Instructor Rating

They say you never learn as much as you do when you are the teacher.  The Instructor Rating allows a commercial pilot to teach other pilots how to fly.  Learning how to teach flying will sharpen your skills and knowledge tremendously.  Working as an instructor can be a rewarding career in and of its own.  It can also be a stepping stone to a career as a pilot.  Regardless of where you end up, being able to share in the passion of flight and provide others the opportunity to spread their wings is a gratifying experience.

As a flight instructor, you will progress in knowledge, skill and ability through four Classes of experience.  Class 4 is an apprentice level where you work under the close supervision of a Class 2 or Class 1 instructor.  To graduate to the higher levels, you must develop a record of successful flight instruction.

Admission

Qualified applicants are accepted on a firstcome firstserved basis. An application form must be submitted in writing to the CFI. The Ottawa Flight College reserves the right to accept or decline any application Instructor Rating.

To be eligible for admission, applicants must meet the following criteria:

1. Before commencing flight training for the Class 4 Instructor Rating - Aeroplane, an applicant shall hold a Commercial or Airline Transport Pilot Licence - Aeroplane and have completed either:
1. a minimum of 200 hours total time including 20 hours instrument time, of which a minimum of 10 hours shall be instrument flight time; or
2. the commercial pilot licence - aeroplane/instrument rating (CPL(A)/IR) integrated course.
2. Before commencing ground school instruction for the Class 4 Instructor Rating - Aeroplane, an applicant shall have successfully completed the written examination and flight test for the Commercial Pilot Licence - Aeroplane.
3. Be proficient in both written and spoken English to the Berlitz language school level 8 or equivalent.
4. Have financial means to complete both the ground and flight instruction.

As the Instructor Rating is vocational training and falls under the Private Career Colleges Act, 2005 (PCCA), accepted applicants are required to sign a Student Contract with the Ottawa Flight College and provide additional information which the College is required to report on to the Ministry Training Colleges and Universities.

Foreign Students

Applicants who are not of Canadian citizenship, a permanent resident of Canada or a dependent of a diplomat accredited to Canada must get a student authorization. Contact your nearest Canadian embassy for details. For more information, see our Foreign Students page.

Program of Study

The Instructor Rating does not include a formal ground school.  Instead, students spend between 25 and 50 hours in ground briefings with a Class 1 Flight Instructor.  Students will also spend 30 hours in dual instruction in a Cessna 150 or Cessna 172.

There is a high amount of homework and preparation for the ground briefings.  Students should expect to spend between 4 and 5 hours of preparation for each hour of ground briefings or flight instruction.  The total workload is about 320 hours. Working full time at the rating, expect to complete the program in eight to ten weeks.

The schedule of the Instructor Rating is dependent on the availability of the Class 1 instructors and can be full-time or part-time depending on the student's availability and requirements.  In other words, you can start as soon as you like and work as hard as you want.

The Instructor Rating ground briefings will cover, as a minimum, the following areas:

• practical application of the basic principles of learning and techniques of instruction;
• preparation and use of lesson plans;
• procedures for planning and presenting preparatory ground instruction, pre-flight briefings, in-flight instruction, and post-flight debriefings;
• theory of flight required to teach the air exercises;
• aircraft flight manuals and aircraft operating limits;
• presentation of pilot decision-making concepts; and
• the use of the Transport Canada Flight Instructor Guide, Flight Training Manual, Canadian Aviation Regulations, Part IV and the Flight Test Standards, Private and Commercial Pilot Licences - Aeroplane Category.

In the air, the program will provide a minimum of 30 hours of dual flight instruction on overall pilot proficiency and the presentation of all exercises listed in the Flight Instructor Guide.  A minimum of 5 hours of training in the teaching of instrument flight skills will also be covered. A maximum 5 of the 30 hours may be conducted on a simulator or flight training device.

At the end of the session, the candidate will be required to pass a flight test with a Transport Canada inspector and achieve a minimum of 70% in the
written Flight Instructor Rating examination.

Graduation

Successful candidates will receive a certificate on achieving their Instructor Rating.  Also, each May at the annual Wings Dinner, the successful candidates are celebrated and appreciated.

Fees

Fees for the Instructor Rating will vary with the amount of ground instruction.  Transport Canada minimums are for 25 hours but our experience is that this is inadequate to allow for proper preparation to pass the flight test.  We find most students require 50 hours on the ground to be ready.  In the air, Transport Canada requires a minimum of 30 hours and most students do not require more than this amount.  Students have the option of using a C-150 or a C-172 for the training.  Up to 5 hours of the dual instruction can also be done in a simulator instead of the aircraft.  The break down of the fees without the simulator option are as follows: