French requirements for solo flight

I am planning on participating in one of the Mountain Gliding courses
at CNVV near Saint-Auban in southern France the first week of June. I
have an ASEL power rating with IFR, a glider rating and a third class
medical. Can anyone advise me what I will need to be able to fly solo
at CNVV. If possible I would like to get everything taken care of
before I leave as I will not have much time once I arrive.

Steve Freeman wrote:

Can anyone advise me what I will need to be able to fly solo

Best would be to just ask them: http://www.cnvv.net/

On Apr 8, 4:03*pm, John Smith wrote:
Steve Freeman wrote:
Can anyone advise me what I will need to be able to fly solo

Best would be to just ask them:http://www.cnvv.net/

I did and they referred me to the local district office at another
airport that I need to call and I thought someone on the list might be
able to give me a head start.

On Tue, 8 Apr 2008 14:18:35 -0700 (PDT), Steve Freeman
wrote:

On Apr 8, 4:03*pm, John Smith wrote:
Steve Freeman wrote:
Can anyone advise me what I will need to be able to fly solo

Best would be to just ask them:http://www.cnvv.net/

I did and they referred me to the local district office at another
airport that I need to call and I thought someone on the list might be
able to give me a head start.

I guess it depens on the result of a check flight. I had no prior
mountain flying experience and made two flights in double-seaters
there before they told me to fly solo.



Bye
Andreas

On Apr 8, 7:05*pm, Andreas Maurer wrote:
On Tue, 8 Apr 2008 14:18:35 -0700 (PDT), Steve Freeman

wrote:
On Apr 8, 4:03*pm, John Smith wrote:
Steve Freeman wrote:
Can anyone advise me what I will need to be able to fly solo

Best would be to just ask them:http://www.cnvv.net/

I did and they referred me to the local district office at another
airport that I need to call and I thought someone on the list might be
able to give me a head start.

I guess it depens on the result of a check flight. I had no prior
mountain flying experience and made two flights in double-seaters
there before they told me to fly solo.

Bye
Andreas

Did your US medical and license transfer? I am more interested in the
legalities rather than the experience needed. The last time I flew
gliders in France was 5 years ago and it was just with an instructor.
He said that if I wanted to come back and fly solo I would have to get
a French medical as the US medicals were not recognized in Europe as
they were not ICAO compliant and a current medical was need to legally
fly a glider in France. Was I given incorrect or out of date
information?

I have flown at St. Auban three times. It is virtually the same as
flying in the USA.
Before you go to St. Auban you must get a French temporary license.
The St. Auban website give you the address and all the information you
need. But you should have already known this if you have paid your
deposit to St. Auban. So here is the information you need.

You need to submit a copy of:
1) your US pilot license
2) a copy of your class 3,2, or 1 medical certificate.
(the French accept all US medical certificates)
3) two recent identity photographs. Color or B&W do not matter.
(identity photographs are basically 1.5x1.5 inches
4) a copy of your passport, the page with your photo and date of birth
5) a written request for a "license equivalence"
(I will be flying at St. Auban from xxxx to xxxx)
6) specify the dates of your stay in France.

Mail it all to:

District Aeronautique de Provence
Service des Licenses
Aeroport No. 1
13727 MARIGNANE

Within a month you will receive your temporary French license in the
mail.

They show up at the registration building at St. Auban about 0900
hours with your logbook and credit card.
Have fun.

Guy Acheson "DDS"

I had a similar experience at St. Auban
One day of sight seeing and one day of mountain workout
and three days of solo.
Six month before my planed arrival I requested there package for
visiting pilots. Even though I filled out and send everything that
they requested for solo flight. The paper work was not done on my
arrival. After telling them that I was not interested in flying with
them at all, unless I get my solo status, they were able to get it
within 24 hours.
I had the impression that they were not interested in pilots doing
solo.
The landscape is spectacular and flying is a challenging
I spend Euros 980.00 flying for the week, plus Euros 420.00 for a
cabin for one week, clean but very basic, food not included. Breakfast
on site is none existing unless you call a bowl of coffee and a dry
muffin breakfast. I ended up making my own. You must also look after
your own lunch. In the evening supper was available at a reasonable
rate.

