 
(updated 18th November 2005)
A complete study and tutorial service for the
aircraft engineer
On site training towards the EASA part 66 licence
How to study for your licence
The EASA part 66 licence
The Examinations
BCAR Licence examinations
EASA part 66 Licence examinations
What to do now?
Examination preparation
Study preparation
What we offer
What we offer
A complete study and tutorial service for the
aircraft engineer
- Cost effective.
- High pass rate.
- Tutor system based on the UK Open University.
- Specialist qualified tutors.
- Up-to-date study material.
- Study in comfort wherever you are. No travel or accommodation problems.
- Study at your own pace using your own personalised time-table.
- Three levels of student enrolment.
- Your own course and subject tutors.
- Fees are competitive and include VAT & part postage.
- Group discount rates.
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You may enroll in one or more of three student membership grades depending on your requirements.
The course is tailored to your needs in terms of duration - we recommend a time-table, but this you can change.
The course covers the CAA syllabus as laid down in EASA
PT 66, and will cover the module(s) you have enrolled for.
Modules offered cover the mechanical and avionic trades.
The study books (and assessments for FS students) are
sent out at the beginning of the course in one or more mailings.
For FS and AS students the assessments are completed after studying
the appropriate books/modules and sent to the subject tutor for marking
(your tutors are shown on your printed timetable). After marking,
the assessment is returned to the student complete with comments.
Marks are confidential.
About 2 months before the end of the study period for the module or
modules concerned the student submits an examination application form to
the CAA with the appropriate fee.
After passing the first module or modules he/she then starts studying
the next module, and so the cycle continues until all the modules are
passed.
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All specialists in their own subject areas. Include licensed engineers in the industry and lecturers in aeronautical engineering.
Click here for more information.
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Compiled and kept up-to-date by the tutors. The books are designed to be understood by the home-reader with illustrations to support the text.
Copyright clearance has been obtained from many of the world's leading aircraft and component manufacturers.
Books are used by some of the world's airlines as their standard study books.
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Because of our need to provide a continuing improvement in the
service we provide and to cope with the ever changing technology and the
continuous changing CAA examination requirements, our study books are
always being up-dated/rewritten. This means that, on average,
about 25% of our books are re-written every year.
These re-writes also incorporate any changes to the syllabus such as
occurred with the introduction of EASA part 66 and any subsequent
amendments.
Note: A word of WARNING about old books. The
EASA syllabus is not well defined and is written in very vague terms.
This means that to have any idea as to what has to be studied it is
important to note how the CAA interpret the syllabus. Their
interpretation changes continuously – as technology changes - and the
range and depth of their questions also change. What this means,
effectively, is that the syllabus is always changing. Every month
something is added or expanded on. This means that our books are always
changing to keep pace with the “syllabus”.
There are lots of our old study books “out their” and many are used
by several people over a period of years. It is almost certain that most
of them are now out-of-date. If you are using these do ring or email the
office to check on the issue number (bottom right hand corner of the
front cover). This is important as using old study material could mean
failure on the CAA examination.
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Enrolment may be as a Full Student (FS), Associate
Student (AS) or as a Study Books Student (SB) and your programme may
contain any combination of these depending on your requirements. You may
order an FS programme for one module an AS for another and the SB
programme for yet another. You may order, say, the SB programme and
up-grade later to a FS programme if you wish.
The Full Student (FS) programme includes:
- Study material (study books) complete with any revision questions
we have.
- In course assessments.
- Recommended time-table.
- Course and subject tutors.
The Associate Student (AS) programme is similar to
the Full Student programme except that the student finds his/her own
study material. For most people this programme will not be
suitable as it is an assessment programme only and there are very few
study notes/books available that cover all the material for the EASA
modules. For those people intending to use this programme do
contact LBP for advice.
The Study Books (SB) student receives the study books
together with any revision questions currently in stock.
