Forced from Part 61 to Part 141

[comair25]

Hello Everyone,

As the title suggests I am being forced my hand to switch from part 61 to part 141 to finish my flight training. you may say "Oh no big deal", but well I kinda think it is. Here is where I am. I had to cease my flight training in 2010 for a financial situation and could no longer afford to continue with training. I was working on my CSEL and CMEL at the same time. After my last flight my logbook sits at 300TT and 22ME with only my PPL w/ Instrument. (A lot of my hours came from XC flights to wherever I decided to go that weekend not actually training.) I joined the military in 2010 and now I am separating here in 2014. I am planning on obviously using my post 9-11 GI bill to finish, but as you know I must complete it under part 141. So if I understand everything correctly I am going to have to start all over with my commercial training? Does that mean I will have to do all 120 hours to finally achieve my CSEL at 420TT haha. I'm not complaining as this time around its not coming out of my pocket. Or am I just missing something entirely.

Thanks!

Ryan

 

[RORO]

I dont remember the reg off the top of my head, but you are allowed to receive credit for 25% of your time spent at a 61 school.

 

[tlewis95]

If you are trying to get a degree in airplane driving from a part 141 university you might have to repeat a lot of your flying. Most schools will only take credit for a PPL towards the degree and make you take the rest of their program to qualify. However, I don't see why you couldn't just go take a school's CSEL and MEL courses 'ala carte' style. It probably varies between schools.

 

[pilotmec]

Even if you have to repeat some training you will still retain the time and experience. It's all good.

 

[comair25]

Well the good news is I was getting my training done sorta on the side as I was going to college for the same degree (at the same school as I am going back to). I never received credit for the ratings I had which kinda worried me, but when I called the VA rep at the school she just directed me another gentleman so that I may get the credit. I guess even if I have to do some of the flying over again its not really a big deal. I already have the rating and it will just be more free flying and hours that are o so precious nowadays. Getting a degree in Aviation kinda sucks, but to be able to use the VA benefits for flight training to the fullest you really have no other option.

 

[wbauman1217]

With your amount of time, it seems kind of asinine to have to go through a whole curriculum. It should just be a matter of doing a few flights, being able to meet the PTS and taking the checkride.
If you're doing it part 141 the time requirements vary, as the training curriculum is individualized for each flight school. Some places may have a minimum time requirement, others may not. I did my training at MTSU and it was not unheard of for people to get their commercial in around 150tt..

 

[U_of_I_Tweak]

I'd discuss it with the school directly. I did my training as a mix of 61 and 141. I had my private before going to Illinois. Before I could begin the instrument program, I had to take a semester private pilot refresher course; essentially a 16 hour checkout in an Archer to acclimate me to the University's way of doing things. At the end of the class was a stage check that was essentially a Private checkride.

I did my instrument training 141, and the first half of my commercial. However, after the first semester of commercial training, I met all the requirements for a part 61 commercial checkride. After talking to the head of the program, he approved me going to the CFI course if I took my commercial checkride on my own. I rented a plane and saved a boatload over doing the University course. That may not be as big a concern for you, but if it allows you to get your CFI faster and teach sooner...probably worth looking at.

I finished my CFI, CFII, and CMEL under the 141 program. The long and short is, talk to the school and see if they're willing to work with your experience and how it will affect your benefits. Worst case is you spend more time, but graduate with several hundred hours more time than your peers. Because I flew a lot outside the 141 program (flying team, renting...) I graduated with 900 or so hours, compared to 290-350 for most of the students.

 

[ElihuSmails]

I'm not sure about your school, but you may have another option. At one of my old flight schools, we would enroll people in the 141 program in order for them to use their GI Bill. If they were able to demonstrate proficiency, and had the requisite hours, we would graduate them under Part 61 in order to take the check ride. This was often helpful for military pilots (especially helo guys) that only needed a few hours. All of their training was 141, and therefore was reimbursed under the GI Bill - Chap 33 (Post 9/11) or Ch 30. Regardless of what program you graduate under, you can get reimbursed for your check ride under the licensing and certification program (for up to $600, I believe). I might not be surprised if your school won't work with you on this. I suppose if you need their training program in order to qualify for a restricted ATP, it might be worth it to complete all of their training if that were the case. Otherwise, it would be nice to save a year+ of benefits for something else.