Hot Air Balloon School

Learn to become lighter than air!

To fly a hot air balloon, you require a pilot license. To reach a school in order to learn to fly a hot air ballooncontact us.

IMPORTANT: This is for information only. Always check the latest info from the officials sources.

421.25 Balloons - Requirements

(1) Age : An applicant shall be a minimum of seventeen years of age.

(2) Medical Fitness and Validity

(a) An applicant shall hold a Category 3 Medical Certificate valid for a pilot licence - balloon.

(b) The medical validity period for the licence holder under 40 years of age is 24 months and for a licence holder 40 years of age or over, 12 months.

(c) The licence is maintained by a valid Category 1 or 3 Medical Certificate.

(3) Knowledge

An applicant shall have:

(a) completed a minimum of 10 hours of balloon pilot ground school instruction on the following subjects:

(i) Canadian Aviation Regulations, NOTAM and Air Traffic Rules and Procedures,

(ii) Aerostatics and Meteorology,

(iii) a balloon and its accessories, inflation, rigging and patching in conformance with manufacturer’s recommendations,

(iv) management of takeoffs and landings in free and tethered flight regimes,

(v) precautions against cold and high altitude,

(vi) instruments,

(vii) navigation and aeronautical charts, and

(viii) human factors including pilot decision-making; and

(b) obtained a minimum of 60% in a written examination, Pilot Licence - Balloon (PIBAL).

(4) Experience

(a) Within the 24 months preceding the date of application for the licence, an applicant shall have completed a minimum of 16 hours balloon pilot flight time, of which a minimum of 11 hours shall be untethered flight time under the direction and supervision of the holder of a Flight Instructor Rating - balloon.

(b) Untethered flight time shall include a minimum of:

(i) 6 dual instruction flights of a minimum of 30 minutes each including 1 ascent to an altitude of a minimum of 5,000 feet above ground level; and

(ii) 2 flights as sole occupant of a minimum of 30 minutes each between takeoff and landing.

(5) Skill

(a) Within the 12 months preceding the date of application for the licence an applicant shall demonstrate, in flight and on the ground, familiarity with and the ability to perform both normal and emergency manoeuvres and procedures appropriate to the balloon used in the test and with a degree of competency appropriate to the holder of a Pilot Licence - Balloon.

(b) An applicant shall submit a letter from the holder of a Flight Instructor Rating - Balloons, qualified on the method of inflation for the balloon used in the test, attesting to the applicant’s satisfactory completion of the skill requirement.
(amended 1998/03/23)

(6) Credits - Knowledge

An applicant who holds a pilot permit or licence in any other category of aircraft, except ultra-light aeroplane, shall be deemed to have met 5 of the 10 hours of ground school instruction requirement.

(7) Licence Issued On the Basis of Foreign Licence
(amended 1999/03/01)

(a) An applicant who holds a pilot licence - Balloon, issued by a Contracting State shall be considered:
(amended 1999/03/01)

(i) to have met the ground school instruction requirement; and
(amended 1999/03/01)

(ii) to have met the written examination requirement, the experience requirement and the skill requirement, provided that the foreign licence was not issued on the basis of a licence from another State, and that the applicant:
(amended 2000/09/01)

(A) has obtained at least the number of hours of flight training required by subsection (4);
(amended 2000/09/01)

(B) obtains a minimum of 90% in the written examination Student Pilot Permit or Private Pilot Licence for Foreign and Military Applicants, Aviation Regulations (PSTAR); and
(amended 1999/03/01)

(C) has completed in balloons, a minimum of 5 take-offs and 5 landings within the 6 months preceding the date of application for the Canadian licence.
(amended 1999/03/01)

(b) The licence shall be annotated by the Minister to indicate that it was issued on the basis of the foreign licence.
(amended 1999/03/01; no previous version)

(c) The Minister shall remove the annotation from the licence, provided the applicant has successfully completed:
(amended 1999/03/01; no previous version)

(i) the written examination (PIBAL); and
(amended 1999/03/01; no previous version)

(ii) the skill requirement.
(amended 1999/03/01; no previous version)

(8) Credits for Foreign Applicants
(amended 1999/03/01; no previous version)

(a) An applicant who holds a pilot licence - balloon, issued by a contracting state and who does not wish to obtain a licence issued on the basis of the foreign licence, may be considered by the Minister to have met the ground school instruction requirement and the experience requirement provided that the applicant has obtained at least the number of hours of dual and solo flight training and experience required by subsection (4).
(amended 2003/03/01)

(b) An applicant who does not hold a pilot licence - balloon issued by a contracting state may be credited foreign glider dual and solo flight training time and balloon ground school time towards the knowledge and experience requirements for the issue of a Balloon Pilot Licence, if the applicant provides certification from the holder of a Flight Instructor Rating - Balloon that all ground and flight training exercises have been satisfactorily reviewed.
(amended 2003/03/01)

(9) Take-offs and Landings in Built-up Areas

A person may conduct a take-off in a balloon within a built-up area of any town or city, where the pilot-in-command has accumulated a minimum of:

(a) 50 hours in untethered balloons and, except for balloons operated in a commercial air service, has conducted a minimum of 3 takeoffs and landings in the specific manufacturer’s model and AX class of balloon within the preceding 12 months, or

(b) 300 hours of flight time in untethered balloons

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