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Our assessments are set and marked by the subject tutors and are sent
out with the first mailing. Each module assessment consists of a multi choice paper/s the size of which depends on the size of
the module.
For those studying for the EASA essay exams we provide a study
programme together with assessments for the appropriate modules (7, 9
and 10).
This programme, called the EE programme (EASA Essay)
gives tuition on the style and content the CAA expects in the essay
answers. It is intended for those who have already passed the
multi choice papers in the appropriate modules. After studying the
technique of writing essay answers the student completes the practise
essay questions and returns to the tutors for marking. The number and
style of the practise questions varies, but currently there are 12 with
many additional questions given as examples.
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Available to all students, this service is intended
to help should you require any information regarding careers and other
matters related to civil aviation engineering, including CAA
examinations etc.
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These are competitive and have been held for the
5th consecutive year with some prices actually being reduced. The
fees are listed against each module on our ordering page which you
can view by clicking on the press-down button against each module
(there is no need to order when viewing the prices).
When the click-down button is pressed on the EASA
ordering page the fees will show as two groups. The B group is for the
B1 and B2 licensed engineer and the A group is for the flight line
mechanic.
Three prices will show (FS, AS and SB), and you are
recommended to familiarise yourself with these student grades first so
you will know what they mean.
At present some of our modules/part modules are
offered as Study Books only. FS and AS programmes will be listed as soon
as they become available for these modules. Do ring or email LBP for the
latest additions.
Books and part modules are available separately – please
contact LBP for details.
Some part modules are listed on the ordering page. These are
some of the more common parts that are required for conversion from the
BCAR licence to the EASA licence. Those complete modules listed
include the appropriate part modules. For example, module 7
includes 7.7 and 7.4.
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Our programmes are ideal for students overseas; those in the industry
and service personnel for example. Study material is sent by
courier (for most packages) direct to the student where he/she can study
without the problems of travel associated with more formal courses.
Contact with the tutors can be made by email, fax (in most cases), by
letter or by ’phone. Completed assessments are returned for
marking by post or sent by email. For those tutors not on the ’net
the assessments can be sent direct to the LBP office.
Students will have to travel to the UK to take their examinations
with the CAA (application form sent to the CAA) or at any EASA part 147
company (application form sent to that company). CAA venues are
Gatwick, Oxford, Silsoe (Bedford), Macclesfield and Glasgow. There
are “147” companies at Cardiff, Norwich, Perth and other locations.
The Gatwick venue at Aviation House is a 5 minute bus
ride from the airport terminals of London Gatwick Airport.
For those who will be landing at London Heathrow there is a choice of
venues – Gatwick Airport (about 25 miles) or Oxford Airport (about 45
miles). Both can be reached by bus from the airport bus terminal. For
Oxford Airport take the bus to Oxford then take a bus to Kidlington
village (about 5 miles out of Oxford centre). The airport is a 10 minute
walk from the village.
For overnight accommodation at Oxford or Gatwick check our
Contacts Page or contact the office direct.
For students requiring entry visa applications, forms
may be obtained from the Home Office Immigration Directorate. Visa application forms
should be sent (together with all supporting documentation, as stated on
the form) to the Immigration Office. Remember to include a copy of the
letter from the CAA specifying your exam date and venue.
Further contact details and information can be found in our contacts
section.
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A good command of the English language is essential for a successful
outcome when taking the CAA examinations. All examinations are
held in the UK and in English. If any LBP student requires
assistance with English he/she should contact the
LBP office.
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Conceived by LBP, this system utilises the advantages of a comprehensive, proved, distance learning programme combined with the disciplined approach of class-room teaching.
The study material is provided by LBP and the group is controlled by local management.
The students do most, if not all, of their studying in their own time and are brought together for examination purposes and tutorials.
Home study books are sent out by LBP at the beginning of the course with an agreed time table.
Students are brought together for tutorials at management discretion and for assessment
purposes.
