TSA has issued Title 49 of the United States Code of Federal Regulations Part 1552 that prohibits a flight school from providing flight training in an aircraft or aircraft simulator to non-U.S. Citizens without TSA approval. Under this Rule, pilots must create and maintain a TSA account at www.flightschoolcandidates.gov. Based on these details, TSA will determine that the candidate is not a threat to aviation or national security and issue permission to train.
TSA applications should be made at least 30 days before your scheduled training event.
Non-US Citizens are required to receive TSA approval for training before commencing training. This process can take a few weeks, so be sure to start sooner rather than later. The link below takes you to the TSA website.
TSA Divides Pilots Into 4 Categories Depending On The Type Of Training Planned.
Category 1: For pilots who do not have a type rating (over 12,500 lbs. 5,670kg) on their airman certificate (FAA or foreign) and do not qualify for Category 2 below. If this is your first type rating, then you are a Category 1 applicant.
Category 2: For pilots who have a type rating (over 12,500 lbs. 5,670kg) on their FAA airman certificate (FAA or Non-US), but training in an aircraft for which they are not currently qualified.
If you are adding a new type rating to a certificate, and you are not Category 1 (above), then you are a Category 2 applicant. Pilots must choose from the following subcategories;
- The pilot is employed by a foreign air carrier with a security program approved under Title 49 CFR.
- The pilot is a flight crew member with a criminal history check under Title 49 CFR. Select this category if you submitted fingerprints to the AFSP.
Category 3: For pilots training in any aircraft with an MTOW of 12,500 lbs. (5,670kg) Or less. Category 3 does not apply to any GCAS training programs. You are not a Category 3 applicant.
Category 4: For pilots who are training in aircraft with a MTOW over 12,500 lbs (5,670kg) that they are already qualified in, for example, recurrent training. No fingerprints are required. View the Recurrent TSA Approval Process.
Our team is happy to help you navigate the TSA process if you have problems, but please start the process early.
Once you navigate to the TSA website:
- Request approval for a Category 1, 2, or 4 training event as appropriate.
- Enter ‘TBD’ for the Course ID number
- Course Name: ATP CTP or Type Rating
- Select Gulf Coast Aeronautical Services, LLC in Freeport, FL, as the Training Center Location. Our Freeport FL office is our corporate office. When we receive the training request from the TSA, we are required to identify the training location for the TSA.
Gulf Coast Aeronautical Services offers free assistance to our customers in the creation of online TSA accounts. TSA accounts can be challenging to create properly with errors resulting in a delay of TSA approval. We recommended that you contact Gulf Coast Aeronautical Services International’s TSA Assist Team to review your online TSA account information.
Click
here to go to TSA FTSO Candidate Portal.