UK CAA Flight Crew Licensing Records

[anchorhold]

Does anyone know how long the UK CAA hold Flight Crew Licensing records for the issue of the UK PPL, CPL and ATPL and associated ratings or is there a time limit similar to that is applied in medicine, accounting or the law?

Secondly, how easy is this to request you records by a straight forward request to the UK CAA, or is it easier to request this information by a Freedom of Information Act (FOI) request?

Finally on the subject of FOI, has anyone made other requests under FOI to the UK CAA and with what success?

[TheOddOne]

When I went to Gatwick for my initial issue Class 1 in 2006 the guy checking my eyesight used a microfiche to check the lantern test I took in 1982. Later on, the CAA sent me the microfiche for me to keep. I've no idea what dates it runs to as I can't read it, but presumably everything about me and the CAA up to a certain date are on it. I've still got my original PPL issued in 1983 but not all my medical certificates. Of course, I've still got all my log books showing a continuous record of flying including tests and in the old days, logbook signatures and stamps. I wish I'd kpept a more continuous record of medicals, as I don't think the CAA necessarily had a complete return from AMEs back when they just issued local certificates.

There was a period when the CAA hadn't a record of IMC renewals, so couldn't provide data relating to the current number of IMC-rated pilots to help with the safety case for keeping the rating. This has now been addressed as examiners now have to make a return on revalidation/renewal.

TOO

[Whopity]

When the CAA operated the Microfiche system, everything including scans of all past paper communications you had ever had with them in relation to a licence or medical was contained on that fiche. About 16 years ago the microfiche data was migrated into electronic (pdf) format and is now held in a large electronic pot. In theory they still have everything however; in the early stages of migration some of the tagging was not that good and I have heard that not everything comes out when they search.
If you ask for a copy of your records they are obliged to supply them.

[Bueno Hombre]

Seems like UK CAA need to computerise and update their records PDQ. means to sat pretty,,, quickly.