled is more foreign to me), got to transition a class C on the way back as well.
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Yep. I think one of the ideas of the long cross country is to expand your comfort envelope.
 
SRJ said:
I'm trying to plan my long cross country solo flight and the most viable flight for me ends up being 111nm to airports I'm most comfortable with (in other words I've flown to them before), so it's more a comfort and confidence thing.
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It's typical to pick two airports you have never been to before. The goal is to build confidence by learning how to handle navigating longer distances and dealing with the challenges of new places on your own.
 
exncsurfer said:
The long XC my CFI recommended was over 300nm so that is what I did. Are you just trying to do the minimum? Or just arguing regs with your school?
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IIRC the FARs required 300nm when I did mine. Also needed 10hrs of XC.

Brian
 
teejayevans said:
That sounds like the Commercial requirement.
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Nope, when I got my PPC in 1974 that was the solo XC requirement, and I think (not positive) those three legs had to each be 100 nm or more.

This is what brcase is referring to. Soon it'll be 15 nm legs, for a total of 45 nm XC. :rolleyes:
 
Pre 1997, the Private requirement was indeed 300+ nm, and 10 hours solo XC total. That changed in the 1997 rewrite and the 300 + nm XC was moved to the Commercial. Which means that many of us, like me, got to do it twice, not that that's a bad thing.
 
mscard88 said:
Nope, when I got my PPC in 1974 that was the solo XC requirement, and I think (not positive) those three legs had to each be 100 nm or more.

This is what brcase is referring to. Soon it'll be 15 nm legs, for a total of 45 nm XC. :rolleyes:
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I think Hawaii requirements are even less, but still longer than 45
 
MAKG1 said:
Honestly, I found it easy to do all the requirements in under the required solo time, so I needed a longer long cross country.
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That was my case as well.
 
RussR said:
Pre 1997, the Private requirement was indeed 300+ nm, and 10 hours solo XC total. That changed in the 1997 rewrite and the 300 + nm XC was moved to the Commercial. Which means that many of us, like me, got to do it twice, not that that's a bad thing.
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Yeah, me too.

My long student solo was a great experience. Unforecast weather, inability to get FF because ATC was busy due to both time of day and the weather change, a need to change my route on the way home to avoid mountain obscuration, diversion to land at an airport I did not plan for...
 
midlifeflyer said:
My long student solo was a great experience. Unforecast weather, inability to get FF because ATC was busy due to both time of day and the weather change, a need to change my route on the way home to avoid mountain obscuration, diversion to land at an airport I did not plan for...
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And that's exactly the point. I felt like my xc was some kind of hazing experience... thankfully, I passed the test :)
 
midlifeflyer said:
Yeah, me too.

My long student solo was a great experience. Unforecast weather, inability to get FF because ATC was busy due to both time of day and the weather change, a need to change my route on the way home to avoid mountain obscuration, diversion to land at an airport I did not plan for...
Click to expand...
My night x-c was similar. Two of us students were doing it the same night. I looked at the weather and said I'm going south. The other instructor was looking at the weather while I was and said he was sticking with the plan to go north. I flew home. Those other guys got to drive home...
 
SRJ said:
I'm trying to plan my long cross country solo flight and the most viable flight for me ends up being 111nm to airports I'm most comfortable with (in other words I've flown to them before), so it's more a comfort and confidence thing.
Click to expand...

One purpose of the long cross country is to fly and navigate somewhere you've never been before.
 
I haven't kept up with the PPL requirements (since that is in the rearview mirror) but I'm surprised it is so short now... When I did mine in the 1970's it was 300 miles (required min 100 mile legs IFIRC)
 
FlySince9 said:
I haven't kept up with the PPL requirements (since that is in the rearview mirror) but I'm surprised it is so short now... When I did mine in the 1970's it was 300 miles (required min 100 mile legs IFIRC)
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If I recall correctly, this was the idea: It was felt student pilots doing cross countries that met ICAO commercial requirements was not necessary to show competence in planning and execution and the FAA wanted to give instructors the flexibility to determine, on a student-by-student basis, how "extra" flight time was spent. For some, it might be another cross country. For others, it might be working on maneuvers.

So the required solo time and cross country length for the private certificate were reduced and the commercial slightly changed to cover the ICAO issue.
 
register@teamandras.com said:
Ou of curiosity, when was this?
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I passed the Private Pilot Check ride in the summer of 1995, so it was a few months or so before that. I can understand the shorter flight requirements, though. Just droning along keeping up with position doesn't teach one a whole lot once you have done it.
 
somorris said:
I passed the Private Pilot Check ride in the summer of 1995, so it was a few months or so before that. I can understand the shorter flight requirements, though. Just droning along keeping up with position doesn't teach one a whole lot once you have done it.
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Thanks. I wasn't aware of the longer requirement from before, but I'm persuaded by your comment that 150 nm seems just about right.
 
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