Flight Training - July 2024 - 18

PREFLIGHT YOU CAN FLY
PREFLIGHT ASK AOPA
BY CRAIG BROWN
BURDEN OF PROOF
CONFIRMING YOUR STUDENTS'
NATIONALITY
Q: Can I simply retain a copy of my student
pilot's birth certificate, in lieu of an
endorsement, to prove to TSA she is a U.S.
citizen? My flight school says the endorsement
is mandatory.
WHAT IS AFTA?
MORE EFFECTIVE FLIGHT TRAINING AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
AS THE LEADING ADVOCATE FOR GENeral
aviation pilots, AOPA is committed
to growing and supporting the pilot
population. The association's You Can
Fly program began in 2014 with the goal
of supporting GA through four initiatives:
high schools, flight training, flying clubs,
and rusty pilots. Especially important to
the You Can Fly goals is helping students
with flight training. AOPA Flight Training
Advantage (AFTA) is a web
portal- and iPad-based training application
that will help make the process
of flight training more effective for the
student, the flight instructor, and the
flight school.
AFTA individually customizes lesson
plans. It keeps pace with a student's
progress, so they know what to expect
and how to prepare for each lesson.
Students can see how they've performed
with a full detailed lesson history-
18
FLIGHT TRAINING JULY 2024
instantly on their phone, computer, or
other device. Students can check their
training progress; access tips, videos, and
articles in support of critical skills they
need to master; and earn badges that
will entice them to keep going. AFTA
saves students time and money by
streamlining training.
CFIs and flight schools benefit from
AFTA, too. Lesson prep, access to student
records, and grading help deliver an efficient,
high-quality training experience.
AFTA automatically assigns lesson
elements based on student performance,
while giving CFIs and schools the flexibility
to modify on demand. Students
appreciate anytime access to their lesson
history, progress reports, and lesson prep
materials. Instructors enjoy automating
lesson creation, assigning study materials,
and tracking student progress.
aopa.org/afta
A: Absolutely. And the endorsement is
not mandatory. If you look in the Interim
Final Rule, 49 CFR 1552.3(i)(iv), originally
published on September 20, 2004, the only
wording in there is to make a copy of, and
retain for five years, the student's birth
certificate as proof she is a U.S. citizen.
There are five other acceptable documents
noted as well, but there is no mention of an
endorsement in that rule.
The endorsement came later; it was in
the form of an exemption granted by the
TSA in October 2004. The flight training
provider still had to determine if a student
was a U.S. citizen or national. However, in
lieu of maintaining a copy of a birth certificate
for five years, the provider was now
authorized to insert an endorsement into
the student's logbook confirming citizenship,
after seeing the birth certificate.
Introductory/discovery flights are
exempt from this requirement. The TSA
addressed this in a clarification letter after
the rule was released. Since few prospective
pilots walk into a flight school with a
birth certificate, this was a smart move.
AOPA has heard claims of student pilot
training time being null and void if a flight
training provider forgot to or did not confirm
citizenship. While this is certainly a
gross oversight on the school's part, it has
no bearing on the logging of flight training
time and is simply not true.
CRAIG BROWN is a senior aviation technical
specialist in the AOPA Pilot Information Center.
pilotassist@aopa.org
CHRIS ROSE
http://www.aopa.org/afta
Flight Training - July 2024

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