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Type Ratings: Which Pilot Qualifications Are Transferable To Other Aircraft? - Simple Flying

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Summary

  • Airline pilots need type ratings for each jet they fly.
  • Aircraft like the Embraer E170, Boeing 737, and Airbus A320 share a common type rating, making it easier for airlines to conduct training within a fleet.
  • Type ratings differ in every jurisdiction, and airlines have specific agreements with governing authorities for type training.

Specialized, detailed training is required to fly large jet aircraft. Whether flying in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, or the Americas, civil aviation authorities widely mandate that pilots who fly transport planes with a takeoff weight greater than 12,500 pounds and turbojet engines earn a "type rating."

A type rating class incorporates systems training, aircraft handling, and emergency procedures and usually spans the course of weeks. The training culminates in a check ride given by a country's aviation authority. Earning a new type rating is a milestone for pilots because of the required work. Fortunately for pilots (as well as airlines), many aircraft share a common type rating and are transferrable. Here is a non-exhaustive list of some of the airliners that share a common type rating.

Regional jets

The Embraer E170 family, which spans the E170, 175, 190, and the E2 next-generation aircraft are all covered by a common type rating that appears on a certificate as "ERJ-170, ERJ-190." The Mitsubishi (formerly Bombardier) CRJ family has a common type rating for the CRJ-200, -700, and -900 under the "CL-65" type rating. The longer -1000 variant has a different type.

C-FEKS Air Canada Express Embraer E175SU (2)
Photo: Vincenzo Pace I Simple Flying

Boeing 737

The Boeing 737 is in its seventh decade of production and has 14 different variants currently certified by the FAA from the -100 to the MAX 9 series. Amazingly, all the currently produced 737s share the common type rating of "B-737" (excluding the MAX 7 and 10 which have yet to be certified at the time of writing). A driving predicate of Boeing's design for the newest MAX variants was to share a common type rating, a request made by multiple airlines as a condition of placing orders.

N8705Q Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 (1)
Photo: Vincenzo Pace I Simple Flying

It's yet to be determined whether the MAX 7 and 10 variants of the Boeing 737 will require EICAS displays to display engine parameters. Should this be required by the FAA, it's a near certainty that the MAX 7 and 10 would require a new rating rather than the standard differences training, which the airlines would like to avoid. The MAX 7 and 10 are currently in flight testing and have been slated for a mid-2024 certification by the FAA according to Reuters.

Airbus A320

The Airbus A320 "family" is often referred to as such because of the fleet's commonalities. Pilots with the "A-320" type rating on their ATP certificate can fly everything from the A318 to the A321neo series of aircraft. Compared to the 737, the A320 is newer and has incorporated fly-by-wire technology from the outset of its design concept. Most airline pilots fly a range between the A319 and the A321. The A321 is 35 feet longer than the A319, so differences training is required with emphasis on takeoff and landing.

N308FR Frontier Airbus A320-251N (1)
Photo: Vincenzo Pace I Simple Flying

Boeing 757 & widebodies

The Boeing 757 and 767 have a common type, which appears on a pilot's certificate as "B-757, B-767." This type rating spans the range from the 757-200 to the 767-400ER. Delta Air Lines is the world's largest operator of the joint fleet, with 174 in service. Delta pilots who are trained to fly the 767-400ER stick solely to that fleet, while a larger group of their pilots is qualified to fly their 757-200s, -300s, and 767-300ERs. This comes down to differences in the electronic displays on the flight deck.

N589NW Delta Air Lines Boeing 757-351 (3)
Photo: Vincenzo Pace I Simple Flying

The Boeing 777 and 787 have unified ratings in some European and other global jurisdictions, while the FAA separates the types. The yet-to-be-certified Boeing 777X family is assumed to be covered by the 777 type, which spans from the -200 to the -300ER.

Airbus widebodies

In many places, the Airbus A330 and A340 families share a common type rating, while the FAA separates the two into the "A-330" and "A-340" type ratings. The A330 type rating includes the -200 through to the newest -900neo. The A330 also shares a type in some countries with the A350, requiring minimal differences training. The FAA separates every widebody Airbus fleet into its own type, including the "A-350" and "A-380."

G-XWBG British Airways Airbus A350-1041 (1)
Photo: Vincenzo Pace I Simple Flying

Everywhere is different...

Finally, it should be acknowledged that talking about type ratings is a can of worms. What holds true in one jurisdiction is almost guaranteed to be slightly different in another. To illustrate the point, a pilot who has flown thousands of hours at the airline level outside the US is unlikely to be able to count any of this flight time towards US certification. Civil aviation authorities, unified by the ICAO, agree on many things, but pilot licensing is the prerogative of each locale.

Additionally, airlines come to training agreements with their governing authorities which allow for multiple fleets to be flown with specific, agreed-upon type training. Air Austral pilots can fly the Boeing 787-8 and the 777-300ER on the same trip sequence, while a British Airways or American Airlines pilot wouldn't dream of it. For detailed information on the topic, check out FAA Advisory Circular 120-53B. Here's a link to the FAA's Pilot Certificate Designators and EASA's Type Ratings and Licence Endorsement List. Good luck trying to understand it all!

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