The admissibility of European training is massively self evident in that myself and many others I know have used it towards FAA papers, but there are still people out there who say it is illegal.
People stay in or come to the US for flight training hours as well as pilot certificates, motivated by the economics – a regulatory dictate to do so is not required. I don’t think most people in the US could or would conceive of a situation in which 61.41(a) (2) as quoted in the first post wouldn’t be true, and it reads pretty clearly. Foreign training hours done in any ICAO signatory country are valid for FAA pilot certificates, without the requirement for other additional treaties.
There is also this one ,61.51 (j) (2), in relation to logging FAA flight time in foreign registered aircraft. It’s allowed by FAA for aircraft having a C of A issued by an ICAO signatory country.
Peter, the BASA allows a standard US private/instrument/multi to be obtained without doing practical tests.
The US DPEs are now running an out-of-control gravy train with prices often exceeding 1500 USD per test (plus aircraft hire). It’s ironically cheaper to now train for an EU PPL at a French aeroclub and convert to a US private under the BASA!
Hmmm… sure, though not very practical unless you specifically want to do that, in that specific environment, etc 
I was paying c. 1000 USD in 2008 or so, in the UK. Oh and GBP 800 for the UK JAA IR test in 2011
It is probably accurate to say that this whole topic is less and less relevant since
Has anyone written down the exact process for converting a European PPL/IR to the FAA standalone PPL/IR, via a BASA? And is there no BASA route for UK issued papers post-brexit?
Has anyone written down the exact process for converting a European PPL/IR to the FAA standalone PPL/IR, via a BASA?
Peter, I wrote this summary after a German friend came and stayed with us to get his standalone FAA Private and Instrument Rating via the FAA process earlier this year. I’m not sure it documents the exact process in its entirely because I wasn’t involved with the IACRA preparations to document his German license, but otherwise it should be fairly complete. There was no flying or testing with the DPE and the price to him for the paperwork done was minimal.
