Renting in Chile - Tips or Gotchas?
Posted by probably_platypus@reddit | flying | View on Reddit | 52 comments
IFR-rated PPL here, >1000 hrs over 15+ years, mostly in the U.S., looking to rent and fly around Santiago, Chile this July. I'm current, with a valid medical and insurance.
Has anyone here rented in/near Santiago?
- What was the rental process like (checkouts, documentation, language barrier, etc.)
- Any local quirks or regulations I should be aware of?
- How was the flying itself—terrain, ATC, VFR corridors, weather patterns, gotchas
- Also curious if anyone has flown with Club Aéreo Curacaví or any other local outfits.
Would love to hear any experiences, good or bad, or things you wish you’d known before going up in Chilean airspace.
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
Thanks for the great answer. "Blasting off" into something new isn't a good idea.
I agree it's wise to spend time / go up with a CFI when doing something new, or something you haven't done for a while. I'm a big believer in instruction.
PerceptionFront3177@reddit
DM, pilot from Chile, with us license as well. Short story; you can
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
Thanks. This is helpful for my next trip.
PerceptionFront3177@reddit
You only need your license and passport and can go up there with an Instructor. Which i will always recommend. There is a lot of flying under C-D airspace. Very different from the US (we dont have B airspace iex) let me know your dates and will fix you up with an instructor and a plane.
vyqz@reddit
just here for the clapped out former CAP plane in the background.
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
clapped out and CAP plane are redundancies. I've never seen a new CAP plane, unless they are all painted in 'faded glory' colors.
mtconnol@reddit
CAP itself is flying new, beautiful g1000 Cessnas only a few years old.
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
I'd love to see some of them. I've met a good number of pilots who got their start flying with CAP. They seem to instill rigor in pilots.
FlowerGeneral2576@reddit
If only they could instill adherence to the regs and good ADM in their pilots as well.
Busy-Bank-1896@reddit
What makes you say that they dont do that?
FlowerGeneral2576@reddit
CAP has a lot of great pilots, pilots that bring wealths of knowledge and experience to the organization. Sadly though, CAP also attracts a lot of weekend warrior types, whose last ratings were their PPLs back in 1975. Guys that I’ve seen: not use the radio, fly the wrong VFR cruise altitude, incur onto a runway, and on occasion bend metal among other things.
The_Flying_Doggo@reddit
Can confirm, got my PPL with CAP paying $65 an hour dry for a 2018 C172S with the full G1000 suite.
HappyBappyAviation@reddit
I flew one that was months off the production line. C182 G1000 NXi and Electronic Stability Control. I think I flew it with less than 100 hours on it lol. I flew many hours in it and it was always amazing. Although we definitely shook out some of the new airplane bugs, like a bad fuel sensor that I had to fly a ferry flight to get it fixed lol.
Mithster18@reddit
Speaking as an instructor, who has had foreign pilots come over to my part of the world, it would be easier to go up with a local instructor because they know the in's & out's of that airspace/terrain, log the flight(s) as dual and happy days.
The regs between countries are close enough, but some "gotchas". For example, remember the video on VASaviation of the Speedbird planes doing their establishing comms with KJFK tower and tower chewing them out because they were doing the ICAO thing.
Your licence only allows your to fly N- registered aircraft as PiC/Solo, so good luck finding one of those in Santiago. Once you do find one, you have to make sure you comply with all Chilean regulations/procedures.
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
I'd be lying if I said I knew every regulation. I don't often have the need to determine the privileges afforded by my certificate in foreign situations.
That's why I ask questions.
NeektorG@reddit
Sent you a DM!
TheDrunkNewGuy@reddit
Do you have a Chilean Pilot license? You won’t be able to fly a Chilean registered plane without the Chilean equivalent license unless your with an instructor
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
But I'm an American.
I posted here first, before asking ChatGPT for a hallucination. Figured I'd trust the humans here more.
So I'd need a Chilean license? Seems like I need it validated by DGAC to fly a Chilean registered aircraft. This looks like it takes 45-90 days.
Bunslow@reddit
To be fair, even as an American you should be able to know the answer. The regs (Part 61?) state that FAA licenses are valid in the USA or in USA-registered planes. By reciprocity (ICAO etc), the same applies for any country, or at least this should be the default guess. To fly a local plane in a local country requires that country to have granted you a license (whether by origin or by conversion).
