Learning to fly, or thinking of learning? Post your questions, comments and experiences here

Moderator: AndyR

By nscc2
#1617399
After some time out of the cockpit Im looking for some advice on what it will take to return.

I passed my PPL in 2009 (JAA FCL) but almost immediately afterwards my wife became very ill and I never flew again after my test was completed. She is now in good health and I miss flying. I would dearly love to return but understand that there have been many licensing changes since and wonder what would be required.

Do I need to start from scratch and do all of the exams again?

Can the licence be converted to the latest one? If so do I need a minimum number of hours of training again or does my previous licence count for anything?

Thank you very much for all your advice and help!
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By WelshRichy
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1617404
Happy to hear your wife is well again.

Also it is better news on the flying front as all you will need to do is training as required to be put forward for the SEP Class Rating Proficiency Test with an Examiner.

You will need to go to your local school for the training as they'll need to sign a course certificate but the course can be anywhere from zero hours to whatever you need. They'll probably have you do an assessment flight first.

Your JAA licence will be expired now (5 years) so will need to concert to an EASA licence once you've completed your SEP renewal test. Hope I'm right on this one as I had a pre-JAR PPL.

No ground exams either!

Good luck and report how you get on!
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By joe-fbs
#1618140
I passed my test in 2009 and have kept flying so off the top of my head, here are some things that have changed:
1. UK air traffic services outside controlled airspace have changed names.
2. Satellite navigation using a tablet (or if lucky installed in the flying machine) has changed how one navigates. It is still necessary to understand about heading, drift and consequent track. Also to me having a paper map with the desired track drawn on is a highly desirable thing but sat’ nav’ makes a world of difference. There are endless threads on here about which tablet and which application to use. I happen to use SkyDemon on an elderly iPad kept exclusively for the task but make your own choice.
3. Ground based nav’aids are much reduced.
Actually that’s about it I think. There's a proliferation of license types, some say EASA on them and some say CAA but it’s not worth getting excited about.

Flying is still brilliant, enjoy it.
JAFO liked this
By carlapilot
#1618638
I am also happy to hear that everything turned out just right, and she is healthy (even if we do not know each other).
No advice, as I am a student, but I wish you good luck... I hope you can go together on a romantic flying trip :) :)


nscc2 wrote:After some time out of the cockpit Im looking for some advice on what it will take to return.

I passed my PPL in 2009 (JAA FCL) but almost immediately afterwards my wife became very ill and I never flew again after my test was completed. She is now in good health and I miss flying. I would dearly love to return but understand that there have been many licensing changes since and wonder what would be required.

Do I need to start from scratch and do all of the exams again?

Can the licence be converted to the latest one? If so do I need a minimum number of hours of training again or does my previous licence count for anything?

Thank you very much for all your advice and help!