Inquiry About Part-Time DGCA-Compliant Flight Training

[Akhil G]

Dear Epic Flight Academy Team,

I am reaching out to learn more about your flight training options for international students.

I am currently in the United States on F-1 status and am working legally under my current work authorization. I would like to continue my professional career while pursuing flight training on a part-time basis as a personal and long-term aviation goal.

My plan is to complete my Private Pilot License (PPL), Instrument Rating (IR), and eventually Commercial Pilot License (CPL) while making sure my flight hours and training structure also satisfy the applicable Indian DGCA requirements for future conversion.

At this time, I do not want to change my current immigration status to M-1, because doing so would affect my ability to continue working. I have spoken with several other flight schools regarding part-time training under my current situation, they said I would be good to fly part as soon as I recieve TSA Pre clearance and I am now reaching out to Epic because I am particularly interested in your international training experience and DGCA-focused program.

Ideally, I would like to train part-time, approximately three times per week depending on my work schedule. My overall training timeline can be flexible, and I am comfortable completing the program gradually rather than through an accelerated full-time course.

Could you please confirm:

Whether Epic can provide part-time flight training while I remain in my current F-1 status without changing to M-1.
Whether I can complete PPL, IR, and CPL with Epic on a flexible/part-time schedule.
Whether the program can be structured so that my flight hours, PIC time, cross-country, instrument, night flying, and other requirements satisfy the applicable DGCA requirements for conversion in India.
Whether your international/DGCA team can assist with the required documentation and logbook requirements throughout the training.
Whether approximately three training sessions per week would be acceptable, and whether evening or weekend scheduling is available.
Whether TSA/FTSP approval would be required for my situation and how Epic assists students with that process.

I understand that immigration eligibility is ultimately my responsibility, and I am mainly requesting confirmation of what Epic is able to accommodate from the flight-school and training side.

I am very interested in Epic because of your experience with international students, aircraft fleet, training infrastructure, and DGCA pathway. I would appreciate any recommendations you may have for the best way to structure my training based on my situation.

Thank you, and I look forward to hearing from you.

[Jayson – Epic Staff]

Hello Akhil,

Thank you for your detailed questions and for considering Epic Flight Academy!

Since you are currently in the United States on an F-1 visa, you may be able to complete your flight training with Epic on a part-time basis without changing to an M-1 visa, provided you are residing near one of our campuses. You can work toward your Private Pilot Certificate (PPL), Instrument Rating (IR), and Commercial Pilot Certificate (CPL) on a part-time schedule.

Training approximately three times per week may be accommodated depending on instructor, aircraft, and campus availability. Evening and weekend availability can also vary by location and should be discussed with the campus when arranging your training schedule.

For your goal of converting your FAA certificates to an Indian DGCA license, our international team can provide guidance regarding the applicable training, flight-hour, logbook, and documentation requirements. We recommend discussing your DGCA requirements with our team before beginning so your training can be structured appropriately.

You will also need to complete the applicable TSA/Flight Training Security Program (FTSP) requirements before beginning flight training. Our team can provide guidance regarding the required clearance process.

Since you would like to maintain your current F-1 status and employment authorization, we also recommend confirming that flight training is permitted under your individual immigration circumstances. Epic can advise you regarding our training requirements, but immigration eligibility and maintaining your F-1 status remain your responsibility.

Please let us know which Epic campus you are located near, and we’ll be happy to provide additional information about training availability and the next steps.

If you’d also like to apply and be contacted by our recruiter specialist for further information, you may fill out this pre-qualification form: https://epicflightacademy.com/prequalification-enrollment/

Thank you for using our forum!

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