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5 Answers

Plastic Card Certificate

Asked by: 6645 views General Aviation

Hi, I passed my private pilot checkride (part 141) about twenty days ago and received the temporary paper certificate, when approximately will my hard copy come in the mail? Until then can I exercise all privileges of a licensed airman?

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5 Answers



  1. Ryan on Sep 29, 2010

    2-4 weeks you’ll get your plastic card.  yes you are now a private pilot and may excersize all obligations AND privileges

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  2. Matthew Hammer on Sep 29, 2010

    It took nearly 3 months for mine to arrive. But yes, a temporary airman certificate is just as much an airman certificate as a plastic one. Congrats on passing your ride!

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  3. Matthew Waugh on Oct 01, 2010

    You may be getting confused by the publicity around the fact that paper certificates are no longer valid. A long time ago, well a few years anyway, pilot certificates were paper and we spent ENDLESS hours discussing whether you could laminate them or not. March 2010 those certificates, laminated or not, were no longer valid and you had to trade in for a plastic certificate.
    Of course a temporary certificate isn’t included in this – FAR 61.19(h).

    Or perhaps you weren’t confused.

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  4. Pete Kemble on Oct 01, 2010

    When I got my private back in 2/09 i checked the page below obsessively. Comes a few days after the date they process it:

    http://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/airmen_certification/

    As of my writing this they are processing September 9th.

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  5. Ryan on Oct 05, 2010

     I passed my ride on 9/24 and recieved my plastic card on Monday of this week (10/4)

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