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Maintaining FAA currency from another country

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FAA Regulations

Quick question, I am an airline pilot here in Europe. I have always kept my FAA CFI valid although I haven't used it in years. Now my question is, if I come to the US to rent an aircraft, do my hours flying in Europe count towards all my FAA licenses? Or do I need to do a BFR etc? Thanks - Unfortunately I couldn't find a FAR/AIM to find the answer.

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2 Answers



  1. Matthew Waugh on Jul 27, 2010

    Your hours don’t mean anything with respect to a BFR. You need a BFR (or an equivalent) within the past 2 years – you may not have flown at all in those 2 years or you may have flown 8 hours a day – you still need a BFR.

    If your question is “do my hours in Europe count when renting an aircraft” the FAA has no interest in that question – and in fact only the person you are renting the aircraft from can answer that question. Most places will require some kind of “checkout”, hours flown in Europe will keep you proficient, so presumably that will make it easier for you to satisfy the requirements of the checkout.

    I hope that answers the question.

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  2. Wesley Beard on Nov 11, 2010

    I think you are asking whether or not currency requirements fulfill the currency requirements for the FAA.  The answer is NO.  The regulations specify what an authorized instructor is and a flight instructor from another country can provide the training but only a FAA certificated instructor can sign you off for a flight review or IPC check.

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