REFERENCE
What actually works.
This page doesn't try to be ForeFlight or SkyVector. It points to what works and says why — curated by hand, not auto-generated.
01 / 04
Flight Planning & Weather
ForeFlight
The app most working CFIs and charter pilots actually fly with. Weather, charts, flight planning, and performance data in one place. Paid, but the industry standard for a reason.
1800wxbrief
The official channel for filing a flight plan and getting a legal weather briefing. Not the friendliest interface, but it's the source of record.
Aviation Weather Center
The government's own aviation weather data. METARs, TAFs, PIREPs, and the graphical products your briefing pulls from.
SkyVector
Free sectional and IFR charts in a browser. The fastest way to look at a route without opening a full flight planning app.
FAA Chart Supplements
Airport diagrams, frequencies, runway data, and remarks the sectional won't show you. Check this before any airport you haven't been to.
FAA NOTAM Search
Real-time notices for runway closures, TFRs, and hazards. Skipping this before a flight is how pilots end up violating a TFR.
AirNav
Airport data and, more usefully, current fuel prices by airport. Good for planning fuel stops on a cross-country.
FAA Digital Charts
Official VFR sectionals and IFR charts, downloadable directly from the source.
02 / 04
FAA Administrative & Testing Portals
IACRA
Where your certificate actually gets issued. You'll use this at the end of every stage, from student pilot to private pilot to instrument.
MedXPress
Fill this out before your medical exam, not during it. The AME needs the confirmation number to start your appointment.
PSI True Talent
The only vendor authorized to administer FAA knowledge tests. This is where you schedule and pay for your written exam.
FAASTeam / WINGS
Free FAA safety seminars, some of which count toward flight review credit. Worth checking before you pay a CFI for a full flight review.
03 / 04
Official FAA Regulatory & Guidance Documents
FAR/AIM
The rulebook and the reference. Every regulation that governs how and where you fly, plus the procedures and phraseology the FAA expects you to know.
Airman Certification Standards
The exact standards your examiner will test you against on the checkride. Read this before you read anything else about checkride prep.
Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge
The core FAA textbook. Aerodynamics, weather, systems, human factors. Dense, but it's the foundation every ground school builds on.
Airplane Flying Handbook
The official guide to flight maneuvers. How the FAA wants you to fly a steep turn, a stall recovery, a short-field landing. Your CFI's technique should trace back to this.
FAA Advisory Circulars
FAA guidance that explains the reasoning behind the regulations. Useful when a rule in the FAR/AIM doesn't make sense on its own.
04 / 04
Training Supplements & Safety Culture
LiveATC
Live ATC audio from towers and approach control around the country. The best free tool for getting comfortable with radio calls before you're the one making them.
FlightAware
Track any flight in real time, including your own training flights. Useful for reviewing a cross-country route after the fact.
AOPA Flight Training
Free articles, tools, and advocacy aimed specifically at student pilots. Worth a bookmark even if you never join AOPA.