I85PREP
⌘ K
DGCA ATPL Air Regulations study materials
DGCA ATPL Air Regulations study resources

DGCA ATPL Air Regulations: Personnel Licensing, Flight Crew Privileges and Ratings

DGCA ATPL Air Regulations · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.

All guide sections

Personnel Licensing, Flight Crew Privileges and Ratings

This domain tests Annex 1 and the Indian licensing scheme in CAR Section 7: who may hold which licence, what each licence actually authorises, and how ratings extend or restrict those privileges.

The licences

  • PPL: minimum age 17, class 1 or 2 medical, prescribed ground and flying training. Carries no remuneration and no scheduled operations.
  • CPL: minimum age 18, Class 1 medical, 200 hours total flight time (integrated courses may differ), DGCA examinations. A CPL may act as PIC or co-pilot of aircraft in non-scheduled operations and as co-pilot in scheduled operations, subject to type rating and instrument rating.
  • ATPL: minimum age 21, 1,500 hours, Class 1 medical, ATPL examinations. Required for the PIC of aircraft in scheduled commercial air transport.
  • Class 1 medical validity is age- and single-pilot-dependent; lapsing invalidates the exercise of privileges, not the licence itself.

Ratings and privileges

Privileges are exercised only within the ratings endorsed on the licence: type rating for each aircraft type, instrument rating for IMC/IFR operations, instructor and examiner ratings for training credit. Recency is separate from validity: recent-experience requirements (take-offs and landings, instrument approaches) must be met before carrying passengers, and a biennial proficiency check or its equivalent keeps the instrument privilege alive.

Worked example

A pilot holds a CPL with 1,420 hours, an A320 type rating and a current instrument rating, and is offered the left seat of a scheduled Delhi–Mumbai flight. The type and instrument privileges are fine, but the privilege sought - PIC in scheduled commercial air transport - requires an ATPL. The lawful answer is co-pilot until 1,500 hours and ATPL issue are completed.

Traps

Confusing licence validity with medical validity and with recency. Assuming a type rating confers instructor privileges. Forgetting that a foreign licence needs validation or conversion - Article 33 recognition does not automatically authorise an Indian operator's crew.