CAA back down on medical lockdown
The UK CAA has dramatically changed its stance on medical examinations for private pilots, just days after the CAA’s Head of Medical Policy wrote to AeroMedical Examiners (AMEs) to tell them that they should not be conducting medicals for ‘leisure/sport pilots’. The letter went on to warn that the CAA were monitoring AMEs and would: “…be able to identify cases where the applicant appears to have breached the current Government...
CAA to doctors and pilots: we’re watching you
The UK Civil Aviation Authority has written to Aeromedical Examiners (AMEs) advising that private pilots should not be undertaking medicals during the current lockdown except in a very small number of specific circumstances. Further, the letter says that the Authority is monitoring AME activity to: “identify cases where the applicant appears to have breached the current Government lockdown regulations” The e-mail from CAA Head of...
CAA will not further extend licence validities
The CAA have confirmed that they will not make further extensions to the validity of pilot licences and ratings, despite the UK entering a second national ‘lockdown’. During the initial lockdown the CAA had recognised that pilots could inadvertently be put in the position of having a licence or rating expire through no fault of their own – by virtue of not being permitted to fly and revalidate a licence or rating that was due to...
UK Lockdown#2 begins
The UK has entered its second ‘lockdown’ of 2020 with renewed restrictions on General Aviation and flight training. Following the UK government announcement on Saturday 31st October that a new national lockdown was required, the fresh movement restrictions came into force on Thursday 5th November. Shortly before the new restrictions were imposed, the government published its new guidance on General Aviation flying. The key points of...
Wycombe Air Park to reopen 01 August
Wycombe Air Park (Booker), located in Buckinghamshire on the outskirts of London’s TMA, has been closed to all but resident aircraft since the coronavirus lockdown commenced in late March. Sean Brown, CEO of British European Aviation, the leaseholders of the airfield, has now confirmed exclusively to FTN that it will reopen fully from the beginning of August. FTN understands that one reason for the delay in reopening has been...
From the Flightdeck – James McBride
Stable Approach From my position, sitting behind the two pilots making their approach to land, I could see that things were not going well. The B737 was well above the glideslope, not yet configured for the final descent and with way too much energy. The airspeed was eye-wateringly high and they were only just inside the limit speeds to deploy the flaps. Needless to say, as their instructor I was more than a little curious about how...
