Engineering experience review prior to application

[tommywarez]

Hi there,
I've been gaining part-time engineering experience for the last 9 years, by assisting engineers with base and line maintenance. I've logged a good range of tasks in my CAP741 logbook and if I'm to include my earliest experience, I need to do my exams within the next 12-15 months as only 10 years of recent experience is counted.

The question is, is there a way to get my logbook reviewed (even informally) before I commit time to the study this year, as if I don't meet the experience requirements by Q1 2025, I will delay. 2015/2016 were 2 good years for engineering tasks so I'm keen to keep them for the application.

It would appear that usually, people submit the logbook to the authority after the exams and if deemed insufficient it is returned to them.
I intend to apply for an EASA B1.3 License.

All the best

[Tranwell]

If you don't do the exams, you won't get a licence anyway. Get them done, and if your experience is not sufficient, do more. You are going to have to work as a full time mechanic anyway - that is the only way you'll get the right level of experience. A couple of jobs every few months over 10 years is not enough. If you're unsure, ask the licenced guys you've been working with.... If they are stamping the book, they'll know what range of stuff you have in there and whether it is enough... the stack of paper you need to send should be about an inch high... .

and don't forget to get experience on composite, wood, tube/fabric and metal aircraft otherwise you'll' end up with a restricted licence....

[tommywarez]

If you don't do the exams, you won't get a licence anyway. Get them done, and if your experience is not sufficient, do more. You are going to have to work as a full time mechanic anyway - that is the only way you'll get the right level of experience. A couple of jobs every few months over 10 years is not enough. If you're unsure, ask the licenced guys you've been working with.... If they are stamping the book, they'll know what range of stuff you have in there and whether it is enough... the stack of paper you need to send should be about an inch high... .

and don't forget to get experience on composite, wood, tube/fabric and metal aircraft otherwise you'll' end up with a restricted licence....

That's great feedback, thank you.
Sure thing re: exams - the thing that I find weird is that the experience appears to just depend upon the mood of the Licensing officer on the day, (unless I'm missing something). It would be great if there was a checklist of experience you could compare your logbook to. Exams are the easy bit to quantify: pass or fail.
Engineers I've asked are always positive about the amount and range of tasks I've been involved in but that doesn't mean it will be acceptable to the authority of course.

[NutLoose]

This was the book issued when we went from CAA to EASA, some might help you, but it will be out of date.

https://helitavia.com/docs/ELGDBook_07_WebVersion.pdf

Page 82 on may help

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2003:315:0001:0165:EN:PDF

Good luck with your career :).

[tommywarez]

This was the book issued when we went from CAA to EASA, some might help you, but it will be out of date.

https://helitavia.com/docs/ELGDBook_07_WebVersion.pdf

Page 82 on may help

https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2003:315:0001:0165:EN:PDF (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2003:315:0001:0165)

Good luck with your career :).


Oh that's great! Thank you very much. My various Google searches hadn't thrown those up.
I would think out of date or not, its a really good starting point for me to see where I'm at regarding the experience I've already got and what I need to do subsequently.

I'm working on a plan to do some full-time experience later in the year and I've already approached my current employer for some targeted gap-filling :)

[Tranwell]

... the thing that I find weird is that the experience appears to just depend upon the mood of the Licensing officer on the day, (unless I'm missing something). It would be great if there was a checklist of experience you could compare your logbook to. Exams are the easy bit to quantify: pass or fail.


In the CAP 741, there is a list of acceptable and example tasks. You should aim for collecting about 3/4 of them. It always has depended on the mood of the licencing officer - that's why you can't ever speak to them and an email takes months to reply.
I also included stuff on N-registration and LAA types. If you look at an aeroplane, write it down and send it to the CAA. What they don't want to see is endless repetition. List your 50's, 100's and Annuals in section 5, but then for each aircraft/engine combination, split each service into its individual lines. Log two of each of the services for each airframe/engine combination, plus every defect you are able to get your hands on. It will help greatly if you organise your logbook so that each airframe/engine combination has a set of relevant chapters, then move on to the next aircraft. You must log the aircraft individually, ie. C150/RR 0-200 Chapter 5, or PA28/Lyc 0-320 Chapter 5 on separate pages.

[Diff Tail Shim]

If you don't do the exams, you won't get a licence anyway. Get them done, and if your experience is not sufficient, do more. You are going to have to work as a full time mechanic anyway - that is the only way you'll get the right level of experience. A couple of jobs every few months over 10 years is not enough. If you're unsure, ask the licenced guys you've been working with.... If they are stamping the book, they'll know what range of stuff you have in there and whether it is enough... the stack of paper you need to send should be about an inch high... .

and don't forget to get experience on composite, wood, tube/fabric and metal aircraft otherwise you'll' end up with a restricted licence....
Or you won't get a licence at all without proof of some form of SRM work. That is the way it is now. No such thing as a restricted B1 licence anymore unless you had TX from section L (18 years ago). I walk the NCL line as a stamper BTW.

[Diff Tail Shim]

In the CAP 741, there is a list of acceptable and example tasks. You should aim for collecting about 3/4 of them. It always has depended on the mood of the licencing officer - that's why you can't ever speak to them and an email takes months to reply.
I also included stuff on N-registration and LAA types. If you look at an aeroplane, write it down and send it to the CAA. What they don't want to see is endless repetition. List your 50's, 100's and Annuals in section 5, but then for each aircraft/engine combination, split each service into its individual lines. Log two of each of the services for each airframe/engine combination, plus every defect you are able to get your hands on. It will help greatly if you organise your logbook so that each airframe/engine combination has a set of relevant chapters, then move on to the next aircraft. You must log the aircraft individually, ie. C150/RR 0-200 Chapter 5, or PA28/Lyc 0-320 Chapter 5 on separate pages.
Fine for the basic licence. ATA chapters for each aircraft/engine type. Bigger ATAs like 27, they will want to see more entries that cover the spectrum of the chapter.

[Tranwell]

yeah I was talking from a GA point of view, mis-read 1.3 as B3.. Lad wants to be a rotary loony, so experience is going to be very difficult to get anyway - normal airliner stuff or GA won't count

B1/B3 for GA is a little weird because there are no types, just blocks of aircraft material... you can still end up with limitations on your licence dependent on whether you manage to work on wooden aircraft during your mechanic days.

100% agree on as much variation in the tasks as possible.