A commercial pilot (balloon) licence (CP(B)L) lets you to pilot hot air balloons for work.
To get your licence, you must pass a 2-part examination.
Before you do the CPL balloon exams
Before you take the exams, it helps if you have either:
- Private Pilot (Balloon) Permit
- an overseas Balloon flight crew licence.
To prepare for the exams, study the:
- CP(B)L medical requirements (CASR Part 67)
- CASR Part 91
- Part 91 MOS, Chapter 2
- CASR Part 131
- Civil Aviation Regulations (CAR) Part 5, Schedule 7 Part 5 and Schedule 8 Part 2
- Civil Aviation Orders (CAO) 40.2.2, 40.7, 48.1 Appendix 4A, 95.54 and 101.54
- Part 131 Guide to balloons and hot airships
- Aeronautical Information Package (AIP) Book
- En Route Supplement Australia (ERSA)
- Canberra/Albury Visual Terminal Charts (VTC)
Section 3.5 of the syllabus of training also recommends what you should study.
Commercial pilot licence flight rules and air law (balloon) exam – CLWB
The exams include multiple-choice questions and questions where you type a whole number in a box.
You have 2 hours to complete the exam.
To pass, you will need to get at least 75% of the marks.
These exams cost $189.53 each ($124.53 invigilator fee and $65 CASA fee).
Preparing for your exam
The CP(B)L syllabus of training details the training and education you need to pilot balloons.
Permitted material
You may use either the Airservices or Jeppesen list of permitted materials. You need to supply these materials.
You cannot use a combination of materials from both the Airservices list and the Jeppesen list.
Airservices list
- CAR 1988 Part 5, Schedule 7 Part 5 and Schedule 8 Part 2
- Regulations 67.205 and 67.265 of CASR
- Part 91.D.4.6 of CASR
- Part 91 MOS, Chapter 2
- Part 131 of CASR
- Part 131 MOS
- CAO 48.1 Instrument 2019 – Appendix 4A
- CASR Part 91 Plain English guide for general operating and flight rules – Note 1
- CASR Part 131 Guide for balloons and hot air airships – Note 1
- CAO 48.1 Plain English guide for fatigue management rules – Note 1
- AC 131-01 Airworthiness
- AC 131-02 Operations
- AIP Book
- ERSA
- Canberra/Albury VTC
- A basic calculator
Jeppesen list
- CAR 1988 Part 5, Schedule 7 Part 5 and Schedule 8 Part 2
- Regulations 67.205 and 67.265 of CASR
- Part 91.D.4.6 of CASR
- Part 91 MOS, Chapter 2
- Part 131 of CASR
- Part 131 MOS
- CAO 48.1 Instrument 2019 – Appendix 4A
- CASR Part 91 Plain English guide for general operating and flight rules – Note 1
- CASR Part 131 Guide for balloons and hot air airships – Note 1
- CAO 48.1 Plain English guide for fatigue management rules – Note 1
- AC 131-01 Airworthiness
- AC 131-02 Operations
- Jeppesen Airway Manual
- Canberra/Albury VTC
- A basic calculator
Note 1: The Plain English Guides may not have current information. If you choose to use these documents, make sure you also have other materials to help with current laws and procedures.
These ‘guides’ include the following notice:
Disclaimer: The guide has been prepared by CASA for information purposes only, and while every effort has been made to ensure that the contents accurately conform to the civil aviation legislation, this guide is not the law. CASA accepts no liability for damages or liability of any kind resulting from its use. You should ensure you are using the most current version of the guide, which can be found on the CASA website.
Your invigilator will give you some things before the exam, which you must hand back at the end. These include:
- pen
- pencil
- ruler
- eraser
- scribble pad.
