Yes, you are right JAA is JAA. I have a license issued from across the water. I started with an FAA CPL(H) and under JAA, if you have an ICAO CPL(H), you are exempt from the 30 hours CPL course (35 hours if you don‘t have a night rating). The amount of time required pre skill test, is at the discretion of the head of training of the flight school.
However, Mr. UKCAA said, he wanted to see a minimum of 10 + hours before the skill test. So, I shopped around and went to a flight school in Ireland. Again, it wasn’t a ’walk in the park’.
I took the paperwork to the IAA (I also had to have a class 1 Medical issued in Ireland) and they said, go and have a cup of coffee around the corner and come back in half an hour. When I returned, the license was waiting for me….that’s a JAA license.
The waiting time with the UKCAA was between 5 to 7 weeks at that time! I must say, I found the IAA to be very helpful indeed, if you call, flight crew licensing a human answers and helps you. They find ways of ‘doing it’ not reasons not to and it’s all within the JAA regulations. They know what they are talking about, instead of the UKCAA… speak to 3 different people and get 3 different interpretations…. “you are held in a queue and you are number 99.….very frustrating.
I called the IAA and asked them about an Romania type rating (the prejudice thing) They said, Romania is member of JAA and compiles with amendment 6 as they do. All they need is, the course completion certificate, the examiner authority and a copy of the schools TRTO certificate. Which is exactly want any JAA member requires.
All JAA members are audited by JAA or shall we say, EASA now, and have to comply with whatever amendment they have signed up to.
Incidentally, the cheapest AS365 type rating I could find in the UK JAAland (of those who could be bothered) was 23K, plus vat of course!