FAA Airman Registry Search
Search the FAA's official airman registry — the definitive FAA airman lookup for pilots, mechanics, flight instructors, drone operators, and every other certificated aviation professional in the United States. AviatorDB tracks 900,000+ active FAA airmen — verify a pilot certificate, look up a mechanic's A&P credentials, find a CFI, or check whether a name appears in the federal registry. AviatorDB also indexes Transport Canada's Canadian airmen records, with additional country registries on the roadmap. Data is refreshed monthly from the primary sources.
Enter last name first. Add first name or state to narrow results. Example: "Cruise Thomas" or "Smith CA"
NOTE: We do not include certificate numbers or records of airmen who do not want their addresses released.
What is the FAA Airman Registry?
The FAA Airman Certification database is a public federal record of every individual the Federal Aviation Administration has issued an aviation certificate to. It includes pilots at every certificate level, certified flight instructors, ground instructors, A&P mechanics, IA inspectors, repairmen, aircraft dispatchers, flight engineers, control tower operators, parachute riggers, and Part 107 remote pilots (drone operators). AviatorDB ingests the FAA monthly release and makes the registry searchable by name, state, certificate type, and rating — the same source used by employers, training schools, and safety auditors. Beyond the FAA, AviatorDB also indexes Transport Canada airmen so a Canadian airmen search from the box above returns Canadian results alongside FAA records; more international country registries are on the AviatorDB roadmap.
Certificate types we cover
AviatorDB indexes every airman category the FAA issues — the most comprehensive free pilot certificate lookup for the U.S. registry. Pilot certificates run from Student Pilot through Airline Transport Pilot (ATP); instructor and operator certificates cover flight instructors (CFI / CFII / MEI), ground instructors, flight engineers, aircraft dispatchers, remote pilots, flight navigators, and control tower operators; mechanics-and-specialists coverage includes A&P, IA, Repairman, and Parachute Rigger.
Type ratings
A type rating is a separate FAA endorsement required to act as pilot-in-command of specific high-performance or turbine-powered aircraft. Common examples include the B-737, A-320, CE-525 (Citation), and EMB-145. Airline Transport Pilots typically hold one or more type ratings; the AviatorDB airman record displays type ratings alongside other certificates.
How to search the FAA airman registry
Enter a last name in the search box above and press Search. Add a first name to narrow common surnames, or a two-letter state code to limit results to a single state. Worked examples: "Cruise Thomas" returns airmen named Thomas Cruise; "Smith CA" returns Smiths in California; "Ford Harrison" returns airmen named Harrison Ford. For pure state-level browse (every certificated airman in a state), use the state directory at /airmen/states rather than the free-text search box — the search API matches names, not state pivots on bare two-letter codes. You can also filter by certificate category from any of the airmen category pages.
What's included and what's not
Records include certificate types, ratings, medical class, city/state (or province for Canadian airmen), and last action date. Records do not include certificate numbers (FAA policy), Basic Medical information (the FAA does not release it in bulk data), or addresses for airmen who have opted into the FAA address-release exclusion under FAA Order 1280.1B. Transport Canada records follow the equivalent Canadian disclosure policies. Airmen with reciprocal U.S. certificates issued under 14 CFR 61.75 are also included.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I look up an FAA pilot certificate?
- Enter the pilot's last name, or last name plus state, in the search box above. AviatorDB returns matching FAA-registered airmen with their certificate types, ratings, and medical class. All data comes directly from the FAA Airman Certification database, and the FAA pilot lookup includes commercial, private, ATP, and sport pilot certificate holders.
- Is FAA airman registry data public?
- Yes. The FAA Airman Certification database is a federal public record under the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. § 552). The FAA publishes the data monthly. Individual airmen may opt out of having their street address released, but certificate-holder status remains public — this is the basis for any FAA airman search or airman inquiry.
- What is an FAA airman search?
- An FAA airman search (also called an airmen search or airman certificate lookup) is a lookup of the federal registry of every person holding an FAA-issued aviation certificate — pilots, mechanics, instructors, controllers, dispatchers, drone operators, and parachute riggers. AviatorDB makes this registry searchable by name, state, or certificate category.
- Can I search for mechanics, instructors, and pilots?
- Yes. AviatorDB indexes every category the FAA issues — pilots (Student through ATP), certified flight instructors (CFI / CFII / MEI), Mechanics with Airframe and Powerplant ratings (A&P), Inspection Authorization (IA), Repairmen, Ground Instructors, Flight Engineers, Dispatchers, Remote Pilots (drone / sUAS), Flight Navigators, Parachute Riggers, and Control Tower Operators. Use the category pages for state-level browse.
- How often is AviatorDB updated?
- The FAA publishes a refreshed airman database monthly, and AviatorDB ingests it within a few days of release. Certificate, rating, and medical-class records reflect the most recent FAA publication.
- Can I look up a drone pilot or remote pilot?
- Yes. The FAA Remote Pilot certificate (issued under Part 107 for small unmanned aircraft systems) is included in the registry. Search by name; remote-pilot holders display their certificate category alongside any other ratings they hold.
- Can I search for Canadian or foreign-licensed pilots?
- Yes — a Canadian airmen search from the box above returns Transport Canada records alongside FAA records, because AviatorDB indexes Canadian airmen issued by Transport Canada directly. The FAA registry separately includes airmen issued reciprocal U.S. certificates under 14 CFR 61.75 (foreign pilots flying on a non-U.S. license). Coverage of additional country airman registries is on the AviatorDB roadmap.
- Why don't some airmen appear in results?
- A small percentage of airmen have opted out of FAA address release under FAA Order 1280.1B. AviatorDB respects those opt-outs and excludes those records, in line with the FAA's data release rules. Certificate numbers themselves are also not displayed.
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About this data
Sources: FAA Airman Certification database and Transport Canada's Canadian airmen records, both refreshed monthly. The FAA registry is a federal public record under 5 U.S.C. § 552; Transport Canada publishes its data under equivalent Canadian open-data policy. AviatorDB makes both freely searchable as a public-interest service and is expanding coverage to additional country registries. Airmen who have opted out of address release are excluded in line with each regulator's published policy. For more help searching the registry, visit our help center.