United States · Knowledge testWhat’s in the private pilot written exam study guide?
The ACS splits private pilot knowledge into Areas of Operation, each with Tasks, and each Task into numbered knowledge, risk management and skill elements. PSI’s bulletin for the PAR test shows how many of the items come from each area:
| Content area | ACS | Items |
|---|---|---|
| Preflight preparation | PA.I | 22% |
| Preflight procedures | PA.II | 13% |
| Airport and seaplane base operations | PA.III | 7% |
| Takeoffs, landings and go-arounds | PA.IV | 20% |
| Performance and ground reference | PA.V | 3% |
| Navigation | PA.VI | 8% |
| Slow flight and stalls | PA.VII | 8% |
| Basic instrument maneuvers | PA.VIII | 7% |
| Emergency operations | PA.IX | 7% |
| Night operations | PA.XI | 3% |
| Postflight procedures | PA.XII | 2% |
PSI says the weights come from an industry job task analysis completed in 2020. Multiengine operations, PA.X, isn’t in the list.
The FAA handbooks to read
Each ACS task lists its references. Three FAA handbooks appear in the references of all 61 tasks in the private pilot ACS, and two more appear in some tasks:
- Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA-H-8083‑25), in every task
- Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083‑3), in every task
- Risk Management Handbook (FAA-H-8083‑2), in every task
- Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM), in 27 tasks
- Aviation Weather Handbook (FAA-H-8083‑28), in 2 tasks, including Weather Information
Instrument students add the Instrument Flying Handbook and the Instrument Procedures Handbook. The FAA posts all of them on its Aviation Handbooks & Manuals page.
The testing supplement
Questions about charts, tables and diagrams refer to figures in the Airman Knowledge Testing Supplement. Sport, recreational, remote and private pilots share one: FAA-CT-8080‑2H. The test center hands you a copy, so practice with the same figures at home.
The FAA is moving figures into the questions themselves, and its September 2026 advisory says no date is set for taking the printed supplements out of test centers. Until that happens, you get the supplement for your test.
Commercial study guides
Gleim and ASA print knowledge test books built around the FAA’s question style, and ASA sells printed copies of the FAA’s testing supplements. They’re listed with prices on the study options page. None of them replaces the ACS: it’s the document the FAA tests from, and the codes on your score report point back to it.
Sources: FAA · PSI · ASA and 5 more. Checked October 2026.
- FAA: Private Pilot for Airplane Category ACS, FAA-S-ACS-6C (PDF) ↗
- FAA: Airman Certification Standards list ↗
- PSI: Private Pilot Airplane Applicant Information Bulletin (PDF) ↗
- FAA: Aviation Handbooks & Manuals ↗
- FAA: Airman Knowledge Testing Supplements ↗
- FAA: Airman Testing FAQs, updated 6/1/26 (PDF) ↗
- FAA: Airman Testing Community Advisory, September 2026 (PDF) ↗
- ASA: Pilot test prep books ↗
Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.
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