FAA piggy-back license info needed

[ock1f]

Hi all,

if you have been following one of the similar threads here you will have seen this post coming a mile off :)

Oh-- i have done two searches and not found anything relevant and i have to say that the search engine is very un-user friendly.

So what im looking for is the procedure for getting an FAA piggy back license on my Uk soon to be Irish JAA issued ppl.

In an easy step by step procedure what do i do?

And here are some questions:

1) Do i need an fAA instructor to sign off on the application?
2) is my IAA/JAA medical valid or do i need an FAA class 3?
3) Do i need to do a BFR?
4) Do i need to do the FAA general knowledge written and oral test for the piggy back license?
5) What security checks do i need to have done-how much interaction and form filling is required for the TSA/FAA/others?
6) If a BFR is needed does it have to be with a DPe examiner (of which i think there are only 2 authorised in Europe) or can any FAA instuctor do it?

Thanks in advance

OCK1F

[Merritt]

Ok - So having just been through most of this, here goes...

1) Start by downloading the correct CAA forms (there are two you will need; a payment form and Verification of Authenticity for Foreign Licence). They can be found here:
http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=33&pagetype=65&appid=11&mode=detail&id=2090

and

http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=292482

Next, go to the FAA web site and search for an equivalent to the verification form (its easy to find - sorry I don't have the link).

The CAA will sting you for approx £40 and the FAA don't charge. The CAA will take about 6+ weeks to and the FAA approx 8+ to talk to each other. You will eventually be sent a form from the FAA explaining that your details have been confirmed.


2) find the location of the closest FDSO office in the part of the US you are staying in and arrange an appointment. You will need to have swatted up on your air law and RT (both are quite different in the US as I have recently discovered!). Infact in hindsight I would download a copy of their RT Phraseology if there is such a thing on the FAA web site.

3) turn up at FDSO office in US and get grilled for 2hrs. If they are still happy, they will grant you a piece of paperwork (NOTE - some people have also required a US medical.. you takes yer chance)

4) Arrange a flight test with an approved training school

The previous thread is here: http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=292482


Cheers

Steve

[ock1f]

Thanks very much steve - much appreciated

[ock1f]

Hi steve do i have to nominate the FSDO i want to use before or after i send way the form to the FAA?

And as for the flight test is it a full FAA flight test or the bfr?

Thanks

[EvilKitty]

But remember that the FAA certificate will be based on your CAA issued license, so when you switch to IAA you'll have to do it all over again.

And its a BFR you have to do, not a full flight test. But that will still mean a couple of hours on the ground to make sure you are ok with US charts, airlaw, radio and procedures, and probably at least an hour in the aircraft in the air.

[ock1f]

Thanks kitty i am taking it one step at a time and getting the IAA one is first on my agenda then the FAA one

HAve i got this right that you fill in the paperwork send it off to the FAA arrange an appopintment with an FSDO pick up your temporary license and then go off do a bfr and wait for your full license to arrive?

Or do have to the bfr before sending off the paperwork and picking up the temporary license?

Thanks

OCK1F

[Chilli Monster]

1) Do Paperwork, nominate FSDO at time.

2) Paperwork back (letter of verification), make appointment with nominated FSDO

3) Visit FSDO, they give you temporary certificate (valid for 120 days)

4) Do BFR

5) Actual certificate will arrive in due course

[ock1f]

Thank you chiili- concise and clear.

OCK1 F

[Tall_guy_in_a_152]

3) turn up at FDSO office in US and get grilled for 2hrs
I don't think this is normal, although I suspect there is variation between FSDOs.

The FAA inspector that saw me explained that all the checking had been done at head office prior to my arrival and he was only concerned with two things - was I who I said I was and can I speak English. The former was achieved by means of passport and the contents of my wallet and the latter by engaging me in a conversation along the lines of "all muslims are probably terrorists, even if they don't know it yet". Unsure what my response was supposed to be, I was non-commital and tried to bring the conversation back around to the weather. It took about 15 minutes, but would have been quicker if he hadn't been training a new member of staff.

On the medical issue, I believe that if you fax a copy off to Oklahoma with your license then it will be validated but if you don't then an FAA class 3 may be required. Perhaps this explains the apparent inconsistency?

Finally, the FAA and CAA are both responsive to accelerating the validation process if necessary (i.e. 5 days before travel to the US). Both sides blame the other for being slow, but the FAA did concede that the CAA are one of the quickest. No idea about IAA.

[Speedbird48]

Chilli has got it right. Concise and to the point.

The grilling session is BS, or say which FSDO it was??

PM me if you want any help on the Western side of the pond.

Speedbird 48.

[dublinpilot]

Earlier in this thread someone mentioned sending a "Verification of Authenticity for Foreign Licence" from and fee to the CAA. The IAA have no equilivant of this. They are happy to deal with the FAA request directly, without any input from you.

Your JAA medical will be fine for your FAA based on licence. One thing, is to make sure that you know the FAR that specifies your JAA medical is good enough. I've gone through this verification process twice. First time was no problem at all....very helpful inspector sat down with me, and went through the paper work. (When you go to the FSDO to get the licence, there is more paperwork.) He knew what he was at. Second time around it was different, and the FAA inspector went though a fair bit of FAA rules and regs with me. (I didn't mind, because I knew what I was at, and had just revised it all for my BFR anyway). But he believed my JAA medical was of no use. A quick call to head office put him straight though ;) It would have been even easier if I had remembered the FAR section at the time.

The process is fairly quick with the IAA. Turn around in about 2-3 weeks.

dp

[Contacttower]

"all muslims are probably terrorists, even if they don't know it yet". Unsure what my response was supposed to be, I was non-commital and tried to bring the conversation back around to the weather. It took about 15 minutes, but would have been quicker if he hadn't been training a new member of staff.




I'm sorry but I have to ask, did the FAA guy really say that?

[Tall_guy_in_a_152]

I'm sorry but I have to ask, did the FAA guy really say that?
I am paraphrasing slightly and converting a 2 minute conversation into a sound bite, but yes, that was his stated opinion.

I would like to give him the benefit of the doubt and think that he was testing me in a cunning way to see where my sympathies lay. But I don't really think so. He was very concerned that there were so many muslims in the UK and when was I going to move abroad, because surely it can't be safe.

He was a Gulf War veteran and I guess he had decided that because his enemy were Muslims, then Muslims were his enemy. Who knows.

[aztruck]

Interesting plot if you have the time is to take an FAA rating whilst you are out there and then your licence becomes an "original issuance" which is less restrictive and also means you can fly N reg aircraft anywhere in the world.
I'm not sure whether your restricted FAA licence would allow you to go to Europe as pic of an N reg a/c.
Multi rating is v cheap compared to Europe and easily done in 2/3 days.
Just a thought.

[dublinpilot]

Aztruck,

The only real downside to an original FAA PPL over the piggy back one, is that you now need to mantain an FAA medical as well as an JAR medical.

dp

[Chilli Monster]

I'm not sure whether your restricted FAA licence would allow you to go to Europe as pic of an N reg a/c.

As it's a certificate issued under part 61 and is rendered valid under the specified conditions laid down in part 61 and on the certificate - of course you can.

You should know that as a CFI / MEI.