The Night Rating
A night qualification is a requirements for the issue of a JAA Commercial Pilots Licence. This rating can however be bypassed if you hour build in the US where under FAA rules this qualification is not required and you gain 5 hours of night experience. If you were to gain this licence in the USA or Canada, most airports are 24/7 operations even if the control tower isn’t manned so year times are not an issue. If this is your plan then it’s best to combine it with some other hour building as simply gaining the rating overseas will not be cost effective and the cost of airline flights and accomodation will out weigh any savings. This is since to gain your rating you do not need to do much flight time. The basic requirements are listed below. 5 hours flight time. 3 hours dual instruction To include 1 hour of navigation training 5 take offs and complete full stop landings as captain at night Currency requirements. In order to stay current at night flying, there is no testing requirement. You are required to complete 3 takeoffs and landings as Captain within the previous 90 days. Most flying clubs and schools within the UK and Europe offer this rating. I would suggest shopping around to see about prices. Don’t forget to check about landing fees as you will be doing quite a few circuits as part of the flight training. Cheaper landing fees can make a big difference. Also flight instructors who are building their hours towards their ATPL and future airline employment will be very happy to have a night student so if you know a few flight instructors, you may find they will give you favourable rates for freelance instruction from them. This can also be a good cost saving and because you pay the instructor directly they make more money.
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