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UK Civil Aviation Regulations

These are published by the CAA on our UK Regulations pages. EU Regulations and EASA Access Guides published by EASA no longer apply in the UK. Our website and publications are being reviewed to update all references. Any references to EU law and EASA Access guides should be disregarded and where applicable the equivalent UK versions referred to instead.



The Flight Radiotelephony Operator's Licence (FRTOL) authorises you to operate an Aircraft Radio Station in a UK registered aircraft.

The FRTOL is a national licence that can be issued as a stand-alone licence, but is normally held in conjunction with another Flight Crew licence.

Initial issue

Requirements

Before you can apply for the initial issue of a FRTOL you must:

  • be a minimum age of 14 years old
  • pass the PPL Communications theoretical exam (this must be completed before the practical exam, and a 24 month validity period applies for the licence issue)
  • pass a Radio Telephony's practical test (24 month validity period applies for licence issue)
  • demonstrated English Language Proficiency (ELP) to level 4,5 or 6 which must be valid on the date that the FRTOL is issued.

Examination validity

If you take the Radiotelephony Communications test together with the theoretical exams for the issue of a PPL, LAPL or NPPL licence all exams must be passed within an 18 month period.

The Communications examination will then be valid for 24 months following the final theoretical examination.

How to apply

You will need to submit online application form SRG1105.

Please note: if applicable, you will be able to apply for the initial issue of a PPL or LAPL as well as FRTOL when submitting this online application.

What documents to submit

As part of the FRTOL application, you will be asked to upload the following:

  • A certified copy of your valid passport.
  • FRTOL course completion certificate (CAA5003 or CAA5016)
  • A copy of your signed certificate of English Language Assessment

How to get copies of your documents certified

Please note: you will also be asked to upload additional supporting documents if you are also applying for the initial issue of a flight crew licence (PPL or LAPL). Please see the relevant sections on our website for more information.

The Fee

There is no fee if the FRTOL is applied for at the same time as another category of flight crew licence (a PPL).

For stand-alone applications see our Licensing fees and costs (full details are available in Scheme of Charges (Personnel Licensing)).

An additional fee applies if you would like your documents returned by secure courier.

Making sure your documents are safely returned

Close Initial issue

Renewal

A stand-alone UK FRTOL issued before 17 September 2012, had a ten year licence validity.

It is possible to renew an expired FRTOL by submitting an online application and paying the appropriate fee.

Requirements

The only requirement for the renewal of a FRTOL is that the English Language Proficiency (ELP) should be current and updated to our system.

How to apply

You will need to submit an online application form SRG1106.

Please note that this is different online form to that used for the initial issue of a FRTOL.

What documents to submit

As part of the online application, you will be asked to upload the following:

  • A copy of your signed certificate of English Language Assessment
  • A certified copy of your radio telephony licence
  • A certified copy of your valid passport

How to get copies of your documents certified

Please note: we can only accept English Language Proficiency which has at least two weeks validity remaining prior to application submission. If your English language proficiency is expired, please visit How to renew your English Language Proficiency on our website.

The fee

Please see our Licensing fees and costs (full details are available in Scheme of Charges (Personnel Licensing)).

An additional fee applies if you would like your documents returned by secure courier.

Making sure your documents are safely returned.

Close Renewal

File size limit

Please note that there is currently a 50Mb size limit for files uploaded to our forms.

Guidance on documentation

All documents should be uploaded with a different filename clearly stating the content of the file attachment (for example Passport, Licence copy etc.)

Submitting documents with the same filename may result in the loss of information in the system and added delays to the application assessment.

For questions relating to paperwork, such as how to obtain certified copies of documents, please refer to guidance on documentation.

Contact us

If you have any questions please contact our licensing team:

Email fclweb@caa.co.uk (preferred)
Phone 0330 022 1972 (Mon - Fri 08:30 - 16:30)