The flight school

In European airspace, which is regulated by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), pilot training organisations are a central part of the aviation infrastructure. These organisations are divided into two main categories: Approved Training Organisations (ATO) and Declared Training Organisations (DTO). Both play a crucial role in the training and certification of pilots, but differ in their operating rules, the scope of training they are authorised to provide and the approval procedures they are subject to.

Approved Training Organisation (ATO)

An Approved Training Organisation (ATO) is an EASA-certified organisation that offers a wide range of pilot training, including training for commercial pilot licences, instrument ratings and type ratings for specific aircraft types. ATOs must fulfil strict requirements for their curricula, training facilities, equipment and instructors. Approval as an ATO requires an extensive approval process that includes the submission of detailed training plans, manuals and safety management procedures, all of which are reviewed by EASA or national aviation authorities.

In order to be certified as an ATO, an application must be submitted to the responsible aviation authority (in Germany the LBA, in Austria Austro Control and in Switzerland the BAZL). This office then issues the "certificate" confirming the certification as an ATO. The certificate is valid as long as the flight school fulfils the relevant requirements.

The organisation must set up, implement and maintain a management system. This must be structured to ensure safety and accountability. It requires clear responsibility structures, a defined safety policy, the identification and management of safety risks, qualified personnel, documented procedures and monitoring of compliance with relevant requirements. Specifically, the following must be ensured:

1. clear areas of responsibility and authority within the organisation, including direct safety responsibility of the responsible manager.

1. A description of the organisation's basic philosophies and principles relating to security, known as security policy.
2. The identification of aviation safety risks arising from the organisation's activities, their assessment and the management of associated risks, including mitigation measures and verification of their effectiveness.
3. Maintaining qualified and competent personnel to perform its tasks.
4. Documentation of all key processes of the management system, including a process for sensitising staff to their responsibilities and the procedure for amending this documentation.
5. A function for monitoring the organisation's compliance with the relevant requirements. Compliance monitoring includes a feedback system for findings to the responsible manager to ensure the effective implementation of corrective measures.

The management system must be appropriate to the size of the organisation and the nature and complexity of its activities, taking into account the hazards and associated risks of these activities. The points mentioned must be regularly reviewed and verified. Here too, this is adapted to the complexity of the flight school. For example, there are fewer compliance and reporting requirements for ATOs that only offer training for the LAPL, PPL, SPL or BPL (and not for commercial pilots).

The ATO must report any type of accident or incident that affects safety to the competent authority. This is accompanied by a detailed analysis of the incident and measures taken to prevent this from happening in the future. Here, too, the tried and tested principle is followed that safety comes first and should be continuously improved.

In addition to the organisational and safety-related aspects, it is of course essential that the ATO implements the training curricula (syllabus) defined by the ICAO/EASA and that the training materials meet the defined requirements. To this end, the ATO must prepare operations and training manuals and submit them to the authority for review. The following requirements apply to the manuals:

(a) Training plan:

1. Aim of the course (ATP, CPL/IR, CPL etc.), expectations of the students regarding their performance and training limitations to be considered.
2. Requirements for course participation, including minimum age, educational requirements (including language), medical requirements and special requirements of individual Member States.
3. Recognition of previous experience, which must be obtained from the competent authority before the start of training.
4. Training curricula, including flight training (single or multi-engine), flight simulation training and theoretical knowledge.
5. Timetable for the individual curricula in weeks.
6. Training programme, including general arrangements, adverse weather restrictions, maximum permitted training times, rest periods between duty periods and maximum flying hours.
7. Training records, security rules for records, attendance records, responsibilities for checking records and logbooks, frequency and standardisation of checks.
8. Safety training, individual responsibilities, emergency drills and double checks.
9. Examinations and tests, including flight and theory tests, test authorisations and retests.
10. Effectiveness of training, individual responsibilities, evaluation of training, identification of insufficient progress and corrective measures.
11. Standards and performance levels in different phases of training.

(b) Briefing and flight exercises:

1. Detailed description of all flight exercises.
2. Reference list of exercises for quick access.
3. Course structure, division into phases and distribution of exercises.
4. Integration of theoretical knowledge and flight training.
5. Student progression and transition requirements between phases.
6. Teaching methods, including briefing requirements.
7. Carrying out and documenting progress tests.
8. Glossary of important terms.

(c) Flight training in an FSTD (if applicable):

Structure analogue to (b).

(d) Theoretical knowledge:

1. Structure of the theoretical knowledge course, including course schedule and timetable.
2. Curricula, including teaching materials and training aids.
3. Specification of the teaching materials.
4. Student progress requirements and exam registration.
5. Organisation of progress tests.
6. Review procedure if the standard is not met.

Parts of the theoretical training can also be carried out as distance learning courses. For distance learning in modular courses, ATOs must ensure that students make both academic progress and meet time targets. It is recommended that students devote at least 15 hours per week to study and that the course material clearly states the learning objectives per week. Regular progress tests should also be conducted and assessed by the ATO. It is important that students have appropriate access to instructors during the course and that their progress is monitored appropriately.

