Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have any questions for us? Give us a call or send an email and we’ll get back to you within 24 hours. Below you’ll read some of the common questions we’ve received.
Q1. Can you tell me the process to become a Private Pilot in Canada?
If you’re interested in even more details than what is provided in the video below, you can sign up to our free PSTAR course here! Inside the PSTAR is a video that’s approximately 35 minutes long and it goes into even more detail about the process of becoming a Pilot in Canada. (The video below is an overview of this process, but the video inside our free PSTAR will go into much more detail about the process.)
Q2. Is 43 too elderly to become a Commercial Pilot?
Q3. Can you tell me about the options for becoming an Airline Pilot (or Commercial Pilot) in Canada?
Q4. Do I need to pass the PSTAR if I’ve already been Pilot 15 years ago?
Q5. Can you give me some advice on becoming a Commercial Pilot?
Q6. Are you waiting on your Medical Certificate from Transport Canada?
Q7. Can a 15 yr old really take Hangaaar’s Online Ground School and become a pilot?
Q8. Should I take the Ultralight Ground School or the Private Pilot Ground School course?
Q9. Can I do my training for a Commercial Pilot Licence with a Float Plane?
Q10. How do I convert a foreign Commercial Pilot Licence to a Canadian Licence?
Q11. How do I get my letter of recommendation from Hangaaar?
A. In order to write the Private Pilot exam with Transport Canada, a student pilot requires a letter of recommendation stating that, in short, the student pilot has met the requirements as set by Transport Canada and that the signed Flight Instructor (or Flight Training Unit) feels that the student pilot has acquired the sufficient knowledge.
Hangaaar’s online ground school Private Pilot Ground School (PPL) course complies with the Transport Canada requirements. Once you complete the course you can email or call Hangaaar in order to obtain your letter of recommendation. (1.84.HANGAAAR – toll free 1.844.264.2227 or email info@hangaaar.com)
Once you finish the Hangaaar course, getting your letter is pretty simple:
1. Send a copy (or photo) of the most recent page of your Pilot Training Record. It should be kept at your flight school as they keep track of it for you. The last page of your PTR should be dated and signed by your flight instructor. Your PTR will need to show that you have a minimum of 5 hours of Flight Training because that is a Transport Canada minimum requirement. (NOTE: This used to be 10 hours of Flight Time required but due to Covid-19, this has “temporarily” been modified by Transport Canada so that you only require 5 hours of Flight Time in your PTR in order to write your PPL exam! At some point it will likely go back to the standard 10 hour requirement.)
2. Confirm that it is the full Private Pilot (PPAER) exam you wish to write (as opposed to just the Recreational Permit).
3. Send us a photo of either your Student Pilot Permit or your Aviation Medical Certificate from Transport Canada.
When you send in #1 – #3 above we will do a review of your participation in the course to make sure you’ve watched every video and taken every quiz as detailed in the course. We will then issue you a letter of recommendation and it will be good for 60 days.
Typically, once you send in the info from #1 – #3 it will take about 24-48 hours to get your letter of recommendation issued. You can use this letter anywhere across Canada to write your Transport Canada exam.
Here’s where you can find the Transport Canada list of “Exam Invigilators” where you can write your aviation exams. With the letter of recommendation you’ll get by completing our Private Pilot (or Commercial Pilot) ground school course, you can contact the Exam Invigilator closest to you to schedule your TC exam.
Q12. What usually happens in a Category 1 Medical examination?
A. The initial issue of a category 1 will normally require the normal medical exam (same as category 3) which must be assessed by Transport Canada as meeting the requirements of a category 1. It is also normal to have an electrocardiogram, chest X-ray and hearing test.
Your doctor cannot issue you a category 1 by signing your booklet. You must wait for the label to arrive in the mail. To make all this happen you simply have to contact your medical examiner and request an appointment for a category 1 medical.
Here’s a good link to help you find a qualified aviation medical examiner in Canada:
Click to find an aviation medical examiner near you.
Q13. I was just wondering if I were to sign up for the online PPL ground school if the lessons are able to be logged in my PTR and count towards the 40 hours. My work schedule makes it almost impossible to make all the lessons consecutively and I’d like to get it completed to move on to my commercial. Thanks for the help!
A. With regards to whether you can use our online ground school to be entered into your PTR and count towards the 40 hours, yes, that’s exactly why we created the course. There’s a lot of people in a similar situation with a work schedule that makes it nearly impossible to get their ground school, and pilots having been using our online ground school to meet the requirement since we started back in 2013.
Q14. What materials do I need to purchase to help me with ground school?
A. For our Private Pilot or our Recreational Pilot Permit ground school, below is the list of items recommended for a Ground school kit. These can be purchased from VIP Pilot Supplies online or by telephone. They ship items overnight if you order by 4 p.m. Eastern time:
- $79.95 – From the Ground Up – here
- $59.95 – RCAF Weather Manual – here
- $59.95 – RCAF Weather Manual workbook – here
- $169.95 – CX-3 Flight computer – here (See an online CX3 example here… but you’ll need your own Flight Computer for your Transport Canada written exam and Flight Test… you won’t be able to use the “free” online version for the actual exam and flight test.)
- $2.95 – Chart ruler – see example here
- $9.95 – Douglas Protractor – see example here
- $16.50 – Local VNC chart – see examples here
Pilot Operating Handbook – When you start flying, you’ll want the aircraft POH. Pick the one for your specific aircraft after you meet and talk to your Flight Instructor. (Piper, Cessna, Diamond, etc…) Hold off on this until you join a flying club / flight school and find out what aircraft you’ll be training on. Then you can buy a copy from your Flight Instructor / Flight School for your EXACT aircraft.