Assessments are sent out by LBP and returned for marking after completion.
Students have access to their LBP tutors by letter, telephone, fax, or
e-mail.
LBP staff liase directly with management on all aspects of the course.
All materials and assessment results are sent
to management, enhancing the student's perception of an integrated
management / training provider approach.
With strict management control pass rates can be very high, and the cost is minute compared to any other form of
training.
This system is used by several operators both in the
UK and Overseas.
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How to study for your licence
You would be well advised to take some
form of study programme from a provider but if you wish to study "by
yourself" you will need to purchase (or get hold of) a copy of the
syllabus. Of course, you will need to study as many
technical books as you can lay your hands on related to the subject
matter of the licence you are going for. There is no data
available on the success rate of this method but it is generally
considered to be poor.
Note our warning on
using our old books. Most are out-of-date now and would not be
appropriate for today's examinations.
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Some colleges/schools provide evening only
courses/day release courses for people living within reasonable travel
distances.
These courses are economic with quite good pass rates but few colleges
offer them.
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These are the most
environmentally friendly learning systems available. There is no travel involved, congestion, traffic
jams etc. There are no accommodation costs, nor the problems of
living away from home. For some people studying at home/domestic
accommodation is the best way, for some it can be difficult and the only
option is a classroom based learning system.
Some distance learning providers offer the study material only, whilst
others (like ourselves) provide a full tutorial service as well with
tutor marked examinations, tutor contact etc.
Success rates for students that
complete a structured study programme are high.
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These can be very expensive and poor value for money.
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Duration from 1 week to about 6 weeks depending
on subject(s) covered. Costs can be very high when
accommodation, travel, loss of income (for self employed) etc is
taken into account. Success rates are high particularly if the
student does pre-course study before the commencement of the
course. There are probably about 3 or 4 schools/colleges in the UK
that provide these sort of courses.
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These are usually designed for the school leaver
but not exclusively so. They normally have an academic base
with the successful student obtaining an OND/HND. If the
course is "approved" by the CAA, part exemption to the
experience requirements and some of the examinations will be given to the successful student.
These courses tend to be very expensive.
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Costs etc are irrelevant (to the student) as
these are usually free to company employees. The warning on
pre-course study applies, however, as mentioned in Short
full-time courses above.
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Before deciding which provider to use check on the
cost of the course and the reputation of the provider. For some people
the course will have to be classroom based, for others the convenience
and economy of home study is what they want.
For a list of training providers contact the CAA at Aviation House,
Gatwick Airport South, West Sussex, RH6 0YR, UK. Tel: 01293 573700 or
visit www.caa.co.uk.
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The EASA part 66 licence
The BCAR (British Civil Aviation Requirements) Licence Without Type
Rating (LWTR) came into being in the early 1970s and was phased out as
an examination for aircraft above 5700kg June 2001. After this date the
BCAR LWTR only applies to aircraft below 5700kg (BCAR section L issue
14).
The JAR (Joint Airworthiness Requirements) 66 licence was introduced
late 1999 and ran parallel with the BCAR licence until June 2001. After
that date it “stood alone” for aircraft over 5700kg.
The JAA (Joint Airworthiness Authority) (a collection of 19 European
countries) had no legal standing and no authority to ensure that every
country followed the rules. So, in 2003 the EASA (European Aviation
Safety Agency) was set up, which has the authority and it took over from
the JAA.
The CAA are still “in charge” of UK civil aviation but act as an
agent of the EASA.
In September 2003 the JAR66 syllabus was replaced by the EASA part 66
syllabus and all conversion examinations from the BCAR licence to the
EASA licence must have been completed by November 2005.
All current JAR licences will remain in force and when renewed will
be replaced by an EASA part 66 licence.
The EASA part 66 licence has no weight limit so covers all sizes of
aircraft except for some special categories such as old war time
aircraft, balloons etc.
