When searching for a Part 141 helicopter flight school in the Boston Massachusetts area, most people have lots of questions. Since we are the only helicopter flight school in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine that has passed all of the stringent government requirements to train international students, we have to answer training questions from all over the world. For students located within the United States, commencing your helicopter training is simple. But for students who are not U.S. citizens, starting helicopter training can be a daunting procedure - but rest assured we have the staff available that completely understand the TSA requirements. When you come to our Part 141 Boston helicopter flight school, you will be assigned a student liason who will walk you through the process from start to finish.
There are 2 categories of students who are required to register with the TSA.
1. You are here in the U.S on a current visa, or you will be here with a visitor or other type of Visa.
2. You are not here in the U.S and will not have a Visa (you need a vocational - M - Visa from our school).
If you are here in the U.S already and are not a U.S. citizen (do not have a U.S. based passport), you need to first register with the TSA. This is a simple, straightforward process that can seem complicated to those who are not familiar with the details. At North Andover Flight Academy we have trained many international students and have assisted many students through this process. First, you need to register at http://www.flightschoolcandidates.gov as a new student. You will be sent a confirmation email with a password and a confirmation. Login to the TSA site and complete all the required information as asked. You will be asked basic personal information and information pertaining to the course of helicopter training. For detail on the exact information to be filled out, please see our International Students page - TSA information. The questions will ask the type of course, course ID, type of helicopter, training start date, and training end date. You will also need to pay the processing fee to the TSA.
After filling out all this information, the request will be sent to our school for validation. After we accept the training request, you will be sent information on where to get your fingerprints taken. This takes approximately 4 days. After your fingerprints are accepted we will be notified and you will come in to begin your training.
It seems more complicated than it is - all you need to do is follow the steps as outlined in each correspondence sent to you by the TSA.
For students that are not already in the U.S. or will not be here on their own visa, the steps are a bit more involved, but still not impossible. The next article in this series will go over the steps to do your helicopter flight training here at North Andover Flight Academy!
