Earning a sport pilot certificate opens the door to sharing the sky with the people who matter most to you. However, the regulations governing that privilege are more layered than many new pilots realize. 14 CFR Part 61 imposes specific currency requirements, endorsement rules, medical eligibility standards, and operational limitations that must all be satisfied before a sport pilot can legally carry even one passenger. Mastering these rules is essential for both FAA knowledge test success and real-world safety.
How Many Passengers Can a Sport Pilot Carry?
The answer is straightforward but absolute: a sport pilot certificate authorizes the holder to carry one passenger. That single-passenger limit is set by 14 CFR 61.315 and cannot be expanded by additional endorsements or training. The aircraft, moreover, must itself be a light-sport aircraft (LSA) appropriate to the category and class listed on the pilot's certificate. Under 14 CFR 1.1, an LSA must meet all of the following definitional limits: maximum gross takeoff weight of 1,320 pounds for aircraft not intended for operation on water (or 1,430 pounds for water-based aircraft), maximum airspeed in level flight with maximum continuous power (VH) of 120 knots calibrated airspeed, maximum stall speed of 45 knots calibrated airspeed in landing configuration (VS0), no more than two seats, fixed landing gear (with specific exceptions for seaplanes and gliders), a single reciprocating engine (if powered), and a fixed or ground-adjustable propeller. If the aircraft does not meet every one of these criteria, it is not an LSA, and a sport pilot cannot act as pilot in command regardless of passenger intentions.
The 90-Day Recent-Flight-Experience Requirement
Before carrying a passenger, a sport pilot must comply with the recent-flight-experience standard found in 14 CFR 61.315(c)(6), which mirrors the private pilot passenger-carrying currency rule in 14 CFR 61.57. Within the preceding 90 days, the sport pilot must have performed at least three takeoffs and three landings in an aircraft of the same category and class as the one to be flown.
Full-Stop vs. Touch-and-Go Landings
The type of landing that counts depends on the landing gear configuration of the aircraft. For tailwheel airplanes, each of the three required landings must be made to a full stop. The tailwheel requirement exists because ground handling in a conventional-gear aircraft demands precise technique; a touch-and-go does not adequately rehearse the critical deceleration and directional control phase. For tricycle-gear (nosewheel) airplanes, touch-and-go landings are acceptable and count toward the three required. This distinction is frequently tested and is also a common real-world oversight for pilots who transition between gear types.
Category and Class Specificity
Currency is category- and class-specific. A sport pilot who has made three recent landings in a weight-shift-control aircraft cannot use that experience to carry a passenger in a powered parachute, and vice versa. Each category and class of LSA—airplane, glider, gyroplane, lighter-than-air, powered parachute, weight-shift-control—requires its own current experience. If you plan to fly multiple categories with passengers, you must maintain separate currency for each.
Logbook Endorsements and Certificate Privileges
A sport pilot certificate is issued with privileges tied to the category and class in which the practical test was completed. To act as pilot in command of an LSA in a different category or class—whether carrying a passenger or not—the pilot must receive training in that category/class and obtain a logbook endorsement from a certificated flight instructor (CFI) who holds the appropriate rating. That endorsement must confirm that the pilot has received the required ground and flight training and has been found proficient. Without the endorsement, flying the additional category or class with a passenger is a violation of 14 CFR 61.315, regardless of how many hours the pilot has logged.
Additional Endorsements That Affect Passenger Operations
- Aircraft with a VH above 87 knots: A sport pilot operating an LSA with a maximum speed in level flight (VH) above 87 knots calibrated airspeed must have a logbook endorsement authorizing that specific operation, per 14 CFR 61.31(e).
- Aircraft with a gross weight above 1,320 pounds (seaplanes/special cases): Specific endorsements and limitations apply per aircraft type.
- Class B, C, and D airspace and airspace above Class E to the surface: A sport pilot must receive ground and flight training and a logbook endorsement before operating in those airspace classes—whether or not a passenger is aboard. Without the endorsement, passenger-carrying flights are restricted to Class G and basic Class E airspace.
