The privileges of your licence determine what aircraft you are able to fly and what sort of operations you are able to undertake. You can extend the privileges of your Private Pilot Licence (PPL) by completing extra training and adding flight ratings to your licence.
Building On Your Pilot’s Licence
Flight Ratings are essentially flight courses designed to teach you new skills, increase your flying knowledge, and improve on your existing skills. This may, for example, enable you to fly different types or classes of aircraft, or fly at Night time (see Night Rating).
To add a rating to your licence you’ll need to complete an approved training course and, generally speaking, pass a skill test with an examiner. Flight Ratings expire after a certain period of time and you must keep them up to date if you want to continue to benefit from the privileges they allow.
What Restrictions Apply to Flight Ratings?
Not every licence can have every rating added to it. For instance, you can’t add an Instrument Rating (IR) to a LAPL or an NPPL.
What Flight Ratings are Available?
There’s plenty of options. The most popular ones are the following:
- Night Rating (NR) Course
- Single & Multi Engine Instrument Ratings (IR)
- Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC) Rating
- Flight Instructor Training Courses
- Structured Hour Building (HB)
- Single Engine Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL)
- Aerobatic Certificate (Course)
- Co-Pilot Course
- Tailwheel Conversion Course
Where Can I Begin Adding Flight Ratings?
Your local flight school can offer advice on training, licence types and Ratings.