Signing students out

[RodgerF]

Every so often on the Private Forum, there is a 'how long does my licence take to come' question and various posts allude to the fact that a someone waiting for a licence to be issued can be 'signed out solo by an instructor'.

Being a sad sort of person and looking in the ANO to answer some other question I found that there is no direct authority for this case.

The authority to authorise solo flight derives from ART 21 para (b), but this only covers pilots flying for the purpose of becoming qualified. If someone is waiting for a licence to be issued, they must have completed all the training and no longer be flying to become qualified.

Any other reference I have missed?

[homeguard]

The Bible and the Koran is still being interpreted and argued over after more than two thousand years.

For some things you just use common sense!

The pilot is not qualified until his licence is signed. If you want to split hairs; to be tested the student must have completed the full syllabus. You may well consider that further training in some areas is still beneficial.