First Solo Sign-Off Checklist
Interactive first solo sign-off checklist with progress saved locally — built around the items schools actually miss.
The lighter aircraft floats — the most common first-solo surprise is a 172 that climbs faster and lands longer without the instructor's weight, and the brief should say so explicitly.
Regulatory completeness
Readiness beyond the rule
The day
⚠️ Not for operational decisions. This is a record-keeping and planning aid only — not certified avionics, not a source of regulatory truth. Always verify against official sources (FAA) and your operator's approved documents before flying.
Free interactive first solo sign-off checklist for CFIs authorising first solos — tick-off sections covering the legal, operational and human items, progress saved in your browser.
About First Solo Sign-Off Checklist
Some processes are too important for memory and too infrequent for habit, which is exactly when checklists earn their keep. For CFIs authorising first solos: the lighter aircraft floats — the most common first-solo surprise is a 172 that climbs faster and lands longer without the instructor's weight, and the brief should say so explicitly. Work the sections in order, tick honestly, reset between uses.
How to use First Solo Sign-Off Checklist
- 1Open the list at process start — enrolment, flight day, check day.
- 2Tick items as genuinely complete.
- 3Reset for the next student or event; adapt items to your school's SOPs.
Why use First Solo Sign-Off Checklist?
- ✓Built for CFIs authorising first solos — real misses, not filler
- ✓Legal/federal items sequenced first, where the teeth are
- ✓Human-factors details included — they decide the outcomes
- ✓Tick-off progress saved locally; reset and reuse
- ✓Free, private, no account
Frequently asked questions
How does the aircraft fly differently on a first solo?+
Noticeably: minus the instructor's weight a trainer climbs visibly faster, holds altitude at less power, and floats further in the flare — the classic first-solo surprise being a touchdown point hundreds of feet beyond the familiar one. Good practice briefs it explicitly and adjusts: expect the float, fly the numbers not the sight picture, go around early if the picture is wrong. Examiner wisdom: the student who goes around unprompted on solo day was correctly soloed.
Can I adapt this checklist to my school's procedures?+
You should: treat it as the baseline covering the regulatory and commonly-missed items, then extend with your operation's specifics — insurance requirements, syllabus stages, local airspace quirks. The sectioned-and-ticked method is the transferable part; a list that mirrors your actual workflow is the one your staff will use on every student, which is where the value lives.
Do I need an account or internet connection?+
No account and no connection are needed once the page has loaded — records live in local storage on your device and every calculation runs in your browser. Data doesn't sync between devices, so export the CSV when you want to move or archive your records.
How do I back up or print these records?+
Use the Export CSV button below the table: it downloads your full process record as a spreadsheet-ready file. From there you can print a clean copy, archive it with your records folder, or import it into any other system. Exporting monthly is a good habit since the working data lives only in your browser.
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