DLR Rating Not Good Enough: Retake or Plan B?

The certificate lands in your inbox, and somewhere there is a C or a D where your preferred airline wants an A or a B. It feels like a verdict. It isn't one. DLR states on its certificate page that the certificate contains no selection decision. You have been measured, not stamped "unsuitable".

Sugar-coating doesn't help either: if your rating is below your airline's threshold, that route is closed for now. "For now" is meant literally, and there are several other reputable routes into the cockpit or a closely related job.

This article works through the options: retaking, private flight schools, modular training, other airlines, air traffic control. All details are as of September 2026; the pages of DLR, the flight school and the airline always take precedence.

Can you actually fail the DLR test?

Not the DLR Pilot Certificate: everyone who sits it receives a certificate once payment has arrived. "Not good enough" only arises at the next step, because airlines and flight schools set their own minimum ratings.

The certificate describes your results in four areas based on EASA criteria: basic cognitive abilities, operational and professional competencies, personality, and social competencies. According to the European Flight Academy (EFA), each competency area is rated from A to D, and EFA publishes the minimum rating it requires in a separate document.

So the same certificate can be too weak for one flight school and sufficient for another, and a weak rating in one area tells you fairly precisely where to start working.

Airline-specific procedures such as an assessment centre are different: there you do get a yes or a no, and whether you may try again is up to the airline. More under Failed the DLR test - what now?.

When and how can I retake the DLR test?

DLR recommends waiting 6 months before a retake, and you have to sit all areas again, not just the weak one. EFA's FAQ mentions no blocking period of its own: you can book a new date there at any time.

Sources: DLR certificate page, EFA FAQ and booking page, as of September 2026.

Two details take pressure off the decision. According to DLR, a retake is not noted on the certificate. And if the second attempt turns out worse, you can keep using the first certificate for as long as it is valid; which one you submit is your choice.

That you can rebook at any time doesn't mean you should. DLR's six months are recommended for good reason: working memory, mental arithmetic under audio or spatial reasoning improve over weeks, not days. Turning up again after four weeks without a new plan usually means paying for the same result. See also Can you repeat the DLR test?.

ImportantDiscount campaigns have their own conditions. EFA's autumn 2026 discount (€327 instead of €427, test dates up to 31 December 2026) applies once per person according to EFA, and such dates can be neither rescheduled nor refunded.

How do I make good use of the gap before the second attempt?

With an error analysis per module in the first week and a fixed weekly plan after that. "Practising more" alone rarely works, because you mostly train what already comes easily.

1. Write down the test day while the memory is fresh. Which tasks felt alien? Where did time run away? Keep the notes to yourself; don't pass on original test items.
2. Read the certificate area by area. A weak rating in basic cognitive abilities calls for different training than one in English or technical knowledge.
3. Name the cause. Unfamiliar format, speed, a knowledge gap, nerves, or a late start? Each has a different remedy.
4. Break the plan down into weeks. Short daily sessions beat the weekend marathon. The 8-week training plan gives you a template.
5. Study the knowledge subjects separately. English, technical comprehension and physics are classic study material. Books, podcasts or a language course do more here than any reaction training.
6. Treat the final three weeks like the first time. DLR recommends spreading the training units it sends you over three weeks. See Test booked: the final 3 weeks.

For the daily routine, an app such as the DLR Test Trainer fits well: the error analysis after each session shows, for example, which type of task is costing you marks in mental arithmetic. It does not replace DLR's official preparation software, and it does not train the MIC joystick test. For that you need desktop software; see MIC: the multitasking test.

Can I become a pilot without the DLR test?

Yes. Many private flight schools (ATOs, approved training organisations) train for the commercial pilot licence under the same EASA rules and ask for no DLR certificate. You end up with the same licence; the differences are money and the question of who hires you afterwards.

