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Canada · Pilot exams

PSTAR practice exam material and prep for the PPAER

For a PSTAR practice exam, start with Transport Canada’s (TC’s) own study guide, TP 11919. The PSTAR, short for Student Pilot Permit or Private Pilot Licence for Foreign and Military Applicants, Aviation Regulations, is the regulations exam you write for a student pilot permit. It sets out about 200 questions in 14 sections, with a separate answer key, and the 50 questions on the real exam are selected from it. TC asks you to look up the reference given for each question rather than learn the answers by heart. For the private pilot written exam that follows, the Private Pilot Licence, Aeroplane exam (PPAER), TC publishes a study guide and a sample exam, and companies sell courses, software and books.

  • 14Sections in TC’s PSTAR study guide
  • About 200Questions listed in TP 11919
  • Seventh editionTP 11919, dated December 2022
Open TP 11919, the PSTAR guide

Updated November 2026 · Written from official sources, listed at the bottom of this page

PSTAR and PPAER study material compared

OptionPriceFree to useLinks
Official
TP 11919, the PSTAR study and reference guideTransport Canada’s guide for the PSTAR: about 200 questions in 14 sections, with references and a separate answer keySeventh edition, December 2022. The 50 questions on the real PSTAR are selected from this guide, and TC asks you to work from the references rather than memorize answers. TC allows copying and reproduction with credit to TC.
No charge to read or download on tc.canada.caThe full guide, as a web page and a PDF, and the answer key PDF
TC: TP 11919 ↗TC: PSTAR answer key (PDF) ↗
TP 12880 and TP 13014, for the private pilot written examTransport Canada’s PPAER study and reference guide, and its sample exam for the recreational pilot permit and private pilot licenceTP 12880 (sixth edition, May 2025) lists every topic in the four mandatory areas, the exam rules and TC’s recommended study material. TP 13014 (fourth edition, November 2008) shows the form and type of question; its navigation exercise uses a 2006 Toronto chart.
No charge to read or download on tc.canada.caBoth documents, as web pages and PDFs
TC: TP 12880 ↗TC: TP 13014 ↗
Online courses
Canadian Flight TrainersOnline private pilot ground school, with a separate PSTAR course and a radio operator courseThe company says its PSTAR course explains all the questions in TC’s guide and has 3 full sample exams, and that payments for it go to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. It says its ground school is accepted by TC and includes the PSTAR and radio courses. The ground school page shows 4.93 out of 5 from 74 customer reviews. The 4-month plan renews until you cancel.
PSTAR course: pay what you choose, from $0, for 4 months. PPL ground school: $199 every 4 months, $299 for 9 months or $375 for 12 monthsThe PSTAR course at $0, and a 7-day trial of the ground school
Canadian Flight Trainers: PSTAR Study Course ↗Canadian Flight Trainers: Private Pilot Ground School Course ↗
Software
Dauntless Aviation: GroundSchool CanadaQuestion and answer software for the PSTAR, the recreational pilot permit and the private pilot exams, for Windows and Mac, with iPhone, iPad and Android appsDauntless says the software has more than 1,000 questions representative of TC’s, with explanations written by flight instructors. It’s a US company that charges in US dollars, so it says the Canadian price at checkout may vary slightly.
PSTAR only: CDN $28 (US $20). Private pilot, recreational pilot and PSTAR: CDN $70 (US $50)Not stated: the Windows download is unlocked with a paid code
Dauntless Aviation: GroundSchool Canada PSTAR and private pilot ↗Dauntless Aviation: Prices ↗
Books
Aviation Publishers: From the Ground Up and the answer guidesA Canadian pilot textbook, From the Ground Up, and question and answer books for the private and commercial pilot examsThe publisher calls the Canadian Private Pilot Answer Guide a question and answer book with detailed explanations of each answer, for people writing the private pilot licence exam. The Canadian Commercial Pilot Answer Guide is its review book for the commercial pilot exam. Both come with a website and app.
Not listed on its site, which links to an ebook store run by Gilmore GlobalNo
Aviation Publishers: Study guides ↗Aviation Publishers: Textbooks ↗

Prices and ratings checked November 2026.

Can you use TP 11919 as a PSTAR practice exam?

Yes. TC’s list of sample exams covers the glider licence, the recreational and private pilot aeroplane exams, the helicopter licences and the ultra-light permit, with no separate one for the PSTAR, so this guide is TC’s practice material for it. Its 14 sections cover:

  • Collision avoidance, visual signals and communications
  • Aerodromes and equipment
  • Pilot responsibilities, wake turbulence and aeromedical
  • Flight plans and flight itineraries
  • Clearances and instructions, and aircraft operations
  • Canadian airspace and controlled airspace
  • Aviation occurrences

The guide ends with a reference for each question, to the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs), the TC Aeronautical Information Manual (TC AIM) or another publication such as the Canada Flight Supplement. Work through a section, answer from the reference, then check the answer key, which TC posts as its own PDF. TC says the guide’s questions may also turn up in its other written exams.

TC: TP 11919 (PDF) ↗TC: PSTAR answer key, December 2022 (PDF) ↗How the PSTAR exam works →

Official practice for the private pilot written exam

TC’s sample exam for the recreational pilot permit and private pilot licence, TP 13014, shows the form and type of question on the PPAER. TC says the real 100-question exam follows much the same proportion and order. It’s the fourth edition, from November 2008, and its navigation exercise uses the March 2006 edition of the Toronto VFR (visual flight rules) Navigation Chart.

TP 12880, the PPAER study guide, lists every topic that can come up and ends with TC’s recommended study material: TP 13014, the Flight Training Manual (TP 1102), the TC AIM, the CARs, Human Factors for Aviation (TP 12863) and TP 11919 among them.

TC: TP 13014, sample recreational and private pilot exam ↗The PPAER: questions, pass mark and booking →

Picking a course, software or book

Your flight school’s ground school comes first, because the private pilot licence needs at least 40 hours of it and the letter of recommendation for the PPAER comes from your school or instructor. Ask your school which courses and books it uses, and whether it accepts an online ground school.

Each option does a different job. If you want lessons, Canadian Flight Trainers teaches the subjects online, and you can set its PSTAR course price at $0. If you’ve done the reading and want to drill questions, Dauntless sells question-bank software and apps. If you want a book to keep, Aviation Publishers prints From the Ground Up, a textbook, and the Canadian Private Pilot Answer Guide, which explains each answer. The prices and terms in the list are each company’s own.

A study path from the PSTAR to the PPAER

  1. Read TP 11919 a section at a time, looking up each question’s reference in the CARs or the TC AIM.
  2. Check yourself against TC’s answer key, and go back over any section you miss questions in.
  3. Write the PSTAR, and review every question you got wrong with your instructor or TC’s feedback letter.
  4. Work through ground school with TP 12880 as your topic list.
  5. Try TP 13014, then ask your school for the letter of recommendation and book the PPAER.
Sources: Transport Canada · Canadian Flight Trainers · Dauntless Aviation and 4 more. Checked November 2026.

Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.

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