Procedures Necessary to Host Flight Students in the United States - Unbelievable!!

Bill Komanetsky  January 30 2012 12:55:44 PM

There are a lot of things that Ahart needs to make sure about before approving a student to fly, take a written test, a stage test and most importantly, a check ride. This document will help to make these processes clear and why they cannot be done immediately upon request by the student. As you will see, there are a lot of things that need to be collected and verified before any of these requests can be processed.

Note that both the owner of Ahart Aviation Services (Bill Komanetsky), the Admissions manager (Zach Schmidt) and your instructor should understand all of the paperwork and documents required and described here. If you have any questions, please send an email to ahart@ahart.com and we will be very happy to answer them. Emails are processed within a day.

Instructor Request/Beginning Training
There are a lot of things that must be completed before a student can be approved to learn to fly at Ahart. The ‘International Students - What’s Next?’ document talks about these things, but they are listed here to show you all of the items that must be complete. Before your training is approved, all of the items below must be 100% accurate and ready or the flight school could loose it’s ability to train international students.
1.        The TSA must approve your training. If you have never had your fingerprints done, this will be required by the TSA. Also, all emails and notification letters must be printed and kept in your file for you to be able to train legally at any flight school in the United States.  Also, your Picture MUST be taken at the flight school and then uploaded to the TSA web site. If not, any flight school could be fined up to $20,000 for these things not being per- formed correctly.
2.        Once TSA allows you to learn to fly, the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) requires you to follow the training course outline which they have approved. Ahart uses the Jeppesen syllabus and you must follow this syllabus just as it is documented in the Jeppesen syllabus document. This means that each ground course must be done in order and each stage test done in order as well. You cannot take your ground tests all at once, instead, you must take them in the order in which they are shown in the Jeppesen syllabus. Any flight school not following this procedures, if caught, could have its Part-141 approvals revoked and the school could possibly be forced out of business.
3.        If you are a U.S. citizen, you still need to provide a Birth Certificate or a Valid/Current Passport before you begin flying.  The TSA requires this, not Ahart Aviation.  The TSA can fine any flight school if they do not colleect one or both of these documents.
4.        All Jeppesen documentation must be filled out by your instructor. If not, the FAA may fine the flight school for not following procedures
5.        SEVIS (the organization which allows you to come into the company) is a branch of the United States government and requires you to be legal while in this country. You as a visitor to this country must be responsible for your own immigration documents. No flight school is notified if these documents expire, and you must keep track of them yourself and let the flight school know as early as possible (at least a month in advance) when any of these documents may expire. To be legal you need:
1.        A legal/valid passport with an expiration date after the current date
2.        A legal/valid visa and I-94 stamp with a date after the current date
3.        A legal/valid/stamped I-20 document with an expiration date after the current date.
4.        A current customer data form must be filled out and in your file. This form must include your current address and contact information so the flight school can contact you.
5.        A current rental agreement and agreement to follow safety policies as defined by the FAA must be signed by you and also part of your customer folder.
6.        A current picture must also be in your folder as the TSA and SEVIS may need this picture to identify you if there are any issues.
Note that you must not begin training until all of these items are approved as per FAA, SEVIS and TSA regulations.
Request for training can be found on the Ahart Web site by clicking Policies and Documents ->Request Training/Flight Instructor or going to the URL below:
http://www.ahart.com/newWeb/flightCourses/cfiRequest.htm

Written Test Requests
FAA written tests follow your Part-141 ground course and all Jeppesen stage tests which are part of your ground course. You are not allowed to take an FAA written test until:
1.        You have completed all Jeppesen ground course items listed in your Jeppesen student folder.  This folder can be found in your customer/Part-141 folder. (Part-141 students only)
2.        You have completed all Jeppesen ground course stage tests. Just as above, these tests must be completed and be in your customer/Part-141 folder. Each test requires a minimum of an 80% score. (Part-141 students only)
3.        A graduation certificate has been printed and signed by the Chief Part-141 instructor. This document can only be processed after you have completed the above items 1 and 2. Note that once you have received your graduation certificate, you are required by United States law to leave the country within 30 days or be enrolled in another course. You cannot be en- rolled in multiple courses, so it is a good idea to graduate from the ground course as close to your check ride date or final stage check date as possible. (Part-141 students only)
4.        Your instructor’s endorsement must also be part of your log book before you are allowed to take your written test. This is an FAA regulation and required of all students taking any FAA written test (other than advanced written tests)
5.        We have at least two forms of picture identification for you. Both the FAA and Lasergrade (the company that does our testing) requires this information for you to be legal. These identifications must also be in your customer/Part-141 folder.  

