Washington, DC – The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced today that all flight instruction in the United States would be halted until April 30th, and possibly longer subject to review. The announcement was accompanied by a statement that this is an attempt to help stop the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
The only exception to the rule is if both the student and instructor have tested positive for COVID-19 and they’re confident in their ability to pass the IM SAFE checklist.
If you are a student pilot who is currently COVID-19 positive and want to continue your training, a list of infected flight instructors will be made available online at the FAA Medical Conditions Portal.
The FAA is developing an app that will allow infected students to access the list of infected instructors then choose swipe left to pass or right to select the CFI. Once a match has been made, the app will recommend an uncontrolled airport in close proximity to the pair where they can meet alone and train in a sterilized Cessna 172 provided by the participating airport.
When pressed for other options, the FAA said, “We are looking into Zoom training where an instructor could train from the safety of their home via cell phone or iPad. The app we are developing is called “Zoom Climb” but so far only RV pilots have expressed any interest in downloading it.”