A1,A2,A3 confussion

Drone Rules and Regulations
1

I have two certificates one which has a flyer id for a1 and a3 categories and another one with a different flyer id which i got for my cofc competancy exam which is for the a2 category. My a2 cofc expires in 2026 but on the back has the validity to 31 dec 2022. I have two questions.

  1. Is it normal to have two certs o e for a1 and a3 and another seperate one for a2?
  2. Whats the deal with the 31 dec 2022 limitation. Obviously the c1,2,3 rating system didnt come in.

Is it just me or is the just way to complex? I hold a ppl with 15,000 flight hours and if the caa ran planes this way it would not fill me with confidence. Can anyone, given my certs, tell me what the current state of play is? I just bought an avata2 and would really like to know where i can fly it.

Thanks in advance, Gus

2

Hi Gus

The CAA manages to make GA licensing pretty complex too. I went round the table the other day and no two people had the same licence. We had an old PPL(M), an NPPL, an NPPL (SEA), a LAPL, and a PPL(A).

Those licenses allowed people to fly identical aircraft (e.g. a Eurofox). The identical aircraft itself can also either be a 450kg microlight, a 600kg microlight, or a Group A/Annexe 1/non-Easa aeroplane.

If the Eurofox in question is a Group A/Annexe 1/Non-EASA aircraft then someone with 5,000 hours on Eurofoxes (and a PPL(M) or an NPPL) can’t fly it. They can only fly an (identical) aircraft that is registered as a microlight.

And it can be on an LAA permit, or a BMAA permit. And, depending which it is, there are different maintenence regimes required.

Then there are medicals. You might be on a PMD, or a LAPL medical or a Class 2, or a Class 1.

And the really painful thing is that there are no upgrade paths available. So you might have 20,000 hours flying 3 axis aeroplanes (which happen to be 600kg ‘microlights’), but if you want to upgrade to a PPL you have to start again from scratch.

Anyway, to answer your question; I would expect you could have added your A2 CofC to your existing Flyer ID. You would have a separate certificate (with a yellow box, as against a red box on the A1,A3).

A2 CofC validity was extended to 2026.

Please see this infographic to see where you can fly your Avata 2 with an A2 CofC: fpv.uk/openinfog

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Add to that, as far as manned aircraft go I have a UK, US and Russian license :slight_smile: