So I passed my check ride to renew my IR on Saturday. Overall actually a quite enjoyable experience. To put things into perspective – I passed my IR via the CBIR route last year in June – which took me about 1 year. I now have roughly 350 hours total flight time (a baby) – having flown roughly 100 hours of IR since obtaining my IR last year. In the year I have been flying IFR – I had not flown an NDB.
The test consisted of take off from LFHN – non controlled – not towered – pick up my IFR clearance with Lyon (in the end I ended being transferred to Chambery to pick up at LTP since the radar was out). 1 NDB procedure at LFLS (Grenoble – Isere) an ILS (hand-flown) at LFLS and some stalls, steep turns etc in IMC (we had some nice Thunderstorms in the afternoon which started to build up quite some convective activity from early morning on)
The ILS was flown down to simulated minima…
All went well, so I passed the check ride. What I really liked (despite what everyone, including me, sometimes says about French bureaucracy) the examiner filled out some documents online – and low and behold 5 minutes later, I got a nice email with the confirmation of the renewal which is then put on the license with a confirmation number. 
As you can see, no mention of the CB/IR etc… all it says is IR/SEP. And the good thing is that despite having renewed my PPL 3 months ago – also via the self declaration route after having flown for 1 hour with an instructor, the 2 dates of validity are now identical (well 1 is only valid for 1 year but at least the date corresponds)
How does this work in your country?
W.
I renew my Norwegian-issued ratings with a French examiner. The French examiner enters the new validity dates into my license and mails the paperwork (an examination form) to the Norwegian CAA which registers the information and send me a bill. Done.
If you (LFHNflightstudent) were to renew your ratings with a foreign examiner, you would first need to get the foreign examiner to register with the DGAC and pay a fee in the order of 70 € IIRC. Then you would need to wait for up to one month for the new list of authorised examiners to be published. Only then would you be able to take the test.
Your examiner’s authorisation would be valid for 2 years IIRC.
I have a CBIR on my French PPL, and have been renewing it abroad. That allows me to do a thorough two-day training, with a few hours in the full-motion simulator, and one or two training flights. The DGAC bureaucracy for this is a nightmare. You have to request/declare the revalidation flight beforehand, get the examiner approved, but he is not allowed to write on my precious French licence. So the test results go onto a special form from the French and are sent off to Paris, where they sit untreated for a month, while I am grounded.
And the DGAC insist on writing that it is a “CB-IR”.
Talk about intra-EU barriers to trade and protectionism…
Ridiculous …
For comparison: In Germany I do a 1.5 hour flight with a examiner I can pick myself (i do it with an airline captain friend). We do two approaches and some airwork, he signs the back of my licence and sends it to the LBA …
Aviathor wrote:
If you were to renew your ratings with a foreign examiner, you would first need to get the foreign examiner to register with the DGAC and pay a fee in the order of 70 € IIRC. Then you would need to wait for up to one month for the new list of authorised examiners to be published. Only then would you be able to take the test.
I was about to say that this has changed since the Examiner Differences Document was introduced but then I took a look at it and what you are saying is actually true…
Horrible since most other countries are pretty easy going here.
Rwy20 wrote:
Talk about intra-EU barriers to trade and protectionism…
Have you looked into if it would get any easier if you moved your license to Switzerland? (look at the Examiner Differences document)
In your case you live in Switzerland and mostly fly in France IIUC. So currently it would be easier for you to renew your ratings with a French examiner.
In my case I want nothing to do with the DGAC exactly for the reasons you mention.
Aviathor wrote:
So currently it would be easier for you to renew your ratings with a French examiner.
Easier: certainly. But for the reasons mentioned (good quality training in a full flight sim for a reasonable price) I prefer to do it with my original school. Why should I give in to this DGAC protectionist BS.
Moving my licence: No thanks.
Rwy20 wrote:
Moving my licence: No thanks.
As long as your license is issued by DGAC, you will have to put up with them…
Rwy20 wrote:
And the DGAC insist on writing that it is a “CB-IR”.Talk about intra-EU barriers to trade and protectionism…
it’s interesting they insist on putting CB/IR on your license and mine just says IR/SE when we both went the CB/IR route… both on a French license???
LFHNflightstudent wrote:
it’s interesting they insist on putting CB/IR on your license and mine just says IR/SE when we both went the CB/IR route… both on a French license???
Actually I wrote that from memory. Mine says “IR SE” as well, and in the remarks: “IR/SE issued in conformity with Appendix 6§ A BIS to PART FCL to commission regulation (EU) n° 1178/2011 , limited to SP-NON HPA aeroplanes”.
