Overview
A licence is issued by Transport Canada in accordance with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) licence Standards And Recommended Practices (SARPs). A licence can be used to fly domestically as well as internationally, while a permit does not comply with ICAO standards and therefore can only be used within Canada, unless accepted by another country. In April 1920 the first commercial commercial pilot license in Canada was issued to Roland Groome.
Pilots with licences from foreign countries that are ICAO contracting states may apply to Transport Canada for a validation of their foreign licence. This allows them to fly Canadian registered aircraft in Canada. A foreign licence may be used to fly an aircraft registered in the same state as the licence while in Canada.
The term licence in Canada is equivalent to the term certificate in the United States. The term licence is also used in the United Kingdom. Under the ICAO they are all legally equivalent.
The most common type of Canadian licence is the private pilot licence—aeroplane, which is used to fly light single engine general aviation aircraft privately and recreationally. At the end of 2008 there were 27,138 aeroplane and 596 helicopter private pilot licences in force in Canada. The rarest licence or permit in Canada is the gyroplane pilot permit, with only 29 in force at the end of 2008.
Read more about this topic: Pilot Licensing In Canada