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Hello everyone,

I have obtained several FAA ratings, but am interested in flying opportunities in other countries as well as here. Does anyone know of a database of countries my US ratings will convert in? I contacted the FAA they only had a list of countries whose ratings convert TO US ones.

any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

thanks

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I did convert my private rating to a Costa Rican one, that was really easy, all i needed was a CR medical. i really wish there was a way to check which countries were easy conversions, i hear Duabai is pretty easy for example. Id prefer to not do any extra writtens or check rides if possible.

Edited by grymmskull
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I think you would need to contact the governing agency of the country you desire to convert to and ask them. Perhaps when this is done you can put together a database for anyone else interested. I have not seen anything anywhere that fits your description.

 

I am curious though... Costa Rica? Dubai? Are you just adding countries to have more stuff on your resume? More options for jobs? Or is there are particular country or job that you want?

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I am just interested in being as marketable is possible in as many locations as possible, i love traveling, so if an opportunity came up somewhere, it would be really handy to check a list and see if i could convert a rating and go fly :)

 

oh and i have a bunch of friends in CR and the Emarites

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Well you can take Brazil off the list. They don't like Americans and won't convert your rating (even though there is a shortage of pilots down there). I have a friend down there who is a helicopter pilot and he has told me more than I want to know about flying in Brazil. I am not sure about other countries.

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thanks man, a skydiver buddy of mine is brazillian, and has a private heli rating, he said for locals you basicly just pay someone to give you the license, so i think i'll skip that one :)

 

They have their own version of the FAA and the licensing process is actually pretty refined. Unfortunately the government is very corrupt. A friend of mine basically got his license taken away fro no reason and had to pay a bribe to get it reinstated. He said it happens all the time.

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It ain't going to happen without written exams or checkrides. Getting a european commercial (Frozen ATP)is easy though, just sit through 14 written exams and do your Checkride, then pay $50,000 for a multi-engine IR.

 

Do you have visas to work in all these countries too?

Edited by Trans Lift
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my CR rating was just a conversion, i handed them mine, i got one back. I have South African friends who have US ratings they got by just showing their foreign rating, i was just curious which countries are like CR was. It seems like if you have a rating anywhere else getting a US one is easy, i wish it went the other way too.

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If you're certificated in the USA and are interested in expanding certification abroad, start with Canada. It's the logical choice.

 

Bear in mind that FAA certificates are ICAO compliant, and permit one to work all over the world.

 

Any employer seeking to use you in another country that does require state certification will help you obtain that certification, if they're interested in you.

 

If you're low experience, no amount of international certification is going to help.

 

I've operated in nearly every country on the planet and on every continent except Antarctica. I hold FAA certification.

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Bear in mind that FAA certificates are ICAO compliant, and permit one to work all over the world.

 

How do you figure that? You still need to convert right? You can't work in Europe on an FAA commercial, and certainly not the way things are going with EASA!

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I think what he is saying is that if they need you bad enough, they will grant you flying privileges in their country. If they don't need you, but you want to fly there anyway, you may have some hoops to jump through. The U.S. regulations are similar. The FAA can grant foreign licensed pilots the authority to exercise their privileges here in the U.S. But they usually only do so when it is necessary for some reason.

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JAR certification (EASA) is ridiculously complicated, and if one is going to fly european-registed aircraft, one needs JAR certification. One can operate N-registered aircraft within European nations; I've done it for many years.

 

Dubai isn't a country.

 

No country "needs you bad enough." In most countries, you're not barred from flying an aircraft simply because you don't have a local pilot license or certificate. You are required to have an ICAO-compliant certificate, and FAA certification meets that requirement. It's part of the reason that we now have a notation of English proficiency on all our certificates.

 

Some countries do grant certification on a reciprocal basis; for many countries it's simply a little paperwork and a fee. For some certifying authorities, however (EASA for JAR certification), it's a royal pain in the butt, expensive, and not at all worth the time or effort unless one is going to be moving to Europe and has the visa to do it. It's not a quick turn-around.

 

For those locations where a simple reciprocal certificate is issued, the employer will help take care of that when you arrive to go to work. For other areas, such as working out of Europe, it's all on you, and it's time consuming and expensive. Employers are not going to assist in obtaining that certification, and won't consider you unless you have it.

 

Europe is also an expensive place to live, and US expats aren't favored there, particularly as pilots.

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