Question of the Week: How Many Hours Do You Need to Sit in the Right Seat on an Airliner?

Editorial Staff

Thursday, October 06, 2011 at 12:00 AM ET

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Key Takeaways:

The FAA has proposed increasing the minimum flight hours for airline first officers to 700, up from 250, but significantly less than the originally considered 1,500 hours.
The article raises the question of whether the specific number of flight hours truly impacts a first officer's competency.
It primarily functions as an introduction to a reader poll, inviting users to share their opinion on the ideal minimum hours for first officers.
The piece also references results from a previous "Question of the Week" poll and solicits new poll question ideas from readers.

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The FAA now says an airline first officer should have a minimum of 700 hours, up from 250 but far less than the 1,500 that was originally proposed. Does the number of hours really matter?

How many hours should a first officer have?
(click to answer)

Last Week’s Question: Results

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