Primarily for general aviation discussion, but other aviation topics are also welcome.
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By Flyin'Dutch'
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1853889
Paul_Sengupta wrote:
Flyin'Dutch' wrote:
Paul_Sengupta wrote:Ok, so are these not requirements in other EASA countries?


I only have experience with the Germans (for my AME work), Swiss and FAA (for my licenses) and they are all magnitudes quicker.

And from what I see on other aviation forums is that all NAAs attract negative comments, but most electrons are expended in the UK.


Rather than the time taken, I was talking about the idiotic requirement for a course, a course completion certificate, and a test if you're even a day over your SEP expiry, *even* in the case of having met all the requirements but not getting the signature in time. It's just overly onerous bureaucratic nonsense, and it seemed to come in with the JAA/EASA. If other countries don't have this requirement, I'll put it down to our CAA gold plating, but if it is a requirement in other countries, I'll put it down to EASA madness.


The only rating I have added to my licence outside of the UK was the aerotow rating.

The ATO had never had the plethora of paperwork to fill out for any of their local pilots that was required for the CAA.

Despite providing the CAA with all that paperwork, as detailed on their website, including signed copies of everything under the sun, the CAA failed to issue the rating, only to send everything back after a month only to get back in action after I emailed the then CEO. They issued it with that very same paperwork as they had to acknowledge it was all there, correct and signed for.

Go figure.
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By Paul_Sengupta
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1853894
Ah yes, this was the original rant...this one IS the CAA's issue. They supposedly have all our records on their computer, yet want everything again or certified copies of everything, including passports, and then they have people who don't know what they're doing. This is all over-the-top nonsense as well!
Last edited by Paul_Sengupta on Fri Jun 18, 2021 9:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
flybymike, A le Ron, Boxkite and 1 others liked this
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By Flyin'Dutch'
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1853896
You mean me having to send in a copy of my logbook to get my TMG put on my new EASA licence despite it being on my old CAA licence?

Their excuse, they knew they issued it (so they said) but they wanted to know if I ever used the privileges (which they could see on the provided card where CofE was signed off, but they insisted logbook entries of me flying motor gliders.

I duly provided the page in which there was a large CAA stamp issuing the TMG rating but no flights.

It was duly accepted.

That must have been in or around 2012...
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By johnm
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1853922
This is one of many reasons why I fall about laughing when folk complain about third party bureaucracy....
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By Irv Lee
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1853924
Dave W wrote:In the 80s I had it issued at Kingsway whilst I waited.
.

Ten weeks to get something issued at the time they moved licensing to Gatwick either late 80s or very early 90s. 8 weeks in the in-tray, 1 week to write saying fee had gone up this 8th week by £2, so no issue until I paid up the extra, 5 minutes to explain to me on the phone that I could either have it issued in the tenth week if I sent a cheque for 2 pounds or never have it issued at all, but it did seem very odd to them that I must have paid quite a bit so far that I would not send a cheque for £2 to finally get it rather than abandon the whole thing.
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By riverrock
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1853951
The thing is - they don't help themselves.
They create all of this unnecessary bureaucracy making it considerably more work to do anything, they don't explain clearly the paperwork required for this bureaucracy to function, they then don't implement the process correctly that they've created, then complain about needing to keep staff costs down by using low skilled people in a shared services center.
Everything is too complicated - that noone knows definitive answers for everything - so detailed research is needed for every other application slowing the process further.

They need someone external to the current mess that are in to tell them how to sort it.

Why can't they devolve responsibility for most licence related stuff to examiners? That would remove much of the effort. Do they really need to hold copies of all that stuff on microfiche? If not, examiner can check it all, fill in one form ( online) to get them to update their paperwork and issue a new licence. There, I've solved half their issues. Only things out of the ordinary should have to be sent for processing by CAA.
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By Flyingfemme
#1853953
riverrock wrote:They need someone external to the current mess that are in to tell them how to sort it.

Why can't they devolve responsibility for most licence related stuff to examiners? That would remove much of the effort. Do they really need to hold copies of all that stuff on microfiche? If not, examiner can check it all, fill in one form ( online) to get them to update their paperwork and issue a new licence. There, I've solved half their issues. Only things out of the ordinary should have to be sent for processing by CAA.


Didn't I say that a couple of pages ago? They could always ask somebody who has a good track record in this sort of thing..........maybe the FAA? :roll: :lol:
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By Paul_Sengupta
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1853958
riverrock wrote:They create all of this unnecessary bureaucracy making it considerably more work to do anything


Yet if anyone accuses them of creating work for themselves, jobs for the boys, job creation scheme, typical public sector civil service thinking, you'll get Kanga giving you a long explanation as to why that's not the case! :clown:

JAFO wrote:Is there an American pilot forum with endless threads about how wonderful the nice people at the FAA are?


No. But I could point to somewhere where they comment that $250 an hour to hire a Cirrus plus instructor is crazily expensive, then they nearly faint when I tell them it costs that for a Cessna 150 plus instructor in the south east of the UK.
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By AlanC
#1853964
GrahamB wrote:After AFPEx and Cellma, I just can’t wait for the full e-Licensing experience when it comes. :roll:


Not sure we can throw NAT's AFPex decisions at the CAA, but the rest has been a rocky road to say the least so far.
By terrybarr
#1853969
In 1979 I went for my first medical. I knew my eyesight was bad. The doctor told me that the CAA would write to me. A letter arrived asking for a full opthalmic examination. I was living in the Republic of Ireland and the local hospital didn't have the necessary facilities. I got myself an appointment with an opthalmologist in a hospital in the North. They had the appropriate piece of kit but the girl who was to operate it was away on a course to learn to use it. Stalemate.

To add to the problems there was a phone strike in the Republic so I went into a friend's office in the North and called the CAA. Got someone in the medical decision and explained the situation. He said "Don't worry, I'll have a word with the doctor". A few minutes later he was back and said that they would send the medical out immediately and all they wanted to make sure of was that my eyesight wasn't likely to suddenly get worse. I had the medical in a couple if days.

Come late November or early December I GFTed. When I had gathered up the £45 for the licence issue I sent off the application. It was back in a week, to the Republic of Ireland.

About twenty years later I remarked to a flying instructor that in my experience the CAA weren't too bad to deal with. He told me to wash my mouth out with soap and water.
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