We will still offer the BCAR licence study material because of the
on-going requirement of some countries for the BCAR licence. Those
available from LBP are:
| Licence Category |
Modules |
| Category A |
|
| Aeroplanes 1 (with an engine) |
1, 2, 3, 4, 13 |
| Category C |
|
| Piston engines (with
Aeroplanes 1) |
1, 2, 6, 7, 13 |
| Turbine engines (with
Aeroplanes 1) |
1, 2, 7, 8, 13 |
| Category A &
C |
|
| Rotorcraft piston |
1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 13 |
| Rotorcraft turbine |
1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 13 |
| Category X |
|
| Electrical |
1, 2, 13, 21 |
| Instruments |
1, 2, 13, 22, 23 |
| Autopilots aeroplanes |
1, 2, 13, 23, 24, 25 |
| Autopilots rotorcraft |
1, 2, 13, 23, 25, 26 |
| Category R |
|
| Radio com & nav |
1, 2, 13, 31 |
| Radar |
32 (for holders of R, Radio) |
For price details please contact LBP.
Warning
All BCAR licence holders MUST convert their present licences to an
EASA licence by 2008 or lose them. In general terms the options are:
- If you have a “Full Set” of licences (all the “Xs” and “Rs” for
the avionic person) then convert for payment only.
- If you have “A” and “C” and “X” then convert by passing a few of
the EASA modules.
- If you hold the “A” and “C” then you have more EASA modules to
pass.
- For those not holding any licences there is only one option – the
EASA licence.
Important
DO NOT WAIT. DO YOUR CONVERSIONS NOW. For conversion
details see the CAA
website or contact the LBP office.
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These are listed below:
| Category A
Line Mechanic |
|
| A1 Aeroplane Jet Engines |
1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11A, 15, 17 |
| A2 Aeroplane Piston Engines |
1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11B 16, 17 |
| A3 Helicopter Jet Engines |
1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 15 |
| A4 Helicopter Piston Engines |
1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 16 |
| Category B1
Mechanical Technician |
|
| B1.1 Aeroplane Jet Engines |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11A, 15, 17 |
| B1.2 Aeroplane Piston Engines |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11B, 16, 17 |
| B1.3 Helicopter Jet Engines |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 15 |
| B1.4 Helicopter Piston Engines |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 16 |
| Category B2
Avionic Technician |
|
| B2 |
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13,
14 |
Please note:
- In very general terms the A aircraft maintenance licence allows a
limited number of tasks to be performed on aircraft as specifically
authorised. An A licence holder will have to re-take all the
modules previously passed at the A level if a B licence is required.
IT IS NOT A "STEPPING STONE" TO THE B LICENCE.
- The B licence allows maintenance of all the appropriate systems
and is a prerequisite to Type ratings/approvals.
- There is also a Category C licence. This is a base maintenance
engineer qualified to the B1/B2 standard.
- The first 10 modules are common to all (except module 4 which the
A person does not have to take). However, the exact content of each
module for a particular exam will vary depending on what licence the
engineer is aiming for. This means that for the A person some very
large parts are missed out of some of the modules and most of the
other parts are taken to a lower level than the B level. For the B
person (in very general terms) the differences in the level of
difficulty in those modules where there are differences are:
| Module |
|
Higher level |
| 2 |
|
B1 |
| 4 |
|
B2 |
| 5 |
|
B2 |
| 6 |
|
B1 |
| 7 |
|
B1 |
The above is not significant (assuming you take the examination at
the correct level for the licence you are aiming for) – unless you
intend taking the other licence after getting the first one. In other
words if you are now going for the B1 and intend going for the B2 at a
later date – or vice-versa – then it would be prudent to take the
above module exams at the higher of the two levels (informing the CAA
on the application form). Modules 1, 3, 8, 9 & 10 are all the same
level for the B1/B2 person.
