Visiting Pilots

Many pilots on holiday want to do more than take a scenic flight, naturally they want to fly the plane themselves, and what better place than Otago.

The Otago Aero club encourages foreign pilots to come flying with us, no matter how short your stay is. Under the guidance of one of our experienced flight instructors you are able to fly yourself around some of the most stunning scenery in the World. You will also have the opportunity to learn some of the basics of flying in this unique environment.

Overseas pilots wishing to fly New Zealand registered aircraft without an instructor are required to either convert their current licence to a New Zealand one, or obtain a short-term validation.

See the CAA website for more details or download Flight Crew Recognition information

HOW TO GET SHORT TERM VALIDATION

A Short term Validation enables you to use your ‘current’ overseas licence here in New Zealand for a period up to 6 months. The process is simple; produce your current overseas licence and medical, conduct a Biennial Flight Review and your instructor will help complete the required forms.

HOW TO CONVERT YOUR PPL

Converting your overseas licence enables you to be issued with a lifetime NZ PPL Licence. To qualify for this conversion, you must produce your ‘current’ overseas licence and medical, conduct a Biennial Flight Review, meet NZ PPL requirements and complete required paperwork.

New Zealand PPL Requirements in some cases require additional training on top of your overseas licence, such as Instrument Flying (5 Hours Simulated or Actual), Cross Country flying (10 Hours) and recently introduced Terrain and Weather Awareness training (5 Hours). We also highly recommend that the pilot do the NZ PPL Law and Meteorology exams to gain knowledge about our unique conditions in NZ.

You will also be required to complete a Fit and Proper Persons Questionnaire, that requires you to obtain reports for criminal and traffic offence history for the last 5 years in the countries you have spent 6 consecutive months in. Finally, a Language Proficiency Test is required for the NZ PPL (or evidence of you having already completed this).

You will find all the links and forms you require here: New Zealand Flight Crew Licence - Overseas Licence Holders conversion.