Udo


On Apr 8, 8:05*pm, Andreas Maurer wrote:
On Tue, 8 Apr 2008 14:18:35 -0700 (PDT), Steve Freeman

wrote:
On Apr 8, 4:03*pm, John Smith wrote:
Steve Freeman wrote:
Can anyone advise me what I will need to be able to fly solo

Best would be to just ask them:http://www.cnvv.net/

I did and they referred me to the local district office at another
airport that I need to call and I thought someone on the list might be
able to give me a head start.

I guess it depens on the result of a check flight. I had no prior
mountain flying experience and made two flights in double-seaters
there before they told me to fly solo.

Bye
Andreas

On Wed, 9 Apr 2008 06:59:21 -0700 (PDT), Udo wrote:

I had a similar experience at St. Auban
One day of sight seeing and one day of mountain workout
and three days of solo.
Six month before my planed arrival I requested there package for
visiting pilots. Even though I filled out and send everything that
they requested for solo flight. The paper work was not done on my
arrival. After telling them that I was not interested in flying with
them at all, unless I get my solo status, they were able to get it
within 24 hours.
I had the impression that they were not interested in pilots doing
solo.
The landscape is spectacular and flying is a challenging
I spend Euros 980.00 flying for the week, plus Euros 420.00 for a
cabin for one week, clean but very basic, food not included. Breakfast
on site is none existing unless you call a bowl of coffee and a dry
muffin breakfast. I ended up making my own. You must also look after
your own lunch. In the evening supper was available at a reasonable
rate.


I think things have changed a lot at St. Auban over the years - I
heard a lot of bad things lately. I was there in 1995 I think (with a
German instructor training course), and we got a very thorough
instruction to mountain flying. I was one of the few who brought their
own glider and I was pretty surprised that I got the "go" for solo
flight after only two flights.

Things were much better then... the breakfast fas good, and "a midi"
we went to the Air Force academy canteen (at that time there was the
civil gliding centre and the Air Force academy on the other side of
the airfield) where we got a pretty god and real cheap lunch.

I don't recall the prices anymore, but they were pretty tame.


Concerning safety: The area there is extremely dangerous to fly. Far
above-avergae accident rate in the French Alps, most of them fatal.





Bye
Andreas

In article
s.com, Steve Freeman writes
I am planning on participating in one of the Mountain Gliding courses
at CNVV near Saint-Auban in southern France the first week of June. I
have an ASEL power rating with IFR, a glider rating and a third class
medical. Can anyone advise me what I will need to be able to fly solo
at CNVV. If possible I would like to get everything taken care of
before I leave as I will not have much time once I arrive.


FWIW we went to Chauvigny in 1999 and the requirement was (1) a Visite
Medicale (I would think your Class 3 would be OK, but best to confirm
that) (2) a flight with an instructor at nearby Poitiers. We collected a
certificate at this airfield. (3)The glider documents, Cof A and
insurance certificate. You could get the medical locally for the
equivalent of $20 USA.

But it may be different now, especially if you are going to fly their
gliders.

Again FWIW when I last flew at a French CNVV all I needed was a note
from my physician saying I was OK to fly. No problem, the doc was my
dad. But that was 50 years ago, and no doubt things are more complex
now.
--
Mike Lindsay

On Tue, 8 Apr 2008 22:53:51 +0100, Mike Lindsay
wrote:

FWIW we went to Chauvigny in 1999 and the requirement was (1) a Visite
Medicale (I would think your Class 3 would be OK, but best to confirm
that) (2) a flight with an instructor at nearby Poitiers. We collected a
certificate at this airfield. (3)The glider documents, Cof A and
insurance certificate. You could get the medical locally for the
equivalent of $20 USA.

Ah, Chavigny... I spent two weeks of the extremely hot 2003 summer
there... 43 degrees celtigrade, and not a single tree in sight... but
9.000 ft cloud base... and many, many student pilots to keep me
busy...


But it may be different now, especially if you are going to fly their
gliders.

The problem is the introduction of the EASA in 2007 that overruled
many countries' regulations.



Bye
Andreas