- Our modules 6 and 7 can be split into those books suitable for the
B1 engineer and those suitable for the B2 engineer. This means that
when ordering you should specify which set you require taking note of
what has just been said. At present our modules 2, 4 and 5 will not
split between the B1 and the B2 person and are written to the higher
level.
- For CAA examination purposes the modules (including the essay
paper) can be taken in any order, separately or together (though there
are too many to be taken all in one day – and unless you have to
travel a long way it would be better to take the larger/more difficult
ones separately anyway). There is no fee advantage in taking the
modules together.
The CAA exam day is 6 hours long so no more than 6 hours worth of
modules can be taken in any one day.
The syllabus is laid down in EASA part 66 and the modules are:
| Modules |
Title |
| 1 |
Mathematics |
| 2 |
Physics |
| 3 |
Electrical Fundamentals |
| 4 |
Electronic Fundamentals |
| 5 |
Digital Techniques / Electronic Instrument Systems |
| 6 |
Materials & Hardware |
| 7 |
Maintenance Practices |
| 8 |
Basic Aerodynamics |
| 9 |
Human Factors |
| 10 |
Aviation Legislation |
| 11A |
Turbine Aeroplane Aerodynamics, Structures & Systems |
| 11B |
Piston Aeroplane Aerodynamics, Structures & Systems |
| 12 |
Helicopter Aerodynamics, Structures & Systems |
| 13 |
Aircraft Aerodynamics, Structures & Systems (Avionic
systems) |
| 14 |
Propulsion (Engine instrumentation) |
| 15 |
Gas Turbine engine |
| 16 |
Piston Engine |
| 17 |
Propellor |
Please note:
Modules 13 and 14 are both avionic modules. Module
13 includes all the avionic systems such as Instruments, Autopilots, Radio,
Radar, Electrics etc.
There is no aircraft engineering experience requirement to be allowed to
take the CAA examinations but there is a requirement before application
is made for the licence.
In general terms this requirement is 5 years for the
B category and 3 years for the A category. These times may be reduced
for previous apprenticeships passed, approved ab-initio courses passed (ab-initio
course are normally 2 years full time for school levers) etc. All
qualifying experience must be within the previous 7 years when licence
application is made.
The times above must include 12 months recent
experience when application for the licence is made.
Those in the UK services are allowed to use 4 years
of their service experience (if appropriate to the licence being sort)
and will need one year recent experience with a civil firm.
In general all the above experience should be on a
representative cross section of tasks on aircraft.
Once the first module examination is passed a 5 year
clock is set during which time all the experience must be obtained and
all the modules passed. If they are not you will start to loose the
first modules passed.
Almost no exemptions are allowed to any of the
examinations but holders of certain degrees may get exemptions to some
of the modules – check with the CAA.
More details are given in the EASA syllabus which can
be down-loaded (or viewed) via the net (www.easa.eu.int)
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The Examinations
 |
Each written examination may be taken separately.
Check The Licence Without Type
Rating section in this website.
The multi-choice paper is made
up of questions or statements with three possible answers/responses. One of
which is correct the other two being plausible but incorrect. 75% is the
pass mark for each module with a credit mark being given for each correct
answer/response and no marks deducted for incorrect answers. Click on
the image if you would like to have a closer look.
|
Note:
- Calculators are not allowed in any examination.
- The time allowed is 1 minute per question.
CAA examinations are held monthly at four or five centres throughout the
UK.
The CAA does not conduct UK licence examinations outside the UK.
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The examination consists of a multi-choice paper for each
module with a four question essay paper. There is no oral examination.
The pass marks are the same as for the BCAR licences and the format of the
questions are similar.
