EASA Part-66 On-the-Job Training (OJT)
The practical-experience step required for your first aircraft type rating — point 66.A.45(c)
This page reproduces Commission Regulation (EU) No 1321/2014, Annex III (Part-66), point 66.A.45(c) and Appendix III (Section 6), as amended by Regulation (EU) 2023/989. View the regulation.
What OJT is & when you need it
On-the-Job Training (OJT) is a structured period of supervised, real maintenance work on the actual aircraft type — the hands-on experience that turns type-course theory into the competence to certify safe maintenance.
Under EASA Part-66, OJT is required for the endorsement of your first aircraft type rating within a given category or subcategory (for every category except C). It sits on top of the theoretical and practical type training, and only the first type rating needs it — later type ratings in the same category need less.
Step 1
Theoretical training & exam
Approved type-training course theory, with the type examination.
Step 2
Practical training
Practical elements of the type course, assessed to the required standard.
Step 3
On-the-Job Training
Supervised real tasks on the aircraft — required for the first type rating.
Result: your first aircraft type rating is endorsed on your Part-66 licence.
How EASA OJT works (Appendix III, Section 6)
The building blocks of a compliant OJT programme. Items tagged AMC/GM are recommended means of compliance (guidance); items tagged Rule are the regulation itself.
| Requirement | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Who approves it | The competent authority that issued your licence approves the OJT programme. | Rule |
| Where it is done | At and under the control of an appropriately approved maintenance organisation (Part-145, or MA Subpart F / Part-CAO) holding an A rating for that aircraft type. The organisation writes its OJT procedure into its exposition — MOE Chapter 3.15. | Rule |
| Supervision | One-to-one supervision, performing real maintenance tasks on the aircraft or its components — covering line and/or base maintenance. | AMC/GM |
| No simulators | OJT must be actual work on actual aircraft or components; simulators are not accepted for OJT. | AMC/GM |
| Task coverage | At least 50% of the tasks in Appendix II to the AMC to Part-66, with some tasks drawn from each paragraph, selected for the aircraft type and licence (sub)category. (It is not necessary to complete exactly 50% of every ATA chapter — 50% is the overall list-coverage target.) | AMC/GM |
| Sequencing vs theory | Up to 50% of the OJT may be undertaken before the theoretical type-training course begins; the remainder alongside or after it. | AMC/GM |
| Time window | The OJT must be started and completed within the 3 years preceding the application for the type-rating endorsement. | Rule |
| Records & sign-off | Each task is logged and countersigned by a designated supervisor. A mandatory final assessment is performed by a designated assessor, evidenced by detailed worksheets/logbook plus a compliance report to the authority. | Rule |
The objective, in the regulation's own words, is “to gain the required competence and experience in performing safe maintenance”.
Getting ready for type training
OJT is where you prove hands-on competence — but the type course and its examination test how well you know the aircraft's systems first. While you work through type training, our aircraft type-rating practice tests help you master the ATA-chapter systems knowledge the type exam is built on, so you walk onto the aircraft for OJT already fluent in how it works.
Prepare for type training with our type-rating question banks
Thousands of practice questions per aircraft type, organised by ATA chapter with the correct answer marked — ideal alongside your type course and OJT.
OJT around the world
Nearly every Part-66-lineage authority requires OJT for the first aircraft type rating — usually in near-identical wording. Here is how the regulators we compare elsewhere on the site line up.
| Authority | OJT for first type? | Rule reference | vs EASA |
|---|---|---|---|
| EASA | Yes — all categories except C | 66.A.45(c) + Appendix III | — baseline — |
| UK CAA | Yes | Retained Reg (EU) 1321/2014, 66.A.45(c) + App III | Near-identical (reads ‘the CAA’) |
| CASA (Australia) | Yes (first rating, B1/B2) | CASR Part 66 MOS; AC 66-07 | Aligned; adds PCT / POC / SOE pathways |
| UAE GCAA | Yes (termed ‘OJE’) | CAR-66 66.45(c) + Appendix III | Mirrors EASA; less numeric detail published |
| Qatar CAA | Yes | QCAR 1003/2006, Annex III (Part-66) | Near-verbatim EASA copy |
| CAAS (Singapore) | Yes | SAR-66.45(d) / AMC 66.45(d); AC 66-2 | Near-clone; approved SOE/OJT programme |
| HK CAD | Yes (first type only) | HKAR 66.45(c) + Appendix III | Direct JAR-66 / Part-66 transposition |
| DGCA (India) | Yes — except C | CAR-66 Issue III (2024), 66.A.45(c) | Newly harmonised with Part-66 |
| FAA (USA) | No equivalent | 14 CFR 65.77; 145.163 / 121.375 | A&P has no type rating — type competence via employer training |
Why the FAA (USA) is different
The US A&P (Airframe & Powerplant) mechanic certificate carries no aircraft type rating, so there is no “first type rating” and no OJT gate tied to one. An A&P is certified broadly by experience (14 CFR 65.77), then made competent on a specific aircraft through the employer's or repair station's FAA-approved training programme (14 CFR 145.163 / 121.375 / 135.433) and manufacturer courses. The competence bar is real — it is just reached outside the certificate rather than as a licensed type endorsement.
UAE GCAA — “OJE” instead of “OJT”
The UAE GCAA requires the same thing but calls it On-the-Job Experience (OJE) in CAR-66. Its rule text mandates GCAA-approved OJE for the first type rating, in an appropriately approved organisation, with per-task countersignature, a 3-year window and a final assessment — but it publishes less numeric detail than EASA (it uses “a cross section of tasks acceptable to the GCAA” rather than the explicit ≥50% figure).
India (DGCA) — recently harmonised
India moved its AME licensing onto an EASA-aligned footing with CAR-66 Issue III, dated 12 April 2024, which adopts point 66.A.45(c) and Appendix III and now explicitly requires OJT for the first type rating (all categories except C). Because it is a recent change, confirm current DGCA requirements — the transition arrangements for legacy licence holders are not fully published.
The ≥50%, one-to-one supervision and no-simulator figures are AMC/GM guidance in each system; Hong Kong applies 50% / 30% / 20% for the first / second / subsequent type of a manufacturer group. No form or regulation numbers here are invented — each is drawn from the named authority's published text.