Originally Posted by rick1128
Rotorhead, Under FAA regulations a pilot is not required to undergo an approved course for a type rating. Approved courses are for the pilot to meet certain requirements for a certificate or rating. The checkride comes after and is a separate event.
I don't know that I agree with that statement, at least not as written. Firstly, 14 CFR Part 61.31(d)(2) states:
(d) Aircraft category, class, and
type ratings: Limitations on operating an aircraft as the pilot in command.
To serve as the pilot in command of an aircraft, a person must:
....
(2)
Have received training required by this part that is
appropriate to the pilot certification level, aircraft category, class, and type rating (if a class or type rating is required) for the aircraft to be flown, and have received an endorsement for solo flight in that aircraft from an authorized instructor.
I read that to mean that in order to be eligible for the issuance of a type rating at least some sort of a training course must have been successfully completed.
Secondly, what exactly do you mean the checkride "comes later and is a separate event"? My most recent checkride came after I completed my employer's new-hire F/O initial training course, which made me eligible to take my A320 type ride, I couldn't take the checkride without completing the rest of the course, of which the ride was the second-to-last event (LOFT was last).