Too many agencies are involved in the process of getting my multi-engine rating and revalidating my instrument rating. My license has been issued by FOCA (Switzerland) according to JAA (pan-european regulations) but my flight examiner will act on behalf of the LBA (Germany). All of these are somehow interacting with the EASA (new pan-european regulator). My new instructor stands in the middle of this mess, doing his best to survive and get things done properly.

The program we elaborated in February to train me for the MEP rating and extend my IR privileges to multi-engine was made of 8 hours of simulator, and 5 hours of aircraft flight, plus the examination flight. Combining the MEP and the MEP-specific part of the IFR makes possible to reduce the total training time as the two have some common objectives. This 5 / 8 deal was matching my restricted budget quite well, and was accepted by the LBA – the school already used it for other pilots.

I’m writing this post one day before the first simulator session, because my instructor just sent me an e-mail to notify me that the LBA was informed by the JAA that the used of FNPT-II for the MEP class rating was not a correct interpretation of the rules. The 5 / 8 program is no longer possible, and I have to get my MEP rating first, and then extend my IR privileges. Getting the MEP rating means 6 hours on the aircraft, and the IR requires 5 hours, three of which can be on the simulator. So the rule changed from 5 / 8 to 9 / 2, plus the examination flights. Can this fit in my budget ? If yes, that will be really tight and I don’t like it.

The possible options are now the following:

• Get my MEP and IR extension on the DA42, possibly with a pause in between
• Get my MEP on the DA42 and renew my IFR (SEP only) on a DA40
• Get my MEP on the DA42 and leave my IFR expire (hopefully temporarily)
• Renew my IFR on the DA40 and forget about the MEP rating for the time being
• Renew my IFR on a Cirrus SR22 available through the same school

Many factors will influence the decision:

• Budget
• Availability of the DA40, which is close to a revision of its Thielert engine, which could be complicated
• Registration and equipment of the SR22 and time required for the transition – I don’t know yet if it has a US or European registration, nor if it is IFR / glass-cockpit equipped
• The Cirrus is more expensive than the DA40, but less than the DA42
• I spent several hours to study the DA42 and would not really like to waste this work

Deciding to not get the MEP rating but rather a Cirrus differences training and IFR check would mean a lot of extra theory work, but probably more flying, possibly behing an Avidyne glass-cockpit. The DA40 only option seems a bit boring, but it has the advantage of preserving my ratings. The mixed DA42 / DA40 option sounds like a possibly compromise, but the result would be quite frustrating: SEP / IR and MEP without IR…

This last minute change sounds like an emergency and I’ll manage it as one. The sole decision I took for the time being is to keep the appointment tomorrow to define a new plan with my instructor. I’ll use it to clarify the situation about the Cirrus and make the first decision: Diamond or Cirrus. If I go in the Diamond direction, I will anyway get the MEP rating and assess the remaining budget at this moment and decide for the IFR: DA42, DA40, or none.

If the Cirrus is N-registered or if my instructor tells me that the required time for the transition is beyond my budget, the decision will be easy. If the Cirrus is within my budget but not glass-cockpit equipped, it will be a bit more complex. If the Cirrus is within budget and glass-cockpit equipped, it could be a heartbreaker.

The two-step approach of the Diamond option (first MEP, then IR on DA42 or DA40 or no IR at all depending on budget) sounds like good airmaship: decide and make what has to be done now, and let’s see how the situation develops. No need for an immediate decision. Come back tomorrow to know my decision. I promise this is not an April Fool.

UPDATE – 1st of April: I met my instructor this morning (1st of April) and the decision was easy to made. The Cirrus is N-registered, so I can’t use it (except in Switzerland, but this makes no sense…). I decided to make the MEP first and then decide depending on the remaining budget. We re-arranged meetings, and the whole training was postponed by about one week because the plane was not available at the dates we initially planed for the simulator session.

After this meeting I had other non-flying (read boring) occupations until late afternoon. When coming back online (yes, I sometimes forget to take my iPhone with… silly me), I received a new e-mail from my instructor with a short subject: “Good News”. It seems that the LBA changes its mind according to wind, temperature, phase of moon or some other quickly changing thing. It is again possible to use an FNPT-II for some part of the MEP rating… Don’t ask. Anyway, my first simulator session is now scheduled for Sunday, the 5th of April.

Was all this a personal April Fool organised by the LBA just for me ? I don’t think so. Anyway, it was good thinking, and I hope you enjoyed it.