License Request

Whoever is in training for a pilot licence or already holds one has to deal with the competent authority at regular intervals. Whether a new licence endorsement has been acquired, a class or type rating needs to be revalidated, or a restriction is to be lifted, a licence request is submitted to the authority.

In order for the authority to reissue the licence with the requested change, the appropriate PDF form must be found and completed; often a frustrating experience. Many authorities maintain a whole forest of such forms and it is unclear which form needs to be used for what purpose.

What licence requests are there?

The three main types of licence requests are listed below.

• Initial
• Revalidation
• Renewal

Initial

Whenever a new licence endorsement is acquired, a licence request must be submitted for this purpose. This includes, among other things, proof of theoretical and practical training, the experience values on aircraft (A/C) or simulators (FSTD) required for this request, the results of the skills test, details of the examiner and, if necessary, other documents.

Revalidation

Since many licence entries have an expiry date and are therefore limited in time, they must be revalidated before their expiration in order to continue to exercise the privileges associated with them. For most licence entries, a proficiency check must be completed with an examiner. However, there is also revalidation by experience, such as the Class Rating SEP, where, in addition to the required experience, "only" a refresher training with an instructor must be flown.

Renewal

If a licence endorsement has already expired, it can be reactivated using a renewal request. This usually requires a Proficiency Check with an Examiner.

Other types of licence requests

In addition to the three main types, there are other situations in which a licence request must be submitted:

• Transfer of licences from one authority to another
• Removal of limitations
• Special concerns