The CPL is the licence that permits a pilot to be paid for flying. Candidates need substantially more experience than for a PPL — around 150–250 hours depending on the regulatory route — plus advanced theory exams and a commercial-level skill test.
The Commercial Pilot Licence permits a pilot to be paid for flying. Under EASA it is reached by two routes: modular — building from PPL through hour-building, theory and a CPL course, requiring 200 hours total for issue — or integrated, a continuous ab-initio programme at an ATO. The FAA commercial certificate requires 250 hours plus its own knowledge and practical tests.
The CPL rarely travels alone: airline-track students combine it with ATPL theory and a multi-engine instrument rating into the 'frozen ATPL' package, while other career paths — instructing, survey, banner towing — start on the bare CPL with single-engine privileges.
Why it matters for flight schools
Commercial students are the revenue core of career-focused schools: high hours, long enrolments, and a programme structure (theory windows, hour prerequisites, test sequencing) complex enough that administration quality directly affects completion time. A CPL student idle for six weeks waiting on a misplanned prerequisite is both a cost and a churn risk.
How FlightLogger handles it
FlightLogger tracks the whole CPL package — hours by category against requirements, theory validity, phase prerequisites — so students sequence through the programme without dead time between phases.
Frequently asked questions
Is a CPL enough to get an airline job?
Not alone — airlines expect the frozen-ATPL package: CPL plus multi-engine instrument rating plus completed ATPL theory, often plus an MCC/JOC course. The CPL is the licence; the package is the product.
Modular or integrated — which route is better?
Modular is cheaper and flexible, fitting work alongside training; integrated is faster, more structured and historically preferred by some airline cadet channels. Completion quality matters more than route — both produce airline pilots.