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Ready for a Commercial Certificate:
If you are going to fly for compensation or hire, you'll need a commercial certificate. Luckily, much of the certificate can be done on your own.
Commercial Certificate Experience Requirements
Total Flight Experience: 250 hours minimum
Pilot in Command (PIC) Experience: 100 hours minimum
Airplane (PIC) Flight Experience: 50 hours minimum
Night Flight Solo Experience: 5 hours with 10 landings at a controlled field.
Cross Country Experience: 50 hours minimum, including one solo flight of at least 300 nautical miles.
Commercial Rating Instruction Required
Instrument Training: 10 hours or completion of instrument rating.
Complex Airplane Training: 10 hours
Day Cross Country Training: 2 hours
Night Cross Country Training: 2 hours
Check Ride Preparation: 3 hours
Frequently Asked Questions - Commercial Rating
Q. How long does it take to become a commercial pilot?
A. The total time depends upon how much you can fly. It is not unreasonable to expect to finish a commercial rating for single-engine land airplanes in under a year if you can stay reasonably active. A total of 250 flight hours is required for a single engine commercial rating.
Q. I want to fly corporate jets - how do I get there?
A. It all starts with the initial certificates and ratings (private, instrument, commercial). From there you can progress to multi-engine airplanes, type ratings, and turbine powered aircraft. Many people obtain an instructor rating and instruct others to both hone their own skills and acquire flight time while getting paid.