The number of multiple choice questions are:
| Modules |
Title |
Number of Qs
(these may vary) |
|
|
A |
B1.1 |
B1.2 |
B1.3 |
B1.4 |
B2 |
| 1 |
Mathematics |
16 |
30 |
30 |
30 |
30 |
30 |
| 2 |
Physics |
30 |
50 |
50 |
50 |
50 |
50 |
| 3 |
Electrical fundamentals |
20 |
50 |
50 |
50 |
50 |
50 |
| 4 |
Electronic fundamentals |
nil |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
40 |
| 5 |
Digital techniques |
16 |
40 |
20 |
40 |
20 |
70 |
| 6 |
Materials & hardware |
50 |
70 |
70 |
70 |
70 |
60 |
| 7 |
Maintenance practices |
70 |
80 |
80 |
80 |
80 |
60 |
| 8 |
Basic aerodynamics |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
| 9 |
Human factors |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
20 |
| 10 |
Aviation legislation |
30 |
40 |
40 |
40 |
40 |
40 |
| 11A |
Airframe & systems (jet aircraft) |
100 |
130 |
nil |
nil |
nil |
nil |
| 11B |
Airframe & systems (piston) |
70 |
nil |
100 |
nil |
nil |
nil |
| 12 |
Helicopter airframe & systems |
90 |
nil |
nil |
115 |
115 |
nil |
| 13 |
All aircraft avionic systems |
nil |
nil |
nil |
nil |
nil |
130 |
| 14 |
Engine instruments (avionics) |
nil |
nil |
nil |
nil |
nil |
25 |
| 15 |
Gas turbine engine |
60 |
90 |
nil |
90 |
nil |
nil |
| 16 |
Piston engine |
50 |
nil |
70 |
nil |
70 |
nil |
| 17 |
Propellers |
20 |
30 |
30 |
nil |
nil |
nil |
Note:
- Calculators are not allowed in the examination.
- Time allowed is approximately 1.3 minutes per question.
There will be four essay questions to do; one from module 7, one from module 9
and one from module 10. The essay paper may be taken separately or
with any other licence multi choice examinations. These essay
questions may be taken together in one sitting (one fee) or taken separately
in three sittings (three fees), that is, module 7 (2Qs), module 9 (1Q) and
module 10 (1Q).
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What-ever aircraft you are working on at the moment there are some
things that you should consider doing straight away. If you are
currently not working on aircraft and intend going for a licence then
you should try to change jobs so to get your aircraft experience. The
actions you should consider are:
1. The first and most important task is to start a Record
of Work. It matters little what work you are actually doing so long
as it is maintenance on operating aircraft (in the hangar or on the
line) and does not matter if you have not decided yet to take the
licence. You never know, it might come in handy in the future anyway.
You should include the tasks carried out on the aircraft, the serial
numbers of the aircraft worked on and the date. Each page of your
logbook should be countersigned as being a true record. This
counter-signature should be by your quality control department or a CAA
designated person (if with a civil company). For those in the services
an engineering officer must sign.
Any work in bays (hydraulic bays, instrument bays etc) is not
considered as “operating aircraft” experience. Nor is “single task”
specialist work such as being a member of an airframe repair team.
You should try and get a representative cross section of tasks
experience and if you are a “mechanical man” you should try and get
involved with as many “avionic” tasks as possible. If you can help with
any avionic equipment changes, tests etc then this will help – both with
your studies and with your log book when being submitted to the CAA.
This log book is important, as when you apply for the licence you
will need to show confirmed experience within the last 7 years of 5
years (for the B licences) and 3 years (for the A licence). The
serviceman/woman must show experience of 12 months (effectively the last
12 months of the 5 year period) with a civil aircraft operator.
Log books (with completion instructions) can be obtained from the
Association of Licensed Aircraft Engineers telephone (+44) 01276 474888.
Their website is
www.alae.org
2. Become a member of the Association of Licensed Aircraft
Engineers (ALAE). Membership is open to all engineers whether
licensed or not.
The ALAE has been in the forefront of protecting the rights and
privileges of the licensed engineer. Without them our position in the
industry would be less secure and the industry less safe. They have
played a significant part in establishing the position of the licensed
engineer at all levels of management, to include on-going meetings with
the CAA, EASA and committees at all levels in the industry including at
government level.
