I've now waited three months since I submitted my ATPL application for a response from Transport. My type rating application has now been 7 months in the works.
Obviously, I have contacted transport to confirm they have received my applications and are processing them. As far as I am aware now, there is NO method of getting anyone from licensing, or civil aviation as a whole for that matter, on the phone. Best they can do, is you send an email to the regional office and they tend to reply within 1-2 weeks (even though they say they will get back to you in 48hours). Plus, with the new Covid restrictions you are not able to visit the licensing office in person, although I am not sure that even if you did it would help as I think government workers may be working from home. I remember back in the day, you could kind of trick transport into getting on the phone with you by calling up to book an exam, then just ask them other stuff, but now even the exam booking is a lengthy process done over email.
I know its government, but even my EASA ATPL took nine working days to process from the so called bureaucracy of the European union. The FAA have IACRA which at least is a transparent process where you can check the status online. Transport is just a black hole, they have all my logbooks and its just silence from them.
Am I doing something wrong here? Does anyone else have any tips for the licensing process with TC?
