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#1539592
Here's my situation:

1) I have a UK PPL (pre-JAA) SEP license issued in 1998 with no additional ratings.
2) I haven't flown for 10 years.
3) My class 2 medical has long since expired.
4) I now want to fly again, but only on 3-axis microlights.
5) I have made a pilot medical self-declaration to the CAA.

So my questions that I'm looking for some guidance on please are as follows:

1) From my research through the CAA etc, I conclude that I don't need to do anything with my current licence and just need to get the relevant 3-axis training. Agreed or not?
2) Having said the above, my old licence now has the wrong address on it. It looks to me from the CAA website that just notifying a change of address might trigger a compulsory transfer to an EASA licence, which I neither want nor need. Any experience of this?
3) Assuming that the EASA transfer can be avoided somehow, when I notify my new address, presumably the CAA will issue a new licence of some type. Therefore, what will they issue (presumably they can no longer issue an old-style UK PPL), and what evidence (training?) will they need at the point of issue I wonder? Any thoughts?
4) Also, I wonder if my lifetime RT licence would survive the process Any thoughts?

Maybe it's just me but I'm finding it very difficult to find answers to the above from the CAA and I'm hoping that someone here may have experienced a similar situation.

Any comments/thoughts/advice greatly appreciated.
User avatar
By Paul_Sengupta
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1539613
You will need to renew your SEP rating first. This will be training to the required standard and a test.

If you do a change of address and it triggers a licence update, you can still get an old UK PPL, but this time a blue one with the ratings on the licence itself, which is why you should renew your SEP first, otherwise it'll be on the back, and you'll need to pay the CAA to put it back on the front again. There is no RT licence now, it's included in the basic licence. You'll need English Level 6 if you don't already have it. This can be done at the same time as your SEP renewal test.

You can then fly microlights on your UK PPL with the appropriate differences training.

Alternatively (or additionally) you can obtain an NPPL (M) but I don't know the process for doing that if you already have a PPL. If you have an NPPL (M) you only need to keep that valid. If you have a PPL with SEP you'll need to revalidate that each two years which (currently) you can't do on a microlight I don't believe.
#1539859
You can also have the NPPL-style Microlight Rating added to the ratings page of your pre-JAA CAA license directly - I did that a few years back when I lost my Class 2 medical and my SEP rating with it. The CAA will charge to do that, but given that it sounds like they'll charge for change of address anyway it may end up no more expensive.

As you've not got a current SEP I'm not sure what the conversion requirements from SEP to (effectively) NPPL(MIcrolight) would be after 10 years, but it would avoid you having to renew your SEP in a 'big' aeroplane first.... you could move direct to microlight...... that might overall work out more cost-effective?

J.