If you have any problems regarding licences they are the only people
that can take them up with the CAA, so being a member is important.
Besides the above, members receive a monthly magazine which includes
job vacancy listings, details of ALAE services, articles and
up-to-the-minute information on all matters concerning the aircraft
engineer.
3. Take the CAA examinations sooner rather than later.
Ever-since I have been involved with teaching the licence (in the early
70’s) the CAA examinations have got progressively more difficult. There
have been quantum leaps when-ever the syllabus has changed, but even
without these changes the level of difficulty of the questions has got
progressively higher.
So it is almost certainly true to say that the CAA exams are easier
now than they will ever be. It is also true that our brain’s capacity to
learn is better now than it will ever be (unless you are under the age
of 10). So taking these two points together, in general terms, means the
sooner you start the better – provided you are in the process of gaining
the right experience and will not take the exams too early and run into
the “module life” problem (see below).
About the relationship between the CAA examinations and the
experience. The modules, once passed, have a life of 5 years. If you
have not converted them into a licence by then you will loose them and
they will have to be re-taken. This means if you are going for a B
licence you should not start passing the modules until you are working
and gaining the correct experience. For the A licence you do have a 2
year period before you must start getting the right experience. For UK
service personnel you should not start passing the modules until you
have 4 years or less left to do (for the B licence).
4. Starting your exams sooner rather than later means starting
your studies sooner rather than later, and, of course we would hope
you use us as your course provider.
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There is no substitute for it - a program of regular
disciplined study. This is the recipe for success with any
examination and it is true for the EASA part 66 exams.
This will take time, but you must be in a position, when ready for the
examination, to have at your finger tips the knowledge level required by the
CAA. What level is this? In particular it is specified in the
syllabus of course, but in general what is it?
You must be in a position to satisfy the CAA that you are a safe and
competent engineer to work on aircraft. You must know your systems
well enough to rectify any fault.
You must know the facts about how they work and you should be able to
explain (in writing) these to the CAA. Your essay answers should be
"impressive", logical (if system testing, fault finding etc) and
written in a way that explains exactly what you are doing.
A programme of regular disciplined study will mean (usually) the reading of
study material. Read it carefully - understand it, and if possible
test yourself on it by taking mock examinations such as essay exams and
multi-choice exam papers. In this way you will be exercising the
brain's capacity for information storage (memory) and retrieval (recall).
A word of friendly warning from some-one who has been in the business of
study provision for many years. Comments are sometimes heard like:
"I'm a xxxx rank in the airforce ....
"I've been working on aircraft for xxxx years ....
"I've done a manufactures type course ....
"I already have a licence from .... (another country) ....
.... so therefore I do not need to study much for the EASA examination".
This does not happen often, but when it does I say to the
person "Beware. I do not know of anyone who has passed the
CAA examinations without a considerable amount of studying - whether that
person has been in aviation for 4 years or 40 years and irrespective of how
well licensed he/she is".
Of course it does help if the person has a lot of experience and if he/she
is already licensed.
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It is important to consider all the implications involved
when embarking on a course of study. It is going to take time and
money, and both these need to be looked at so that you can prepare yourself
psychologically beforehand. In most cases it is not just yourself that
you need to consider. It would be wise to talk to those "nearest
and dearest" to you (wife, husband, partner etc). You might even
consider talking to your employer (he/she might help by allowing you some study
time at work and there may even be some financial assistance).
If you live with your parents or share accommodation with
others it would be a good idea to talk to them also.
Budgetary planning for your studies would depend very
much on your present financial position. For the smaller modules study
costs are not high and for many, strict budgetary planning is not necessary.
For some modules study costs are higher and these may need to be taken into
consideration in your financial planning. So talking to others who
share your financial interest - marriage partners, partners, parents etc may
be important.
