[defcribed]

The 12 hours SEP training that you've heard about may just be what the training company would like to sell you.

[T67M]

I've done a few SEP revalidations after a long layoff, and the longest was four flights, 4:10 total instruction, including a practice LPC. The flight with the FE added roughly another hour. As a huge generalisation, airline captains returning to "small" aviation take the longest, mainly to re-learn that that SEP aircraft aren't equipped with footrests!

[MattL]

I’d agree totally with @T67M hours estimate

[oldbiggincfi]

Thanks Cookie - but it's not one examiner, it's all of the ones that I can get to at my home airfield, so I wonder how many more around the country are similarly confused? My real concern (as Irv stated) is that if this was covered in the examiners' seminar, what else has been missed? From the other side, why are the rules allowed to get so complicated that confusion like this exists in what should be almost trivially simple?

Probably the very same examiner that told me to throw my Valid UK ATPL in the dustbin

[Irv Lee]

I agree with the 4-5 hours, assuming not much vfr nav needed. If all vfr nav was in USA during the initial course, add more nav time. Obviously PFLs might be long forgotten if it has mainly been big ones, with mainly multi before that, not to mention different sorts of circuits.
But remember this isn't a reval, there is no expired sep rating. I seem to remember the Irish want 5 working days notice for SEP skills tests by non Irish FEs, which can screw things up a bit schedule wise if you don't know until training complete and you want to get the test done.

[Edward Bellamy]

....I obtained around 150 hours in an Archer and last flew in January 2019. The IAA licencing department referred me to ‘subpart C of Annex III to EU regulation 1178/2011’ (Easy Access for Aircrew regulations on the EASA website)....

Matt I'm not sure why the IAA pointed you towards Annex III of the Aircrew Regulation, did you get an FAA licence with Single Engine Land rating while out in the USA?

If not, Annex III is not directly relevant to your situation because it is dealing with licences / ratings from other states and the issue of licence / ratings on the basis of those.

In terms of getting an SEP on your EASA licence, AlanC and others have it right I think, although the ATO/DTO may wish to contact IAA for clarification in advance of doing the training and test, I don't know how many SEP additions to an existing licence they do. IAA licensing are generally pretty good but it is slightly unusual because most initial licence issues are PPL+SEP rating.

If you do have an FAA licence with SEP (or SEL I should say), then the Annex III route is also an option.

[Cookie]

As others have said, it's a very simple process to add a SEP class rating to your existing EASA licence:

- training as required at an ATO/DTO;
- course completion certificate;
- SEP Class Rating Skill Test with an examiner (takes about an hour unlike the full PPL Skill Test);
- paperwork and payment to IAA.

Note that for a skill test there are restrictions on who can examine, so the examiner will need authorisation beforehand from the IAA and should not be the person conducting the training.

Having a FAA certificate won't help much as you would need to complete a FAA Flight Review and FAA medical to get it current again before applying for credit. By the time you've spent money doing that you may as well go the EASA route above.

Drop me a PM if you have any questions.

ATB Cookie