If you are training for your private pilot certificate, one document quietly governs the whole finish line: the Airman Certification Standards (ACS). It defines what you have to know, what risks you have to manage, and what you have to be able to do to pass, on the written test, the oral, and the checkride.
This page covers the private pilot ACS specifically. For the full family of FAA tests and how the ACS works across every certificate, see our ACS and Checkride Prep guide.
New to all this? The ACS is the standard you are ultimately tested against. If you are earlier in the journey, start with our Private Pilot License guide and come back when you begin ground school.
What is the ACS?
The Airman Certification Standards is the FAA’s official document that lays out the completion standards for a certificate or rating. For the private pilot certificate in an airplane, that document is FAA-S-ACS-6 (current edition FAA-S-ACS-6C, effective May 31, 2024), paired with its companion, FAA-G-ACS-2.
Think of the ACS as the single source of truth that connects your three tests: the knowledge test (the written) draws its questions from the knowledge areas in the ACS; the oral exam is the examiner verifying those same knowledge and risk-management elements out loud; and the flight test measures your skills against the tolerances printed in the ACS.
Pursuing a different certificate? The ACS applies to nearly every FAA test. See every FAA ACS test explained, covering the instrument, commercial, and flight instructor standards too.
ACS vs. the old PTS
Older material refers to the PTS (Practical Test Standards). The ACS replaced the PTS for private pilot in 2016. The PTS focused almost entirely on skills. The ACS keeps those skill standards but adds two things to every task: aeronautical knowledge and risk management. If a source still says PTS, it predates this change and may be out of date.
How the ACS is structured
The ACS is a simple hierarchy. Areas of Operation are the big phases of flight. Tasks are specific subjects within an Area. Every Task is broken into three element types: Knowledge (K), Risk Management (R), and Skill (S). Each element has a unique code, and those codes are how everything ties together.
Reading an ACS code: PA.I.B.K1 breaks down as PA (Private Airplane), I (Area of Operation I, Preflight Preparation), B (Task B, Weather Information), K1 (Knowledge element 1). Your knowledge-test report lists the codes you missed, so you can take that report straight to your instructor and review exactly those elements before the oral.
The Private Pilot Airplane Areas of Operation
- Preflight Preparation
- Preflight Procedures
- Airport and Traffic Pattern Operations
- Takeoffs, Landings, and Go-Arounds
- Performance and Ground Reference Maneuvers
- Navigation
- Slow Flight and Stalls
- Basic Instrument Maneuvers
- Emergency Operations
- Multiengine Operations (multiengine applicants only)
- Night Operations
- Postflight Procedures
How the ACS ties your three tests together
One standard, three checkpoints. Knowledge elements show up on the written and the oral. Risk-management elements show up on the oral and in the airplane. Skill elements are demonstrated on the checkride, within the tolerances the ACS prints. Because your knowledge-test report hands you the ACS codes of anything you missed, you walk into checkride prep with a precise list of weak spots.
How to study with the ACS
- Get the official ACS and read the introduction. It explains exactly how you will be evaluated.
- Use it as a syllabus map. As you cover a topic, read its Task and the K, R, and S elements to gauge the depth expected.
- After your written, work the codes you missed with your instructor before the oral.
- Self-test against the skill tolerances on every flight, not just the checkride.
- Drill risk management out loud: for each Task, ask what could go wrong and how you would mitigate it.
Study the ACS the right way
What you'll need
Everything you need from your first lesson to your checkride, all from PilotMall.com.
Where to get the official ACS
The ACS is published by the FAA and is free to download as a PDF from faa.gov (search for the Private Pilot for Airplane Category ACS, FAA-S-ACS-6). Many students prefer a printed copy to mark up; PilotMall.com stocks the current FAA-S-ACS-6C edition (which includes the FAA-G-ACS-2 companion) for under ten dollars. Whichever you use, make sure it is the current edition.
Frequently asked questions
What does ACS stand for?
Airman Certification Standards, the FAA document defining the knowledge, risk management, and skill standards you must meet for a certificate or rating.
Is the ACS the same as the PTS?
No. The ACS replaced the Practical Test Standards for private pilot in 2016 and adds explicit knowledge and risk-management standards to the skill standards the PTS covered.
Which ACS applies to the private pilot certificate?
For airplanes it is FAA-S-ACS-6, currently edition 6C (effective May 31, 2024), along with its companion guide FAA-G-ACS-2.
Is the ACS free?
Yes. The FAA publishes it free as a PDF on faa.gov. Printed, annotated copies are inexpensive if you prefer paper.