In addition to the training and operations manuals, the ATO must also specify to the authority which aircraft are to be used for the training. These must be equipped accordingly in order to fulfil the training requirements. The qualifications of the flight instructors and the training supervisor must also be verified accordingly.

There are also specific requirements with regard to the equipment and premises that the flight school must have, both for practical and theoretical training. Practical flight training requires, among other things, an operations room for controlling flights, a flight planning room equipped with various sources of information, sufficient briefing rooms, offices for supervisory staff and crew rooms. Theoretical training requires suitable classrooms, teaching materials, radio training facilities, a reference library and offices for teaching staff. These facilities ensure comprehensive and effective training of flight students by supporting both the practical and theoretical aspects of flight training.

We have an overview of the authorised ATOs in the Academy: Pilot-Hub - Authorised ATOs

​Declared Training Organisation (DTO)

In contrast, a Declared Training Organisation (DTO) is a relatively newly introduced category (since 2018) designed for organisations that offer "lighter" training programmes. These include training to become a private pilot (PPL), glider pilot and balloon pilot, but not a commercial pilot, which may only be offered by ATOs. DTOs must declare their intention to operate to the competent authority and provide basic information about their operations, but the authorisation process is less extensive than for ATOs. This type of organisation offers more flexibility and is associated with fewer regulatory requirements, which makes it particularly attractive for smaller flight schools.

Specifically, a DTO (Declared Training Organisation) has the right to offer the following training courses, provided it has been certified by the authority:

1. for aeroplanes:

• Theoretical instruction for LAPL(A) and PPL(A).
• Flight instruction for LAPL(A) and PPL(A).
• Training for class authorisation for SEP(land), SEP(sea) and TMG.
• Training for additional authorisations: Night, aerobatics, mountain flying, gliding and banner towing.

2. for helicopters:

• Theoretical instruction for LAPL(H) and PPL(H).
• Flight instruction for LAPL(H) and PPL(H).
• Single-engine type rating for helicopters whose certified maximum occupancy does not exceed five seats.
• Training for night flight authorisation.

3. for gliders:

• Theoretical lessons for SPL.
• Flight instruction for SPL.
• Training to extend the authorisations for gliders or TMGs
• Training on additional launch methods according to SFCL
• Training for additional authorisations and privileges: Basic and advanced aerobatic privileges, glider and banner towing authorisation, TMG night flight authorisation and authorisation to fly in clouds.
• Training for the flight instructor certificate for gliders (FI(S)) and FI(S) refresher course.

4. for balloons:

• Theoretical lessons for BPL.
• Flight instruction for BPL.
• Training for class or group extension according to BFCL.
• Training for additional authorisations: Bound hot-air balloon flight, night and commercial operating licence.
• Training for the flight instructor certificate for balloons (FI(B)) and FI(B) refresher course.

Similar to an ATO, a DTO must also submit training manuals, syllabuses, information about the aircraft used, proof of appropriate premises and necessary teaching equipment, etc. and have these checked with regard to fulfilment of the EASA requirements and also renew these on a regular basis. The competence of the training instructor and the flight instructors must of course also be proven and appropriate safety guidelines and monitoring must be in place.

Selection of the flight school

The specific rules and requirements for ATOs and DTOs are laid down in EASA regulations, in particular in Regulation (EU) No 1178/2011, which covers the technical requirements and administrative procedures related to flight crew in civil aviation. This regulation is regularly updated and includes detailed annexes (so-called "parts") that deal specifically with training organisations:

• Part-FCL (Flight Crew Licensing) contains the requirements for the licensing of flight crews, including the training requirements.
• Part-ORA (Organisation Requirements for Aircrew) sets out the requirements for organisations that provide training services, including ATOs.
• Part-DTO (Declared Training Organisations) describes the specific requirements and the procedure for declaring a DTO.

If you now want to start your flight training, the question of which flight school to choose arises. In addition to the schools officially listed as ATOs or DTOs, many smaller flying clubs also offer private pilot training. This can, for example, be set up in such a way that the flight school is a "branch" of an authorised ATO and carries out the flight training under its guidelines. Therefore, one option when choosing a flying school is to consult the official list of approved ATOs, but it is also a good idea to enquire at the flying clubs in your area. When choosing a school, you should then take the time to talk to flight instructors and students, study the school's training documents and obtain the relevant information. Everyone has to make the agonising choice for themselves.

Summary 

Flight schools are divided into ATOs and DTOs. Ultimately, there are precise specifications for both with regard to training content, but also with regard to the organisation, processes and personnel of the flight school. Only then can certification be granted by the local aviation authorities.

When choosing your own flying school, you should look at the official training organisations but also take a close look at the flying clubs in your own city.

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Source references:
EASA FCL

Part-ORA

Part-DTO