ANAC Commercial Pilot Airplane (PCA)

ANAC issues the licence. It authorises you to act as pilot-in-command or second-in-command of airplanes in commercial operations and to be remunerated for flying, subject to the ratings, experience and medical requirements that apply to the operation.

The theoretical knowledge examination is multiple choice, delivered electronically, and organised by subject. Each subject is scored separately, so a strong result in one area does not compensate for a failing mark in another. Confirm the current delivery details on ANAC's site before booking.

ANAC publishes the current question count, time allowance and sitting rules for each subject. These are set by regulation and are revised periodically, so check the official ANAC examination pages rather than relying on second-hand figures from forums or older study material.

The minimum passing score is defined by ANAC regulation and can differ by subject. Look up the current requirement on ANAC's official site. Treat any specific percentage you hear from a colleague or a prep course as unverified until you have confirmed it against the regulation in force.

Yes, retakes are possible, but the waiting period, the number of attempts and any mandatory additional training between attempts are governed by ANAC rules. Check the current retake policy officially, and plan your study so that a retake is a backup rather than part of the schedule.

The depth is greater. Performance and navigation items require multi-step calculations, air law items reference specific regulatory provisions, and operational procedures items are scenario-based. Candidates with solid private-pilot foundations usually find the jump manageable; those who memorised answers rather than concepts struggle.

Start with principles of flight and aircraft systems, because performance and weight-and-balance build on them. Then take navigation, meteorology and flight planning as a block. Air law and operational procedures reward steady, repeated reading. Leave communications for last - it is short and largely procedural.

Weak unit handling and mental arithmetic in performance and navigation; studying air law from outdated regulation versions; and reading scenario questions too quickly and answering the memorised version instead of the one asked. Practising under time pressure exposes all three before exam day.

ANAC's website publishes the examination syllabus, the applicable regulations and the administrative procedures for scheduling and fees. Use it as your primary reference, and treat the regulation text as the authority whenever study material and the rule appear to disagree.