How Often Is the FAA Airmen Database Updated?

The FAA Civil Aviation Registry is a living database. New certificates are issued daily, existing certificates are updated or surrendered, and medical certifications expire. To keep up with these changes, the FAA publishes bulk data exports on a weekly basis.

FAA Bulk Download Schedule

The FAA releases updated CSV files approximately once per week through the FAA Airmen Inquiry system. Each release contains four files:

• PILOT_BASIC.csv — pilot airmen with name, address, and medical info
• PILOT_CERT.csv — certificates held by each pilot airman
• NONPILOT_BASIC.csv — non-pilot airmen (mechanics, dispatchers, etc.)
• NONPILOT_CERT.csv — certificates held by non-pilot airmen

What AviationDepth Does

AviationDepth downloads these files weekly, normalizes the data, and loads it into its database. Each record is upserted — new airmen are added, existing records are updated with any changes, and the total count reflects the current registry snapshot.

Privacy and Address Suppression

Some airmen opt out of address publication through the FAA's Address Withholding Program. Their name and certificate information appear in the database, but city and state will be blank. This is by design — AviationDepth reflects whatever the FAA publishes.

Searching the Database

Use the AviationDepth search to find any FAA-certificated airman by name. Browse by state or certificate type for aggregated views.