Publishes New Guidance For Setting Up Training Programs For Experienced Pilots

The FAA has published a national policy notice that requires the review of part 135 certificate holders’ training programs that provide credit for previous training and/or qualification received from a different certificate holder. The notice also provides guidance for Principal Operations Inspector (POI) approval of reduced training hour curricula for initial, transition, or upgrade training.

According to the notice, there have been numerous inquiries regarding a certificate holder’s acceptance of training and/or evaluations previously completed by a crewmember while that crewmember was in the employment of another certificate holder. Regulations do not permit a certificate holder to take credit for training and evaluations conducted in accordance with another certificate holder’s approved training program. The agency says accepting documentation or certification that a crewmember has satisfactorily completed ground and/or flight training and/or an evaluation while in the employment of another part 135 certificate holder as meeting the requirements of the hiring certificate holder’s training program is not acceptable.

Examples of training that can be acceptable for reducing training hours include:

• Pilots that have previous experience in Part 135 operations in the same aircraft and flightcrew member duty position.
• Pilots that have previous experience in Part 135 operations in the same aircraft, but in a different flightcrew member duty position.
• Pilots that have previous experience in Part 135 operations in a different aircraft.
• Pilots that have previous experience in 14 CFR Part 91, subpart K (Part 91K) operations.

 
In these examples, each curriculum would have different planned hours to reflect the crewmember’s level of knowledge and skill related to the certificate holder’s operation or aircraft.

The FAA says reduced training hour curricula may be developed for initial, transition, or upgrade training, and must contain all the elements of the full curriculum. Reductions may be made in planned hours for aircraft-specific systems ground training and/or flight training based on a crewmember’s previous knowledge and skill. However, reductions in planned hours based on a crewmember’s previous knowledge or skill may not be made for certificate holder-specific modules, including, but not limited to:

• Basic indoctrination.
• Hazardous materials, except as provided for in § 135.505(c), if the crewmember works for more than one certificate holder concurrently.
• Emergency training.
• Crew Resource Management (CRM) training.
• Other certificate holder-specific modules, such as those required by a certificate holder’s OpSpecs or those determined by the certificate holder’s POI.

FMI: www.faa.gov