The opportunities: you aren't tied to a single airline group and can often start sooner. Look at the risks just as squarely:

• Self-funding. Schemes such as EFA's in Germany (€10,000 own contribution, the rest through an education fund with income-based repayment) or the SWISS training loan are tied to the respective selection process. At an independent school you generally bear the cost yourself or through a loan. For a neutral overview see Pilot training: costs and financing; binding information comes from official bodies such as Switzerland's Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) or from your bank, not from a blog.
• No airline link. After training you apply on the open market. Nothing is guaranteed; it isn't at EFA either, but graduates there have a defined route to the Lufthansa Group airlines.
• Selection still comes later. Whoever hires qualified pilots tests them with their own procedures. According to the preparation provider Easyflight Training, Austrian Airlines and Air Dolomiti, for instance, use a DLR test as the first stage for licensed pilots too. Avoiding the aptitude test often just means postponing it, with a loan on your shoulders.
• Differences in quality. Check that the school is approved as an ATO by the national authority (LBA in Germany, FOCA in Switzerland, Austro Control in Austria), and ask about contracts, payment schedules and drop-out terms.

TipGet your Class 1 medical before you sign a training contract anywhere. FOCA recommends the same step before applying for funding.

What does modular training offer as an alternative?

It spreads cost and risk over stages. Instead of one continuous full-time course, you earn the licences one after another: first the private pilot licence, then ATPL theory, hour building, the commercial licence, the instrument rating and multi-crew training.

The advantage if your DLR rating fell short: you can work alongside, pay step by step, and find out as early as the private pilot licence whether flying really suits you. The drawback: it usually takes longer, demands a lot of self-organisation, and some airlines prefer graduates of continuous courses for entry-level jobs. Note also that, according to its FAQ, EFA does not accept applicants who hold a commercial pilot licence; a private licence is no obstacle. Going modular all the way therefore means deciding against the Lufthansa Group's ab initio route.

For career changers this is often the most realistic path; more in Becoming a pilot at 30, with glasses, without A-levels.

Which airlines test without DLR?

Plenty. DLR is only one of several test providers, and many airlines build their selection themselves or with other contractors.

Two examples with an official source: Condor's career portal states that DLR certificates are recognised neither when positive nor when negative; stage one of its ab initio programme is run by Interpersonal GmbH in Hamburg. Cargolux describes psychometric tests developed specifically for the company. Internationally, provider overviews also list the cut-e (Aon) tests as widespread.

So a weak DLR certificate doesn't follow you to every airline. But other procedures also test working memory, arithmetic, spatial reasoning and multitasking; if those were the problem in the DLR test, you will need them there too. For an overview, see Which airlines use the DLR test?.

Is air traffic control with DFS an alternative?

For some people, yes, but not as the easier version. DFS, Germany's air navigation service provider, also selects its trainees using DLR procedures in Hamburg, though with a different profile from the cockpit.

According to AERO International of 12 November 2025, selection begins with an online assessment, followed by a two-part examination at DLR: computer-based tests of stress resilience and memory, plus a part on teamwork and motivation. The requirements named in the report include the Abitur (German university entrance qualification), a maximum age of 24 at application, and a confident command of German and English; training takes two and a half to three and a half years. Check the current conditions directly in DFS's career portal; in Switzerland the equivalent organisation is Skyguide.

It is a profession in its own right: shift work on the ground, enormous responsibility, no travelling. Seen only as a consolation prize, it won't convince anyone at interview. If the air traffic system itself fascinates you, it is a genuine option.

How do I work out which route suits me?

By answering a few questions honestly, ideally in writing and with some distance from the result.

• How close was it? One area just under the threshold after brief preparation is a different starting point from weak ratings across the board despite months of training.
• How good was the preparation really? The complete official software and weeks of training, or two frantic weekends?
• What has training shown since? Measurable improvement supports a second attempt. Weeks of stagnation are information too.
• What do you actually want? The flight deck of one particular airline, flying as such, or aviation as a working world? Depending on the answer, a private flight school, air traffic control or a technical job may fit better than a third attempt.
• What can you carry financially if no job follows straight after training?

DLR tests up to 10,000 applicants a year, and there is no official figure for how many of them meet their airline's requirements. Distrust forum numbers in both directions. More on that in DLR test experiences.

A second attempt is no blemish, and a different route is no defeat. The only unwise moves are repeating the same attempt without analysis or taking out a large loan out of defiance.

Sources

• DLR: Pilot Certificate (price, retakes, validity)
• DLR: test centre for aviation and space psychology in Hamburg
• European Flight Academy: FAQ
• European Flight Academy: registration for the DLR test
• Condor Career Center: FAQ on the selection process (German)
• Cargolux: requirements and selection process
• AERO International, 12 November 2025: how to become an air traffic controller at DFS (German)
• FOCA: funding for aviation training (German)