Plain English Meaning
Pilots working toward becoming flight instructors. They are held to a higher demonstration standard than other pilots because their job will be to teach.
Full Definition
Pilots who are training for, or being evaluated on, the requirements to earn a Flight Instructor Certificate (CFI). They are typically commercial pilots learning to teach flight maneuvers from the right seat and to demonstrate maneuvers — including certain advanced stall recoveries — to a higher standard than required of a private or commercial pilot.
Context Anchor
In the Airplane Flying Handbook, this phrase usually marks material aimed at pilots learning how to teach a maneuver, not just perform it themselves.
Why Pilots Care
Some maneuvers in the handbook (like intentionally inducing a secondary stall) are practiced only by flight instructor applicants, not by student, private, or commercial pilots. Knowing the term tells you whether a procedure applies to your level of training.
Intuition Check
Do not read this as people applying to take lessons from a flight instructor. In this context, it means pilots applying to become flight instructors.
Example Sentence 1
The secondary stall is intentionally demonstrated only by flight instructor applicants during their practical test.
Example Sentence 2
The Airplane Flying Handbook notes that flight instructor applicants should be able to recognize the onset of a secondary stall during training.