Pilot Currency Calculator
Track your FAA pilot currency requirements. See how many days remain for passenger carrying, IFR, flight review, and medical certificate currency.
About this calculator
FAA currency requirements aren't one rule — they're several separate clocks running at once, each with its own reset trigger and its own window, and this calculator tracks all of them side by side so you can see which one is closest to lapsing, using the specific time windows set out in 14 CFR 61.57 (recent flight experience) and 61.56 (flight review). Passenger-carrying currency under FAR 61.57 resets every time you complete three takeoffs and landings and lasts 90 days from that event; IFR currency resets on six instrument approaches plus holding procedures and lasts a longer 180 days (six calendar months under 61.57(c)), since instrument proficiency is assumed to decay more slowly than basic landing currency; the flight review required under FAR 61.56 resets on a completed review and lasts a full 24 calendar months (approximated here as 730 days), by far the longest window of the group; and medical certificate validity is modeled here at a flat 365 days as a simplified baseline, even though real medical certificate duration actually varies by class and by the pilot's age at time of issuance.
The 'most urgent' figure simply reports whichever of these five clocks has the fewest days remaining, since that's the constraint that will actually stop you from legally exercising some privilege first, regardless of how comfortable your margin looks on the other four. Night passenger currency is calculated from the same three-landings input as day currency here as a simplification — in reality it requires three takeoffs and landings specifically to a full stop at night, a separate and generally harder-to-maintain requirement that a pilot who only flies day landings would not actually satisfy despite what this calculator's shared figure shows.
Inputs
Results
Day Pax Currency
60 days remaining
Most Urgent
60 days
Figures current as of 2026. Source: 14 CFR 61.57 (Recent flight experience: Pilot in command) and 61.56 (Flight review)
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter days since your last flight, days since completing three takeoffs and landings, and days since IFR proficiency.
- Set days since your last flight review (BFR) and days since your medical certificate was issued.
- Review currency status for day passengers, night passengers, IFR, and flight review.
- Any expired currency is flagged — complete the required flights or review before carrying passengers.
- Track medical certificate expiration separately; third-class medicals expire at 24 or 60 months depending on age.
How the result changes with Days Since 3 Landings
| Days Since 3 Landings | Day Pax Currency | Most Urgent |
|---|---|---|
| 15 | 75 days remaining | 75 days |
| 23 | 67 days remaining | 67 days |
| 45 | 45 days remaining | 45 days |
| 75 | 15 days remaining | 15 days |
What each input means
- Days Since Last Flight
- Days since you last acted as PIC.
- Days Since 3 Landings
- Days since you made 3 takeoffs and landings (for passenger currency per FAR 61.57).
- Days Since IFR Proficiency
- Days since your last 6 instrument approaches + holding (FAR 61.57(c)).
- Days Since Flight Review
- Days since your last flight review (BFR) per FAR 61.56.
- Days Since Medical Issued
- Days since your medical certificate was issued.
What each result means
- Day Pax Currency
- Days until day passenger-carrying currency expires.
- Night Pax Currency
- Days until night passenger-carrying currency expires.
- IFR Currency
- Days until IFR currency expires.
- Flight Review Currency
- Days until flight review (BFR) expires.
- Medical Currency
- Days until medical certificate expires.
- Most Urgent
- The soonest currency to expire.
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters4 parametersDays Since Last Flight = 14, Days Since 3 Landings = 30, Days Since IFR Proficiency = 60, Days Since Flight Review = 300 = 5 input(s) provided
- Calculate Day Pax CurrencyDay Pax Currency60 = 60
- Calculate Most UrgentMost Urgent60 = 60
- Calculate Night Pax CurrencyNight Pax Currency60 = 60
- Calculate IFR CurrencyIFR Currency120 = 120
Figures and sources
- Passenger-carrying (90-day), IFR (6-month), and flight review (24-month) currency windows (2026) — 14 CFR 61.57 (Recent flight experience: Pilot in command) and 61.56 (Flight review)
Engine last updated . Checked against 1 independently-derived test — how we verify calculators. Built by Paul Gunder, a software engineer, not a licensed financial, medical, or legal professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do these different currency requirements have such different time windows?
Each requirement reflects how quickly the FAA considers a particular skill or physical fitness to decay without practice or reassessment — basic landing proficiency for carrying passengers resets on a relatively short 90-day cycle, instrument flying gets a longer 180-day window since it's assumed to hold up longer between practice sessions, and the broader flight review covers general piloting knowledge and skill on a much longer 24-month cycle rather than a specific recent-practice requirement.
Why does night passenger currency show the same days remaining as day currency here?
This calculator uses your three-landings input as a simplified stand-in for both day and night currency, but the actual FAA requirement for night passenger currency is separate and stricter — it requires three takeoffs and full-stop landings specifically performed at night, not simply any three landings. A pilot who has only flown day landings recently would not actually be night current despite what the shared figure here shows, so track night landings separately if you fly passengers after dark.
Why does the calculator use a flat 365 days for medical certificate currency?
Real medical certificate duration actually depends on the certificate class and the pilot's age at the time it was issued, ranging up to 60 months for some third-class certificates issued to younger pilots — this calculator uses 365 days as a simplified, conservative baseline rather than modeling every class-and-age combination. Check your actual certificate's expiration date directly rather than relying solely on this figure for medical currency specifically.
What should I do once 'most urgent' shows very few days remaining?
It's a signal to schedule whatever activity resets that specific clock before it reaches zero — three landings for passenger currency, six approaches and holding for IFR currency, or a flight review for the 24-month requirement — since letting any one of them lapse means you can no longer legally exercise that particular privilege until you complete the reset activity again, regardless of how current you remain on the others.
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