QuailImpossible3857@reddit
"But I'm an American"
Lol classic American.
sprulz@reddit
German levels of humor recognition here
Apprehensive_Cost937@reddit
American exceptionalism never disappoints.
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
I meant it in jest. My apologies. Truly, it was sarcasm.
1E-12@reddit
Lol I way overthought it - I thought it was a joke about Chile being in South America and therfore Chileans also being Americans.
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
'Twas a joke. I suppose, with the current political climate, I must be much more explicit. Sorry for that.
JAMONLEE@reddit
People just love picking a fight. The winky emoji made it pretty obvious to those of us with eyes
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
No! I edited that in. This is 100% my fault.
JAMONLEE@reddit
The plot thickens lol
Ok everyone’s chill here fly on
jet-setting@reddit
That emoji was added after.
hoppertn@reddit
He can always demand to speak with the Chili’s Presidente.
tommarca@reddit
You definitely need a Chilean license to fly CC registered airplanes. Go fly with an instructor and have fun that way. I wouldn’t go through the hassle of getting a Chilean license if you only plan on flying there once. If you’re staying for an extended period or plan on coming back in the short term, that’s another story.
Shot_Factor_1539@reddit
Downvoted for being American 😆
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
That could be warranted 😁. I meet fantastic people in every country I visit, and hope people feel the same when they meet me & my family.
BlackhawkBro@reddit
The best part is it’s probably other Americans getting the most upset about it…..
TheDrunkNewGuy@reddit
To be honest I’m not completely sure about Chile but typically you cannot fly an aircraft that’s registered under a different country than your licence unless you have an equivalent or have done a conversion.
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
This is exactly what I'm learning, and it takes 45+ days.
m149@reddit
looks like the sarcasm went over people's heads here a bit. I thought it was funny.
ExtremeSour@reddit
Not sure why you’re getting shit. I immediately knew you were joking
jet-setting@reddit
What’s the thought process here?
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
Thought process was: humor.
LilBabyVirus5@reddit
Doesn’t look like anyone picked up on that 😂
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
I did more digging on the requirements and legalities.
You can fly aircraft not registered in Chile with your valid (e.g. current, sufficient, etc.) foreign certificate.
You can only fly as PIC a Chilean registered aircraft if you have your foreign certificate validated by the Chilean DGAC.
This process can take 45 days or more, and may require multiple steps - including sharing pilot logs, exam scores, and other records.
The current cost is 65,000 CLP (about $60 USD).
brucebrowde@reddit
For other people that stumble upon this, it'd be good if you can link to some direct sources for this.
TheDrunkNewGuy@reddit
Thanks for the update that seems quite doable
Mr-Plop@reddit
The little I know is that they're regs are pretty similar to the FAA FARs.
Mr-cacahead@reddit
You need an LOA from the FAA, go to the DGAC web page and see how the PVT conversion is. Is pretty much straight forward AFAIK, make sure to bring your logbook, they love stamping shit in it. I didn’t it like 10 years ago, things might changed a bit. They fly on the level over 5k and other than SCL area, nobody else speaks English, good luck and don’t die.
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
This is excellent. Thank you.
It's simply not going to happen for this trip - not enough time to plan and prepare. Preparation is my favorite defense against violations and crashes.
BlackhawkBro@reddit
I know in some countries with an FAA rating you can only fly “N” or American registered planes. I don’t know if that would help you get pointed in the right direction. In Germany, different country but similar type question, I found that was the only way for me to fly legally there with FAA ratings outside the military and it was with a club, so maybe see if there is an American or expat flying club.
Lonely-Sound2823@reddit
Don’t take a side trip to Antarctica - they don’t like that. ;)
probably_platypus@reddit (OP)
I got that one! Yep, stay on your ICAO flight plan.
woop_woop_pull_upp@reddit
You can just rent their planes with an FAA license?
rFlyingTower@reddit
This is a copy of the original post body for posterity:
IFR-rated PPL here, >1000 hrs over 15+ years, mostly in the U.S., looking to rent and fly around Santiago, Chile this July. I'm current, with a valid medical and insurance.
Has anyone here rented in/near Santiago?
Would love to hear any experiences, good or bad, or things you wish you’d known before going up in Chilean airspace.
Please downvote this comment until it collapses.
Questions about this comment? Please see this wiki post before contacting the mods.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. If you have any questions, please contact the mods of this subreddit.