Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

3 Answers

Best avenue for single engine add, to an (exAF guy/current airline) comm/m-e/instr ATP

Asked by: 1390 views General Aviation, Student Pilot

Interested in GA flying (LSA- Highlander/Superstol), but don't have the S/E rating.

I'll need S/E rating & T/W sign off.

I'll need training, as my 30-40 hours S/E was a long, long time (35 years) ago.

I understand the CFI manuals have some charts for specific adds, when holding other tickets....showing requirements and deleted (not required) items too.   Are there links to those?   Thanks.....

I don't have any need for commercial or ATP privileges in S/E a/c....but I understand that might be a better route?

Anyway, looking for recommendations and thoughts...

thanks in advance.

Ace Any FAA Written Test!
Actual FAA Questions / Free Lifetime Updates
The best explanations in the business
Fast, efficient study.
Pass Your Checkride With Confidence!
FAA Practical Test prep that reflects actual checkrides.
Any checkride: Airplane, Helicopter, Glider, etc.
Written and maintained by actual pilot examiners and master CFIs.
The World's Most Trusted eLogbook
Be Organized, Current, Professional, and Safe.
Highly customizable - for student pilots through pros.
Free Transition Service for users of other eLogs.
Our sincere thanks to pilots such as yourself who support AskACFI while helping themselves by using the awesome PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, and Android aviation apps of our sponsors.

3 Answers



  1. MikeSTL on Apr 15, 2019

    anyway….train in a t/w? citabria? or get the t/w after the rating?

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  2. KDS on Apr 15, 2019

    Assuming you haven’t lost the logbook that contained your ASEL time, you probably already have all of the requirements met for adding an ASEL rating to your certificate. The tailwheel endorsement can be done at any time either before or after you take the practical test (check ride) for the added rating. In short, you really just need an instructor’s endorsement to take the test and an instructor’s endorsement for tailwheel competence.

    I’ll add once piece of unsolicited advice. Have your instructor ensure that you’re ready for oral portion of the test. I won’t go into the war stories of how I know this to be true, but believe me it is true. Folks who have been exclusively military (particularly heavy military) and airline pilots can say some of the most off the wall things during GA check rides.

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  3. LTCTerry on Apr 16, 2019

    Mike – you mentioned USAF and Light Sport Aircraft. Did you start in a T-37? No SE piston time?

    As you probably know, your ATP includes the privileges of lower certificates, all the way down to Light Sport. In Light Sport you can add on new categories by training with one instructor and then being evaluated by a second instructor. There is no solo time required. Assuming all went well, you send a form off to the FAA and you’re now rated for something new at the Light Sport level.

    You still need credit for a Flight Review.

    An actual FR takes place in something you are ready rated in. The FAA’s Wings program allows training in something new to count as the FR. You need three flight “credits” and three online training “credits.” If you coordinate with the two required Light Sport Instructors you can complete the FR during your training. If not, once you are “rated” Light Sport single engine airplane you can do a Flight Review.

    This will get you legal to fly SE Light Sport aircraft – so under a minimum weight.

    If you want to flying common singles such as a Cessna 172/etc. you will need an Airplane Single Engine Land rating at least at the Private level on your ticket. You could take a checkride with a Designated Pilot Examiner in the LSA – since it is an ASEL – and gain SE “legality” at the Private Pilot level. Flying with the DPE is probably not much more expensive than flying with the second instructor at the Light Sport level. And it counts as a flight review.

    As a private pilot flying a LSA you have none of the limits of a light sport pilot, though you do need at least Basic Med.

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes


The following terms have been auto-detected the question above and any answers or discussion provided. Click on a term to see its definition from the Dauntless Aviation JargonBuster Glossary.

Answer Question

Our sincere thanks to all who contribute constructively to this forum in answering flight training questions. If you are a flight instructor or represent a flight school / FBO offering flight instruction, you are welcome to include links to your site and related contact information as it pertains to offering local flight instruction in a specific geographic area. Additionally, direct links to FAA and related official government sources of information are welcome. However we thank you for your understanding that links to other sites or text that may be construed as explicit or implicit advertising of other business, sites, or goods/services are not permitted even if such links nominally are relevant to the question asked.