Pass rates
You can see how candidates performed in their CLWB exam.
| Year | 0 - 54% | 55 - 59% | 60 - 64% | 65 - 69% | 70 - 74% | 75 - 79% | 80+% | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12.50 | 12.50 | 12.50 | 62.50 | 75.00% |
| 2021 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 100.00 | 100.00% |
| 2022 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 50.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 50.00 | 0.00 | 50.00% |
| 2023 | 0.00 | 16.67 | 16.67 | 16.67 | 0.00 | 33.33 | 16.67 | 50.00% |
| 2024 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 40.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 40.00 | 20.00 | 60.00% |
| 2025 | 0.00 | 11.11 | 11.11 | 0.00 | 11.11 | 0.00 | 66.67 | 66.67% |
Check the results of candidates from previous years.
Commercial pilot licence operations (balloon) exam – COPB
The exams include multiple-choice questions and questions where you type a whole number in a box.
You have 2 hours to complete the exam.
To pass, you will need to get at least 75% of the marks.
The exams cost $189.53 each ($124.53 invigilator fee and $65 CASA fee).
Preparing for your exam
The CP(B)L syllabus of training details the training and education you need to pilot balloons. It will also test on the laws in Part 5 of the Civil Aviation Regulations 1988.
Permitted material
You may use either the Airservices or Jeppesen list of permitted materials. You need to supply these materials.
You cannot use a combination of materials from both the Airservices list and the Jeppesen list.
Airservices list
- Part 91.D.4.6 of CASR
- Part 91 MOS, Chapter 2
- Part 131 of CASR
- Part 131 MOS
- CASR Part 91 Plain English guide for general operating and flight rules – Note 1
- CASR Part 131 Guide for balloons and hot air airships – Note 1
- AC 131-01 Airworthiness
- AC 131-02 Operations
- AIP Book
- ERSA
- ERC Low 1/2
- AUS PCA
- Canberra/Albury VTC
- Navigation equipment
- A basic calculator
Jeppesen list
- Part 91.D.4.6 of CASR
- Part 91 MOS, Chapter 2
- Part 131 of CASR
- Part 131 MOS
- CASR Part 91 Plain English guide for general operating and flight rules – Note 1
- CASR Part 131 Guide for balloons and hot air airships – Note 1
- AC 131-01 Airworthiness
- AC 131-02 Operations
- Jeppesen Airway Manual
- AUS PCA
- ERC Low 1/2
- Canberra/Albury VTC
- Navigation equipment
- A basic calculator
Note 1: The Plain English Guides may not have current information. If you choose to use these documents, make sure you also have other materials to help with current laws and procedures.
These ‘guides’ include the following notice:
Disclaimer: The guide has been prepared by CASA for information purposes only, and while every effort has been made to ensure that the contents accurately conform to the civil aviation legislation, this guide is not the law. CASA accepts no liability for damages or liability of any kind resulting from its use. You should ensure you are using the most current version of the guide, which can be found on the CASA website.
Your invigilator will give you some things before the exam, which you must hand back at the end. These include:
- pen
- pencil
- ruler
- eraser
- scribble pad.
Pass rates
You can see how candidates performed in their COPB exam.
| Year | 0 - 54% | 55 - 59% | 60 - 64% | 65 - 69% | 70 - 74% | 75 - 79% | 80+% | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11.11 | 0 | 0 | 88.89 | 88.89% |
| 2021 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00% |
| 2022 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00% |
| 2023 | 100.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00% |
| 2024 | 0.00 | 11.11 | 11.11 | 0.00 | 22.22 | 0.00 | 55.56 | 55.56% |
| 2025 | 0.00 | 33.33 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 33.33 | 0.00 | 33.33 | 33.33% |
Check the results of candidates from previous years.
COPB covers these topics in the syllabus:
- balloons general knowledge
- charts and publications
- radio communications
- altimetry
- navigation
- operations, performance and flight planning
- balloon airworthiness
- aviation meteorology and weather services
- human performance and limitations.
Booking the CPL (Balloon) exams
Plan when you do the exams carefully and book them only when you understand each exam subject.
You must pass both subjects within one window to get your CPLB. A window is 2 years, unless you have an exemption.