Type Rating Explained: FAA and EASA Rules on When Pilots Need One

A type rating is an authorisation on a pilot licence for one specific aircraft type, or a closely related family of variants, sitting on top of the licence and the category and class ratings. Under the ICAO Annex 1 framework, type ratings should be established for aircraft certificated for a minimum crew of at least two pilots and for any other aircraft where the licensing authority considers it necessary. Closely related models can share one rating: the Boeing 757 and 767 share one, as do members of the Airbus A320 family, and pilots move between them with differences training.

In the United States, 14 CFR 61.31(a) requires a pilot in command to hold a type rating for large aircraft (except lighter-than-air), turbojet-powered airplanes, powered-lift, and other aircraft the FAA specifies through the type certificate process. Under 14 CFR 1.1, large aircraft means more than 12,500 lb maximum certificated takeoff weight. A Cessna Citation Mustang, at 8,645 lb maximum takeoff weight, falls below that line but still needs a type rating because it is jet powered. Under 61.31(b), the FAA can authorise flight without the rating for up to 60 days.

The FAA checkride is flown at airline transport pilot standards, and under 61.63(d) the applicant must hold or concurrently obtain an instrument rating. Under 61.63(e), some older aircraft not equipped for the instrument part can receive the rating with a 'VFR only' limitation, removable later. Under 14 CFR 61.64, the whole practical test for a turbojet type rating may be flown in a Level C or higher full flight simulator, apart from the preflight inspection, if the applicant meets one of several experience tests, such as holding a type rating in another turbojet of the same class.

In EASA countries, Part-FCL Subpart H governs type ratings. FCL.700 says a licence holder may act as pilot only with a valid and appropriate class or type rating, with narrow exceptions. Under FCL.725, the course takes place at an approved training organisation and must include the mandatory training elements defined by the manufacturer's operational suitability data. For multi-pilot aircraft, the theoretical knowledge exam is written with at least 100 multiple-choice questions, followed by a skill test with an examiner.

Typical courses run from ground school on systems, limitations, performance and procedures, ending in the type exam, through fixed-base trainer drills to the full flight simulator, where engine failures, fires, rejected takeoffs and system failures are practised, and finish with the skill test or checkride. Experienced airline pilots may qualify for a zero flight time course flown entirely in a Level C or D simulator. Under FCL.740, class and type ratings are valid for one year, or two years for single-pilot single-engine class ratings.

The two regimes draw the line differently. The US triggers a rating on weight or powerplant, so a light jet like the Citation Mustang is captured despite sitting well under 12,500 lb. EASA ties the requirement to class or type validity and to manufacturer-defined training content delivered through approved organisations. For an operator, the practical consequence is that crew qualification is a property of the aircraft type, not of the pilot's general experience.

Family-sharing is where the economics shift. Because variants such as the A320 family or the 757 and 767 share one rating, differences training substitutes for a full course, so mixed fleets within one family cost less to crew than mixed fleets across families. The simulator provisions work in the same direction: allowing the practical test in a Level C or higher device, and zero flight time courses, moves most of the cost from aircraft hours to simulator time.

The validity periods set the recurring workload. With one-year validity for most ratings under FCL.740, every type on a fleet generates a revalidation event for each pilot every year, so crew planning has to be scheduled around check dates as much as around flying demand.