Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

2 Answers

Commercial Helicopter to Airplane

Asked by: 970 views Commercial Pilot

Hey everyone! I’m a commercial rated helicopter pilot looking to go fixed wing. Do I need to get a private first and then continue on to commercial airplane? Thanks!

Jake

Ace Any FAA Written Test!
Dauntless Aviation's GroundSchool series of apps are the smart pilot's choice for fast and effective FAA knowledge test prep.
Actual, up-to-date FAA questions Polished user experience
Best explanations in the business Free lifetime updates!
Private Pilot IFR Commercial Pilot CFI ATP Sport Pilot Sport Pilot Instructor Parachute Rigger Aviation Mechanic (A&P)
You can get the app now and be studying right away. Available for PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, and Android.

2 Answers



  1. Bryan on Jul 19, 2023

    61.63 has your guidance where you’re adding additional ratings. You’re adding a new category so (b) says you have to (1) complete applicable training, (2) get endorsed, (3) pass the practical test, but (4) you don’t have to do a knowledge test because you already hold a rotorcraft commercial certificate–which is the same level as the airplane certificate you seek.

    So go back through 61.123 – 61.133 with your instructor. You can skip the knowledge test and otherwise cross t’s, dot i’s, and you’re on your way.

    +1 Votes Thumb up 1 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  2. LTCTerry on Jul 27, 2023

    Do you need a Private first? No, you do not. The question is “should you?” I say yes.

    You need 50 hours of airplane PIC time for Commercial. If you are not airplane rated, then none of your dual will ever also be PIC. You will need to pay for 50 hours of additional solo time not otherwise required.

    Do Private first, then all the instrument training is also PIC. Ditto for the Commerce maneuvers.

    You can help this along even more if you have access to a Light Sport Airplane since your RW Commercial includes Sport privileges. Do Private in the LSA and log PIC while training.

    Look at everything in 61.109 (Private) and 61.129 (Commercial) for where it says “in a single engine airplane.” Look at 61.65 (Instrument) for what you need there. This becomes the foundation of your training plan. Where practice, convenient, and allowed combine or sequence things for efficiency.

    I just worked with a retired Army Blackhawk pilot (who also had Private ASEL unused for many years). We did AMEL Private, AMEL Commercial, and Airplane Instrument in 33.5 hours. The only hour not scheduled to meet a specific goal in the training plan was the trip home from the last checkride.

    Fly smarter, not more expensive…

    +1 Votes Thumb up 1 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.