Note that if you take your written test before all Jeppesen ground lessons and stage checks are complete and a graduation certificate issued to you and all placed in your customer/Part-141 folder, the FAA may fine the flight school for not following approved procedures and may even disallow the flight school from teaching any more Part-141 students.

Note that you can continue to fly and do ground training while waiting for your written test approval to be completed, you do not have to stop your training during this time



Stage Check Requests
The FAA requires stage checks to be done before a student is allowed to move forward in their training. Private Pilot requires 3 stage checks, Instrument rating requires 3 stage checks, and Commercial Multie-Engine requires 2 stage checks. These stage checks are designed to evaluate your ability to pass your check ride and are crucial to make sure you will be a good pilot. Stage check request are done relatively quickly and require the following information to be collected:
1.        You have completed all Jeppesen lessons for the requested stage check. (Part-141 students only)
2.        Your instructor is in agreement that you are ready for your stage check.

Note that if you fail your final stage check (Private Stage #3, Instrument Stage #3, Commercial Stage #2), you will be required to retake that stage check. The reason for this is that the final stage check is a rehearsal for your check ride and if you cannot pass it at the flight school, you will probably not pass it with the FAA. So to assure that you will pass your check ride, you must pass your final stage check.

Note that you can continue to fly and do ground training while waiting for your written test approval to be completed, you do not have to stop your training during this time



Check Ride Requests
This is the most important request that any student will make and should not be made without the student being 100% ready for their check ride. The FAA monitors the passing rate of any flight school, and if that passing rate goes below 70%, the flight school could loose its ability to train Part-141 students. Also, check rides examiners may not be available at the exact time that a student will be ready for their stage check. Always getting the examiner you may ask for may not be possible because of aircraft, instructor and examiner schedules. The examiner you get shouldn’t make any difference however, because you should be able to perform well enough for any examiner.

The following items must be completed before your check ride is scheduled and all checked for validity in your customer/Part-141 folder:
1.        You have completed all Jeppesen lessons and stage check tests for the requested check ride. (Part-141 students only)
2.        Your have a graduation certificate for the Part-141 course you are enrolled in. (Part-141 students only)
3.        Your Jeppesen student folder has been completed and all graduation dates filled in and signed by the instructor.  (Part-141 students only)
4.        You have a valid and current Passport, Visa, I-94 stamp and I-20 document. (Part-141 students only)
5.        You have a valid TSA approval to train for the requested check ride. (Part-141 students only)
6.        Your TSA record has been marked as complete on the TSA web site for your current training and all pictures are still valid. (Part-141 students only)
7.        You have all of the correct endorsements to fly solo and any others required for the requested check ride.
8.        Your instructor has give you their endorsement for the check ride.
9.        Your instructor and you have filled out your 8710 document using the IACRA system prior to your check ride.
10.        You have passed your final stage check for the check ride you are requesting. If not, you will need to retake your stage check from another stage check instructor in the areas you were deficient in on your previous stage check attempt.

Note that if any of these items are not done correctly, you could easily fail your check ride and the flight school could be reprimanded for not making sure that the student had all required documentation.

Note that you can continue to fly and do ground training while waiting for your written test approval to be completed, you do not have to stop your training during this time



As you can see, there is a lot of information that must be collected, validated and kept to assure you are legal within the country while you are doing your flight training. Also, the FAA requires that you follow the approved training course outline, if not, your license could be taken away if the FAA finds that procedures and processes approved by them are not followed correctly.

If you have any questions, you can always ask any of our staff, or email us at ahart@ahart.com with your question(s).

• Comments [1]