License Conversion to FAA

[zooom]

Conversion JAA to FAA

I have JAA PPL licence with JAA ATPL theory and now would like to get full ATPL licence with flying hours from USA.

Do I need some conversion before being able to start get flying hours in the States?

Also, my friend JAA PPL licence holder would like to get FAA ATP licence, so beside flying hours how many theory exams does he need to pass in the States?

Thanks for answers...

[Tinstaafl]

To fly in the USA you will need to either have an FAA licence ('certificate' here) issued on the back of your foreign licence ie the FAA cert. is only valid while the foreign one is valid *or* sit the FAA theory & flight test for the issue of an FAA certificate.

Your friend will need to sit the FAA ATP theory exam and a flight test.

You and your friend will have to satisfy the various security stupidities that are now required. Do a search on these forums & you'll find plenty of threads about what you need to do. For the FAA certificates the applicant will have to meet FAA minimum experience requirements.

Note that the FAA treat each class & category of aircraft as a separate certificate eg Single Engine Land, Multi Engine Land, Single Engine Sea, Multi Engine Sea, Rotorcraft *and* and each licence level as separate certificate ie PPL, CPL, ATP.

This leads to the circumstance that you can have privileges for one licence level valid only in a particular class/category, and privileges for another licence level valid only in a different category eg you could easily hold a PPL-SEL, CPL-SES and ATP-MEL. In my case the only FAA certificates I hold are at the ATP level because those are the flight tests I chose to do when I converted to the US certificates. The three I hold are ATP-MEL, ATP-SEL, ATP-SES.

An advantage of the FAA ATP is that it has integral instrument rating privileges built into the certificate so no need to do a separate instrument rating exam & test.

[zooom]

So you are saying that despite I have JAA ATPL theory I will have to pass written exams for each rating I plan to get in the USA?

Does it means that JAA ATPL(A) "Frozen Theory" which includes CPL(A)/IR/MEPL would be the same as FAA ATP-SEL/MEL (with integrated instrument rating) in the USA?

What do you suggest to me as easiest way to get my JAA ATPL(A) "Frozen Theory", CPL(A)/IR/MEPL based on getting flying hours and ratings in the USA?

[dartagnan]

if you want a FAA ATPL from a PPL JAR, you need to pass the US checkride for ATP/IR multi or single.

and you have to do the IFR, ATPL written test.
you can pass the ATP check ride once you have 1500h tt.

but first get your CPL/IR multi and single.
the ATPL is just 5-6 hours in a seneca and a 2 weeks theory which is relatively easy to get.

[Tinstaafl]

There is only a single fixed wing ATP exam. Do it once & it's valid for every fixed wing ATP flight test you wish to do. Your JAA ATPL exams don't give you any credits WRT any FAA certificate (just like passing Australian, FAA or any other non-JAA exam provides no credit towards JAA exams). Only the licence(s) you have count. Your logged hours count towards meeting the experience requirements.

[Economist3]

Conversion of JAA CPL/IR to FAA

Has anyone any experience (cost/time/school etc) of having converted their JAA CPL/IR licence to a FAA licence; including anyone having undertaken the exams/flight tests in the UK.

cheers

Economist3