Blueskymine,
Far from true, flight and engineering have great difficulties with FAA at the best of times.
What makes the USA system easy is the plain language the rules are written in, compared to Australia.
If you read AOPA, the real one (USA) magazine they have specialist contributors who offer advice on everything from medical, insurance, handling the FAA, hidden agenda in the regs, flight tests, maintenance.
New Zealand regs would be worthy of consideration..