EASA CPL conversion to FAA
Hello
I am thinking about converting my European licence to an American one. I have been working for an airline in Europe for some time but am no longer due to youknowwhat. I currently have EASA Commercial Pilot Licence with Single Engine, Multi Engine, Multi Engine Instrument Rating, Flight Instructor and a jet Type Rating. I am also a US citizen and have lived there for some time, but have no FAA experience and basically little idea how things work over there when it comes to certifying and licencing airmen. I have read threads on similar issues and Part 61 but still have some questions and would like to clear everything up.
First step to get FAA commercial certificate would be to obtain the private one. To do that I need to send over the AC8060-71 form to the FAA so that they can confirm my documents with the CAA which issued them. After it is completed I have 6 months to schedule a meeting in a local FSDO. Can the office mentioned in the form be changed later? It would be best for me to send it now but I am still not sure where in the US I will be staying. Also, I have read somewhere that it is advantageous to register in IACRA, pass the 1st class medical and pass the written IR (the regular one, not for foreigners?) exam before the meeting. After the meeting I apparently have to perform a simple checkride to finally obtain the private certificate.
After that, what should I do next to have my current ratings (single and multi engine, IR, maybe FI) put on it? I easily meet the requirements from part 61 to have them (not sure about the FI). Does that mean I will only have to pass the checkrides (PTSs?) without any additional training? I assume that (as in EASA) the ratings from private automatically transfer to commercial when switching but I’m not sure about that. Accordingly, after certyfying my ratings I understand that to get the commercial certificate all I would have to do is pass the written commercial theoretical test (ATP-CTP?) and a checkride later.
Last but not least, the jet type rating. Would it be enough to schedule an exam session in a certified sim center and pass it to get the TR on the FAA certificate if I already have some experience on the aircraft?
Please let me know if my understanding is wrong anywhere. All feedback is welcome if anyone has already been through this path or has some experience on this matter.