Plain-English answers to the questions students ask most about official FAA source material. These answers are SkeyeMentor explanations written for training — they are not legal advice, and the official source always controls.
"FAR/AIM" is the way pilots refer to two different documents that are usually printed together. The "FAR" half is the Federal Aviation Regulations — Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations, published by the government and legally binding. The "AIM" half is the Aeronautical Information Manual, which is FAA operational guidance.
They are not the same kind of document. A commercially printed FAR/AIM book is a convenience reprint; the controlling text lives in the eCFR and in the FAA’s current AIM.
The AIM is guidance, not regulation. It explains procedures, phraseology and recommended practices, and it often describes how to comply with a regulation — but the regulation itself is what carries legal force.
Where the AIM and a regulation appear to differ, the regulation controls. Verify anything operational against the current 14 CFR text.
Pilot, flight instructor and ground instructor certification rules are in 14 CFR Part 61. Aeronautical experience, privileges, limitations, currency and endorsements all live there.
Pilot schools operating under an FAA-approved curriculum are addressed in Part 141, and Part 61 remains the general certification rule set.
Part 61 is titled "Certification: Pilots, Flight Instructors, and Ground Instructors." It defines who may act as pilot in command, what each certificate and rating allows, the aeronautical experience needed to apply, currency requirements, and the endorsements instructors give.
SkeyeMentor carries the full current text of Part 61 with the official section text shown first on every page.
Part 91 is "General Operating and Flight Rules." It covers how flights are conducted: preflight action, right-of-way, speed and altitude limits, VFR and IFR rules, required equipment, airspace operating rules and maintenance requirements.
Most general aviation flying is conducted under Part 91.
There is no official FAA list. In practice, private pilot training keeps returning to certificate and medical requirements, currency, privileges and limitations, preflight action, right-of-way, minimum altitudes, VFR weather minimums, fuel reserves, required equipment and inoperative-equipment rules, airspace operating rules, and inspection requirements.
SkeyeMentor groups those into a study collection called "50 Regulations Every Private Pilot Should Know." That is a SkeyeMentor Study Collection, not an FAA requirement list.
The Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (PHAK, FAA-H-8083-25) is the FAA’s general aeronautical knowledge handbook. It covers aerodynamics, systems, instruments, weather theory, performance, navigation, airspace and aeromedical factors.
It is an educational reference published by the FAA. It is not a regulation.
The Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3) is the FAA’s handbook on flying technique — ground operations, takeoffs and landings, maneuvers, emergencies and transition to other airplane types.
Like the PHAK it is educational FAA material, not regulation.
An Airman Certification Standards document defines what an applicant must know, consider and do to pass a knowledge test and a practical test for a given certificate or rating. Each Task lists knowledge, risk management and skill elements with a unique code such as PA.I.A.K1.
SkeyeMentor carries the Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C) Areas of Operation I through XII, with every Task and element code.
The Practical Test Standards (PTS) were the older format: they listed the skill objectives for the practical test. The ACS replaced the PTS for most certificates and adds knowledge and risk-management elements alongside the skill elements, and links the knowledge test to the practical test through shared codes.
A PTS is not an ACS. Where an ACS exists for a certificate, it is the current document.
The FAA revises the AIM on a published change cycle, and individual paragraphs can change at any revision. Change bars in the official document mark what moved.
Always check the current edition and change number before relying on a paragraph operationally.
Check the eCFR. It shows the date the title was last amended and the date the displayed text is current as of.
Every regulation page in the SkeyeMentor FAA Library shows the source citation, the revision date of the text we imported, when we last checked it, and a direct link to the official eCFR page so you can confirm it yourself.
Yes. Regulations, handbooks and certification standards all change on their own schedules, and course material written earlier can fall behind.
That is why every page here shows source metadata and links to the official document. Treat the official source as controlling.
No. SkeyeMentor is a study aid. It reproduces official text, adds plain-English explanation clearly labeled as SkeyeMentor material, and links out to the official source on every page.
For anything operational, verify against FAA.gov, the eCFR and other applicable government sources.
No. Pilots are expected to know where the rules live and how to find them, and to have working command of the ones that affect day-to-day flying.
Knowing how to locate a section quickly is a more durable skill than memorization — and it is a common oral-exam discussion area.
SkeyeMentor FAA Library is an educational reference and study aid. Regulatory and FAA materials can change. SkeyeMentor provides links and contextual explanations to help pilots study, but users should verify current requirements through official FAA, eCFR and other applicable government sources before relying on them operationally. SkeyeMentor explanations are educational and are not legal advice.