Items #1 – #3 are recommended, not required, in order to provide you with reference material on an aviation topic, especially if you wish to read up more in detail about various aspects of aviation. It’s nice to have a trusted source for information, especially if you feel “stuck” on something!
Items #4 – #6 are not required to complete our online course, but you will need these items to write your exam at Transport Canada. Some students are told they should use an E6B Flight Computer instead of a CX3 Flight Computer Our Private Pilot course contains videos for both, but most students find it easier, and more accurate, to use a digital flight computer instead of the manual e6b.
Item #7 – When you eventually do your Flight Training, you will require a local VNC chart. It is recommended to have one from your local flying area (ie: Calgary VNC, Toronto VNC, Vancouver VNC, Montreal VNC, Halifax VNC, etc…)
Q15. What materials should I purchase to help me with my Commercial Pilot Ground School? Can you make any recommendations?
A. Below is a list of recommended items for our Commercial Pilot Online Ground School course. (Links to where to purchase these can be found inside the “Resources” section.) You can use VIPPilot.com or AVWorld.ca to purchase these.
1. From the Ground Up
2. Flying Beyond
3. The Advanced Pilot’s Flight Manual
4. Human Factors Handbook
5. CX3 Flight Computer
6. LO Enroute Chart – pick the one for the area where you fly
7. VNC Chart – pick the one for the area where you fly
8. ICAO Chart Rule
9. Douglas Protractor
Q16. What materials should I purchase to help me with my Instrument Rating Ground School? Can you make any recommendations?
A. Below is a list of recommended items for our Instrument Rating Online Ground School course. (Links to where to purchase these can be found inside the “Resources” section.) You can use VIPPilot.com or AVWorld.ca to purchase these.
1. From the Ground Up
2. Flight Computer (we recommend the CX3 because you can likely learn how to use it in a few minutes just from the detailed menus that are part of the calculator.)
3. Air Command Weather Manual (from Transport Canada)
4. Aeronautical Information Manual (available online and the link is also in our Resources section of the course)
5. The Canada Air Pilot CAPGEN (available from NavCanada or also part of online flight planning tools like ForeFlight or FltPlan.com)
6. LO Enroute Chart (available from NavCanada or also part of online flight planning tools like ForeFlight or FltPlan.com)
All the charts and CAPGEN images that are used in the IFR online ground school are available as PDFs inside the course.
Q17. If I take your Hangaaar Online Ground School for the Private Pilot (or Commercial Pilot) license, where do I write my exam?
In order to write your Private Pilot (or Commercial Pilot) exam, you’ll need a letter of recommendation from us stating you completed the Transport Canada ground school requirement, and then you can write your exam anywhere across Canada.
Some of the busier flight schools have an exam “invigilator” that conducts the TC exams at that school, but you can also write your TC exam with any authorized exam invigilators across Canada. You can see the list of all examination invigilators authorized by Transport Canada here.
Q18. Where can I find the Category 4 Medical self declaration form from Transport Canada?
You can access the Transport Canada self-declaration Category 4 form here.
Q19. Once I have a letter of recommendation from Hangaaar, where do I write my Transport Canada exam?
Contact a Transport Canada “Exam Invigilator” to schedule your aviation exam. If you’re wanting to write the Private Pilot or Commercial Pilot exam, you’ll need a letter of recommendation. If you complete Hangaaar’s Private Pilot (or Commercial Pilot) ground school course, we’ll provide you with a letter of recommendation that is valid for 60 days. You can use that letter to contact the Exam Invigilator closest to you to schedule your TC exam.
Q20. I would like to get my aviation foreign licence from Columbia converted to a Canadian aviation licence. Can you tell me about this process?
If you hold a CPL license from a country that is not the United States or Canada, you will see the actual requirements are found in the Canadian Aviation Regulations. Here is a summary of what you will need:
1. A Canadian category 1 medical. You can find one here.
2. PSTAR examination- given to student pilots and is a simple Air Regulations Examination. You can use our free app for Google Android phones or tablets here or for iPhones and iPads here to prepare for it. You can write the exam at any flying school and it is usually free.
3. Commercial Pilot Written Examination. 100 questions. 3 hours. You must get 60% over all and 60% on all 4 sections. Cost is about $110 and must be written at either a Transport Canada office or selected test centres found at some training schools. As the holder of a foreign licence you do not require ground school but it is highly recommended. If you want an online option please check out our course at the hangaaar.com website. We offer the course that is delivered online but also unlimited support for your specific questions. Other pilots from outside Canada have found this to be valuable and we know that someone who already has a CPL will have different questions than someone who does not.
4. Commercial Pilot Flight Test. There is no minimum training requirement but you will find it useful to learn how to fly the test exercises. You do not require an instructor recommendation to attempt the flight test. Examiner fees are typically $3-500 depending on the Local market. Normally the training school can help arrange this.
I would book an aviation medical as soon as possible as these are taking longer than normal to be processed. Also, you did not say whether you also needed to convert your instrument rating or wished to obtain one but we can help with that too.
Q21. How do I contact Transport Canada with regards to my medical? Do you have their contact information?
You can use this link here to see the contact information for all the various “regions” across Canada. Just go to that link and scroll down to the dropdown menu for the region closest to you and you will see their contact information.