- Flight and ground training for complex or high-performance LSA: If the aircraft has specific operating characteristics that require additional training, the endorsement must reflect that.
Medical Eligibility: The Driver's License Standard
Sport pilots are not required to hold an FAA medical certificate. Instead, 14 CFR 61.23 permits a sport pilot to use a current and valid U.S. driver's license as evidence of medical eligibility, provided the pilot has not been denied an FAA medical certificate, has not been told by a physician that he or she is unable to fly, and has no known medical condition that would make the pilot unable to operate an aircraft safely. If the driver's license is expired, suspended, or revoked, the pilot cannot legally act as pilot in command—and therefore cannot carry a passenger. A pilot who holds a valid FAA medical certificate (any class) may also use that certificate in lieu of a driver's license. The key point is that some form of current medical eligibility documentation is required every single time the pilot exercises PIC privileges with or without a passenger.
Operational Limitations That Affect Passengers
Even when currency and endorsements are in order, a sport pilot is subject to hard operational limits that directly affect when and where a passenger may be carried. Under 14 CFR 61.315, a sport pilot may not:
- Fly at night (between the end of evening civil twilight and the beginning of morning civil twilight).
- Fly in Class A airspace.
- Fly in airspace where air traffic control communication is required unless an appropriate endorsement has been obtained.
- Fly in furtherance of a business—passengers may be carried for recreational purposes only; accepting compensation for carriage is prohibited.
- Fly outside the United States unless specifically authorized.
- Fly an aircraft that does not meet the LSA definition, regardless of its airworthiness certificate.
These restrictions apply whenever a passenger is aboard and cannot be waived. Carrying a passenger on a night flight, for example, is not simply a currency issue—it is a flat prohibition for sport pilots.
Why These Rules Exist: The Safety Rationale
The 90-day currency requirement targets the takeoff and landing phases of flight, which consistently account for a disproportionate share of general aviation accidents. Passengers add workload and distraction; a pilot whose basic control skills have grown rusty is less equipped to handle an unexpected crosswind, a balked landing, or a loss of directional control during the takeoff roll. The endorsement requirements ensure that pilots have received qualified instruction before venturing into unfamiliar aircraft types or airspace environments with a non-pilot on board. The single-passenger limit reflects both the structural certification basis of most LSA and the recognition that sport pilot training, while thorough, is designed for simpler, lower-risk operations than those expected of private or commercial pilots.
Key Numbers and Rules at a Glance
- Maximum passengers: 1 (14 CFR 61.315)
- Recent-flight-experience window: 90 days, 3 takeoffs and 3 landings, same category and class
- Tailwheel requirement: full-stop landings only
- LSA maximum gross weight: 1,320 lb (land), 1,430 lb (water)
- LSA maximum VH: 120 KCAS
- LSA maximum VS0: 45 KCAS
- Medical documentation: current U.S. driver's license or valid FAA medical certificate
- Night flight: prohibited for sport pilots
Common Test Traps
- Assuming touch-and-go landings satisfy tailwheel currency—they do not; full-stop landings are required.
- Confusing the 90-day passenger-carrying rule with the 24-calendar-month flight review requirement—these are completely separate obligations.
- Believing a sport pilot can carry multiple passengers if the aircraft has two seats—the one-passenger limit is set by certificate, not by seat count.
- Thinking that a private pilot certificate holder flying an LSA as a sport pilot is exempt from sport pilot limitations—when a private pilot chooses to exercise sport pilot privileges, sport pilot rules apply.
- Overlooking airspace endorsement requirements when planning a passenger flight near a Class D airport—the flight may be illegal even if currency and medical requirements are met.
- Assuming an expired FAA medical automatically disqualifies the pilot—a sport pilot who never held a medical and uses a driver's license is unaffected by that scenario, but a pilot whose most recent FAA medical application was denied cannot use the driver's license alternative.