The financial implications affect people differently
depending on how "well off" they are, but the study implications
are common to all.
You will need time to study. You will need time to
yourself to sit and read. One hour a day. Two hours a day.
Three hours a day. It will depend on your learning abilities.
The location needs to be quiet, well lit and comfortable. It can be in
the sitting room; in bed; in the bath; on the train; on the plane.
Anywhere, provided you are comfortable and your concentration is not
interrupted. Those living with you need to understand your requirement
for this period of self-imposed daily solitude. It is important
therefore to discuss your planned programme of studies with them.
Their support will make a considerable contribution to your psychological
approach.
For the EASA modules the
time scale can range from 1 week (module 8 - common) to about 9 months
(module 13 – for the avionic person). To complete all the modules
for the EASA category B licence you should allow between 2 to 3 years,
and for the A licence you could allow for a slightly shorter period.
It is important to prepare yourself and those around you for a time
scale of this length.
NOTE: Help with fee payment might be available from
your local education authority and in some countries there might be a
national fee assistance scheme. Some employers might also help and
with UK service personnel there is the ELCAS scheme. We are
approved by the MOD as a learning provider and our provider number is
1128.
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What we offer
We offer world-wide coverage distance learning programmes
designed to allow you to study for the CAA Licence Without Type Rating and
the EASA part 66
examinations. These follow the syllabus as laid down in BCARs section
L or EASA part 66, published by the UK CAA/EASA.
The programmes are cost-effective, allowing progress through the course at
your own pace in the comfort of your own home, without the problems of
travel, accommodation, etc.
A personalised timetable is provided, but can be changed to
suit your requirements.
You can enrol as a Full Student (FS), or an Associate Student (AS), or you
can purchase the Study Books by themselves (SB). The following table illustrates what each grade will
include:
| |
FS |
AS |
SB |
| Study material |
 |
|
|
| In-course assessments |
|
|
|
| Personal time-table |
|
|
|
| Allocation of subject and course tutors |
|
|
|
| Course completion letter |
|
|
|
| Counselling service |
|
|
|
Legend: FS = Full Student; AS = Associate
Student; SB = Study Books Student.
The FS programme includes all the study books, an
assessment timetable, assessments (to be marked by the tutors), and tutor
contact (phone, email etc).
The AS programme has all of the above except that you provide your own
study books.
Tutors can be contacted by letter, phone (or fax and email in some
cases).
Completed assessments are sent to the subject tutors where they are marked
and returned. All marking is confidential - unless agreed otherwise.
Assessments, to CAA standards, comprise multiple choice papers and essay
questions for the EE programme.
Course and subject tutors are all experienced aircraft maintenance engineers
either involved in teaching aeronautical engineering or licensed. The
books, compiled and kept up to date by the tutors, are in a form to be
understood by the home reader. Text is supported by illustrations,
many of which are copyright cleared from aircraft and systems manufacturers.
Our services are used by many airlines/operators who use our books and study
programmes for their licence training requirements.
For more detailed information on the Licence you are advised to read BCARs
section L/EASA PT 66.
CAA publications may be obtained from The Stationery Office (TSO) who has
bookshops throughout the UK (London, Birmingham and, Edinburgh to name a
few). For more details contact
www.tso.co.uk
In very general terms, the experience requirements for applications
to be considered for the EASA licence are:
- 5 years engineering experience in the last 7 on operating aircraft
for the B licence to include the recent year on the type for which
application is made, e.g. for a B1-1 licence this year should be working
on fixed wing jet engined aircraft. For UK service personnel four of
those years can be gained whilst in the services, with the last year
in civil aviation.
- The same applies to the A licence person except that the total
experience requirement is 3 years.
NOTE: The experience, as far as possible, should be
on a representative cross section of tasks on the aircraft appropriate
to the licence being sort and experience in engine bays, hydraulic bays,
instrument bays etc is not considered eligible.
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