Air Law Before First Solo.

[Delta Wun-Wun]

Could I ask you all a question regarding taking your Air Law exam prior to first solo.
I was discussing this with a mate at work yesterday who said it was not necessary to take the Air Law exam before your first solo.
When I was taking my PPL my Instructor said that you were required to take the Air Law exam prior to your first solo.Who is right?

[Lowtimer]

DWW-

Not an instructor personally - quite the opposite - but the CFI at my UK-based FTO is adamant that you need Air Law and the medical prior to first solo, and this also accords with my own understanding from the Air Law syllabus itself.

Speaking personally it would seem a bit daft otherwise - you're P1, legal commander of the aeroplane as a solo student, so you should know what you're in danger of transgressing :-)

[Captain Chaos 747]

Technically you don't have to do your air law exam before first solo but a large amount of the schools require you to pass it first. Hope that helps.

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Anything more than 75% in a exam means you worked to hard.

[DB6]

Legally all that is required before first solo is a valid class 2 medical and you must be over 16 (I think it's 16 anyway). Most flying schools will require that you pass air law first but it's not a CAA requirement.

[Another CFI]

The AOPA syllabus, which most flying schools follow, states that Air Law is desirable prior to first solo. Whilst not a legal requirement I would feel very uncomfortable about sending a student solo without a pass in Air Law.

For instance without a pass in Air Law the student may not have a clue what to do were a risk of a collision to arise.

[Delta Wun-Wun]

Thanks for that.

[cessnababe]

Although there is no specific legal requirement to pass Air Law before first solo, there is often a club rule in the Flying Orders Book to this effect. It may also state that the student should pass Met, Nav and HPL before first solo cross-country. I would tend to agree that this is desirable and it was set out in CAA Guidance to Examiners some time back.

If there is such a rule in your club or school's Flying Orders book and it is not adhered to and the student had an accident, it could cause problems with the insurance. The instructor would be the likely target as it is his responsibility to ensure that his student complies.

[Delta Wun-Wun]

The reason for my question was to answer the question asked by my work mate.He had been chatting to some bloke who claimed that he had gone solo without passing the Air Law exam.We both thought this odd as my mate`s Flying Instructor has said Medical and Air Law before first solo,just as I had done.
Anyway thanks again for taking the time and trouble to reply.

[MJR]

The reason why most schools insist on students passing air law prior to their first solo is because air law is a fairly tedious subject hence the "carrot" of the 1st solo is supposed to provide a little incentive.

cheers

MJR