Jaa....faa
I hold both licences and each has its charms. I am by no stretch of the imagination the best pilot in the world but have seen several different training methods.
From the beginning…
The JAA has a hard slog in terms of exams, with a great deal of irrelevant information with regard to flying. This is a shame as it takes away from gaining a deeper understanding of the subjects which matter and ultimately add to flight safety.
The flight tests can be a little formulaic and test certain aspects of your ability to handle an aircraft, never the less they are thorough.
The FAA licence in terms of written exams is just daft, you can know little about aviation and still pass. However this is backed up in a big way by the oral exam that you have to complete before the flight test, this can be tough. You are on the spot with no multi choice answers and an examiner asking you to apply your knowledge.
The flight tests are practical and can be in depth, for example being asked to plan a full commercial flight in a light twin with pax and all the trimmings is not out of the realm of possibilities.
I understand the argument of those who have been flying for a number of years with an FAA licence and ask why do I have to do the JAA exams, what is the value ? It is probably limited, but a good theoretical knowledge base cant be a bad place to start from. Yes I agree some of the information is just daft and I wish it would be taken out, but as an earlier poster said it just another hurdle, just like the oral exam is in the FAA system.
Last edited by pg wing tips; 23rd Apr 2008 at 09:40.