asked the Minister for Transport and Power if all pilots trained in this country can have their licences validated in Great Britain if they can prove adequate knowledge of Parts I and II of aviation law; and if not, why.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Air Pilots' Licences.
23.
Current British practice is not to validate pilot licences issued by other authorities except in special circumstances. The holder of an Irish professional pilot's licence who wished to fly British registered aircraft would normally be required to obtain the appropriate British licence. Each case is considered on its merits but in general the British authorities allow the holder of an Irish pilot's licence to dispense with a number of these examinations and tests, depending on his experience, qualifications and training background. Certain of the tests are, however, obligatory, incuding Aviation Law Flight Rules and Procedures, which corresponds to Part I of our Aviation Law examination.
There is no international agreement on the extent to which countries will validate, or give licences in exchange for, foreign licences but the European Civil Aviation Conference of which Ireland and Great Britain are members is considering whether there could be agreement amongst the members that the holder of an Airline Transport Pilot's licence when applying for the corresponding foreign licence should be exempted from ground examinations, it being recognised that in most cases an examination in local aviation regulations would be required.
Would the Minister say whether or not the standard of flight training here has anything to do with the test our pilots must take in Britain?
The British authorities do not discriminate against our pilots as such. They apply the same rules to Irish pilots as they do to those of other countries. Our standards are sufficiently high and, apart from learning the regulations, all our pilots should be accepted. I have not yet had any complaints about our pilots getting employment in Britain. In any event, we need all the skilled pilots we can get in this country.
While British pilots can fly in this country without the necessity for anything but a simple test, is it not a little unreal we should have the position that our pilots going to Britain must have a complete test, literally from the ground up?
That is why we are supporting the establishment of something like an agreed procedure in these matters which will be proposed in the autumn to get this question settled.