How to become a pilot in India, step by step

The route to a Commercial Pilot Licence in India follows a fixed sequence set by the DGCA, and most students lose time at the start by doing the paperwork in the wrong order. This is the whole path in the order it actually happens, with the exact portal you need at each stage. Where a step has its own detailed guide, this page gives you the short version and links straight to it.

Before you start: the three things that gate everything

If any of these is missing, the rest of the sequence cannot begin, so check them first.

• Education. 10+2 with Physics and Mathematics from a recognised board, not just any Class 12 pass. If you did not take PCM, you can clear both subjects through NIOS as a private candidate.
• Age. You can begin the paperwork and ground exams from 16. A CPL can only be issued once you turn 18.
• Medical. Class 2 to begin, Class 1 before your CPL is issued. Get the Class 1 done early if you can, because it is the one thing that can end the plan outright.

1. Get your DGCA Computer Number

Your permanent identity with the DGCA examination system, and the single thing that unlocks everything else. You cannot register for a ground exam or for RTR(A) without it. You apply on the Pariksha portal under Flight Crew, it is free, and your documents are now pulled through DigiLocker. The DGCA verifies your 10+2 with Physics and Maths before issuing it, and that verification is the slow part.

The mistake everyone makes: Pariksha and eGCA are two different portals with two different accounts. Your Computer Number comes from Pariksha. Medicals, RTR(A) slots and the licence itself come from eGCA. Register on both.

The DGCA Computer Number guide covers the application screen by screen, the full DigiLocker document set, the all-board verification step and the timeline.

2. Create your eGCA account and PMR number

eGCA is the licensing side of the DGCA. Medicals, RTR(A) slots, ratings and your final CPL are all issued through it. Register, then generate your PMR, the Personal Medical Record number. You cannot book a Class 2 or Class 1 medical without it, so do this before you approach any doctor.

3. Clear your Class 2 medical

A basic fitness check with a DGCA empanelled Class 2 examiner: vision, hearing, blood pressure, ECG and basic pathology. You need your PMR number from step 2. The list of empanelled examiners sits on the DGCA site under Personnel, then Medical. Costs vary by centre, so confirm the fee when you book.

4. Pass the five ground papers

Air Navigation, Aviation Meteorology, Air Regulations, Technical General and Technical Specific. Computer based, booked through Pariksha with your Computer Number. 70% to pass each paper, no negative marking, and you only re-sit the paper you failed. A pass is valid for five years.

This is the step this site exists for. Every subject above has a free question bank here, with a worked explanation on every answer.

Go deeper: the DGCA CPL exam pattern guide breaks down each paper and the session calendar, the 5-year validity guide shows how a pass can lapse while you are still training and the order to sit the papers to avoid it, and the attempts and gap guide covers re-sits and the cooling period.

5. Fly at a DGCA approved FTO

Where you actually log hours: dual, solo, cross country, night and instrument. The regulatory minimum for a CPL is 200 hours of total flying time. A Multi Engine rating and an Instrument Rating are separate add ons, but airlines will not look at a single engine only CPL holder, so most students train for CPL, ME and IR as one package. Run this in parallel with your ground exams, not after them. The DGCA approved FTO list is on dgca.gov.in.

6. Upgrade to a Class 1 medical

Far more thorough than Class 2, and mandatory before your CPL can be issued even if everything else is complete. Booked through eGCA using your PMR number, at Indian Air Force medical centres or DGCA accepted civil hospitals. Slots are limited and the wait can run into months, so book well ahead.

7. Clear your RTR(A)

The Radio Telephony Restricted (Aeronautical) certificate. Without it you cannot legally operate the aircraft radio, and your CPL will not be issued. Two parts: a written paper on regulations and procedures, and a practical covering transmission technique and a viva. You need a valid Computer Number to register.

This changed recently. RTR(A) used to be run by the WPC wing. Since November 2025 the DGCA conducts it, and practical slot booking moved to eGCA from 1 January 2026. Older guides still send students to the WPC site, which will cost you weeks. The RTR(A) exam guide has the current process, fees and attempt rules; Part 2 viva scenarios and why people fail Part 2 cover the practical.

8. Apply for your CPL

With five subjects passed, 200 hours logged, RTR(A) in hand and a valid Class 1, you submit the licence application through eGCA for verification and issue. Have your logbook totals, certificates and medical assessment reconciled before you apply. Mismatched hours between your logbook and your FTO records are the most common reason an application sits in query.

9. Type rating and getting hired

A CPL makes you licensed, not employed. Airlines run their own selection on top of it: cadet screening, group discussions, technical and HR interviews, and a type rating on the aircraft you will actually fly. If you are choosing between a cadet programme and the self sponsored route, decide before you start step 5.

• Airline Selection Prep, what the selection day involves
• Cadet Programmes, the sponsored routes
• Interviews and Group Discussions
• Resume, CV and Logbook
• Type Rating Prep

The only four links that matter

Bookmark these. Most of the bad advice circulating about DGCA licensing comes from people quoting a portal that has been replaced.

FAQ

AviationGrade editorial team

From the DGCA licensing route, CAR Section 7 and the Pariksha and eGCA portals

We build the DGCA question banks these guides link to, from the same syllabus and source documents. Corrections welcome and credited.