Thanksfor tuning in to 5 Minutes with AOPA-China. This is Nick. This episode, we’regoing to give some tips on how to apply for a conversion from CAAC PPL to FAAPPL.

Somepilots who learn to fly in China may want to branch out beyond the confines ofour controlled airspace. America in particular, being the birthplace of theaeroplane itself, can be top of the list to do some flying once they finishedtheir PPL. 

However,you may already know the fact that you can’t directly fly on a CAAC PPL in theUS. A process to convert it to FAA PPL is needed. It’s not a tricky process,actually it’s quite simple. Literally, just some paperwork. Initially, fill ina few forms and submit them to FAA, waiting for a month or two to get the verification letter  and making a short visit to an FAA office.When you arrive, you’ll be issued an American license which mirrors theprivileges and validity of your original. Then, you are good to go.

Brokendown into smaller steps, the process looks like this:

First,go to FAA website: www. Faa.gov, click on the “License and Certificate” tab andyou’ll see the “Airmen Certification” link just in the center of the page,click it. Then you’ll see the link of Verification of Foreign License and MedicalCertification Form. Download the form and fill the information required. Afterthat, email it back to FAA.

Nowyou just have to wait while FAA is talking with CAAC and verifying theauthenticity of your pilot license and medical license. Assuming all were well,FAA should send you a “verification letter” telling you that they recognizeyour CAAC license. And this letter is valid for 6 months.

Youmay wonder how long do you have to wait. The process normally takes between45-90 days to complete. Yeah, you need patience on this.

Next,you need to visit a FAA Flight Standards District Office(FSDO) to get yourissuance or replacement of an airman certificate. Where is the FSDO you aregoing to? Don’t worry, FAA has already selected one upon your receipt of theverification letter. All you need to do is to make contact with your chosenFSDO to set up an appointment. Do it as early as possible because it takes timebefore your appointment is confirmed, just to make sure you won’t be strandedfor days on arrival while you wait for the appointment time to come.

Onceyour appointment is confirmed, the FSDO will ask you to create an IACRA accountand enter details of your application into their website. IACRA, shortened for IntegratedAirman Certification and Rating Application, helps ensure applicants meetregulatory and policy requirements through the use of extensive datavalidation. It also uses electronic signatures to protect the information'sintegrity. The questions involved are fairly standard mainly about personalbackground, license type and ratings. There is also a part called “Aeronautical Experience Grid” which demands a breakdown of all your flyinghours into specific categories. Just make sure you finalize and submit itbefore showing up in FSDO.

Finally,you are reaching the last step. Don’t be nervous when you visit the FSDO, thepeople there are friendly. All you have to do is give your details andverification letter to the receptionist, then take a seat and wait a fewminutes for an inspector to come round and meet you. He’ll look through yourlicense, medical and ID, checking if everything is correct and consistent withyour IACRA application. Then you’ll sign a few standard forms before your“Temporary Airman Certificate” is printed. You know, this simple piece of paperwill let you fly immediately and acts as a stand-in until the full FAA licenseis delivered to you. And guess what, this is all for free!

Now,you are able to rent an airplane and enjoy the open skies of America. Fantastic,isn’t it? That bring us to the end of episode 54. Any questions or comments aremost welcome. If you’d like to support our show, the best way is to rate orreview us or even just share your favorite episode with friends. All theprevious episodes can be found in Wechat, Facebook, Twitter, Ximalaya and anypodcast platform. Thanks for listening, see you next week.

美国通航发达，空域开放，吸引了来自世界各地的飞行爱好者来体验飞行。在国内获取了CAAC私照的飞行员只需要通过FAA的换照程序便可自由翱翔美国天空。FAA针对ICAO成员国的飞行员，有标准的飞行执照核实和换照程序，飞行员只需要向FAA提交外国飞行员核实申请表和相关证件的复印件，经核实后，便可以换照。

具体步骤如下：

1.     在FAA官网下载申请表，填完之后发送至FAA官方邮箱。

2.     安心等待FAA的回复。FAA飞行员执照部门收到核实申请表以后，会给民航局发函，向民航局确认飞行员信息的真实性和有效性。整个核实程序通常需要45-90天。FAA收到回复核实结果，会给飞行员和美国某地的飞标地区办公室(FSDO)发核实确认信。

3.     这封确认信的有效期是6个月，飞行员收到信后，可以去申请表上指定的飞标地区办公室(FSDO)提交换照申请并跟其确认现场见面的时间。

4.     在IACRA网站上填写相关信息。

5.    来到FSDO后，工作人员会查看你的私照，身份证，体检合格证等证件是否与IACRA上填写的一致。如果都没问题，填写几份表格，便可打印“临时飞行执照”。有了这份文件，就可以在美国飞了。在收到正式的FAA飞行私照之前，临时执照有着同等的法律效益。

祝飞行愉快！