New Commercial Pilot Video Training Course app available

Ask a group of pilots what it takes to earn a Commercial Pilot certificate and you’ll get a mixed set of responses, including mentions of long cross-country flights, logging 250 hours, learning new flight maneuvers which include the word “eight” in their name and passing the commercial written test.

While all of that is true, there’s a lot more pilots need to learn during commercial training to upgrade their Private Pilot certificate. Most Commercial Pilot training apps focus solely on the written test and require pilots to learn the rest on their own through lots of reading and lessons with their flight instructor.

To help bridge the training gap for those who prefer a more engaging and structured video-based approach, Sporty’s recently developed a new 13-hour video course focused on all aspects of Commercial Pilot Training, including maneuvers training, ground school, written test prep and checkride prep.

The new course is available in Sporty’s popular Pilot Training app, available for iPhone, iPad, Android, AppleTV, RokuTV and online.

Video Training

Hundreds of thousands of pilots have used Sporty’s Learn to Fly and Instrument Rating Courses over the years to complement the in-person training with a flight instructor. The new Commercial Pilot Course builds on this success and incorporates the same high-quality video approach for both ground and flight lessons in the app.

The course focuses on 6 main subject areas:

Flight Maneuvers: Fly and along with the instructors from Sporty’s Academy to learn Chandelles, Lazy Eights, Eights on Pylons, Steep Spirals, Power-Off Accuracy Approaches, plus all of the other flight maneuvers required for the checkride Stalls and Steep Turns.

Weather: Explore real-world applications of weather theory, including the cause of hazards like thunderstorms, turbulence, and ice, and how to avoid them in flight using ADS-B datalink weather.

Aerodynamics and Performance: Take a deep dive into topics like drag and angle of attack, and learn all about the VG diagram and the importance of maneuvering speed.

Spin training is an important topic during commercial training, and you’ll learn from the best—Patty Wagstaff. Patty explores the aerodynamics of spins and the recovery techniques, based on her years of championship aerobatic flying.

Airplane Systems and High-Altitude Flight: The course explores all aspects of operating higher-performance airplanes, including retractable landing gear, high-performance engines, turbocharging, pressurization, ice protection, digital engine monitoring, the Garmin GFC-500 autopilot and rules for flying in the flight levels.

Navigation and Cross-Country: You’ll spend a lot of time flying cross-country trips during commercial training, and this chapter covers everything from planning with the latest tools and apps, basic and advanced navigation techniques and working with ATC and ADS-B.

Commercial Pilot Regulations: Commercial pilots have new regulations to comply with when it comes time to fly for hire and this chapter covers the important distinctions on what can and can’t be done after you earn your certificate.

All of the video training is accessible in the included Pilot Training app for AppleTV and RokuTV as well, allowing you to study on the big screen at home.

Knowledge Test Prep

The course includes a thorough test prep component to help with preparation for the Commercial Pilot knowledge test. This includes a database of over 800 test questions covering all the essential topics, from airplane systems to weather to FAA regulations. You can choose individual categories or study random questions. It also includes Smart Study Sessions to help you focus on topics that need the most work, so you spend less time studying questions you already know.

Aviation Library

The course includes all the required study resources in one convenient location for quick reference presented in a sophisticated document viewer. This includes the complete Commercial Pilot Airman Certification Standards, Study Guide, International Flying Guide There’s also a complete flight training syllabus, the same one used in Sporty’s flight school, to help you organize your training and record each lesson. Lastly, you’ll find all the relevant FAA handbooks here, from the Airplane Flying Handbook to ACs on Private and Common Carriage.

Checkride Prep

Many pilots say the interview with a designated pilot examiner is the most challenging part of the whole process, and the checkride prep component is designed to make this a breeze. It allows you to gauge your readiness in a self-guided question/answer session using flashcards. Click the card to flip it over and see the answer, complete with a link for further study. Just like the knowledge test section, you can study only marked or missed flashcards, plus take Smart Study sessions for focused review.

The Commercial Pilot Video and Test Prep Course includes lifetime access online, on iPad, iPhone, Android, AppleTV and RokuTV and is available for $249.99. Download the Pilot Training App for iPad or iPhone to try a free demo of the course.