Aviator

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Aviators are people who fly aircraft either for pleasure or for a job. The term is normally applied to pilots but it can be applied more broadly, for example to include people such as wing-walkers who regularly take part in an aerobatic display sequence.

The term was more commonly used in the early days of aviation and has connotations of bravery and adventure. As Steve Fossett has shown with his 2002 solo flight around the globe in a helium balloon, there are still challenges to be flown and records to be broken.

Table of contents

1 U.S. pilot's license
2 Well-known aviators
3 See also

U.S. pilot's license

The requirements to obtain a private pilot certificate (single engine land aircraft) in the United States (from the FAA) are:

Be at least 17 years old
Be able to read, speak, and write the English language
Obtain a third class medical certificate from an FAA-designated doctor
Pass a computerized aeronautical knowledge test
Accumulate at least 40 hours of flight time including 20 hours of flight with an instructor and 10 hours of solo flight
Pass a flight test administered by an FAA-designated examiner

United States military pilots are issued an Aviator Badge upon completion of flight training and issuance of a pilot's license.