UK CAA Class 1 privileges are an extension of Class 2 aeromedical examiner certification, not a separate starting point. Build your Class 2 application first, then work through the five published Class 1 criteria: examination experience, an advanced aviation medicine qualification, mandatory training, an audit at your premises and the Class 1 Upgrade Examination.
What Class 1 privileges let you do
Aeromedical examiners are doctors with specialist aviation medicine training who are certificated by the UK Civil Aviation Authority to perform aircrew and air traffic controller medical examinations and to advise on aviation medicine. Class 1 privileges extend that certification to UK CAA Class 1 aeromedical examinations.
The CAA is the issuing authority. It states that aeromedical examiners are certificated by the Authority, and its applicant guidance adds that AMEs are not employed by the CAA; they are independent doctors the CAA has trained and certificated for this role.
Class 1 medical certificates matter because they are the minimum medical requirement for a commercial pilot licence, a multi-crew pilot licence and an airline transport pilot licence. An examiner with Class 1 privileges can carry out those examinations; initial Class 1 medicals take place at an aeromedical centre, and revalidations and renewals can be completed by any AME certificated for Class 1.
Official sources: Guidance on AME Certification | UK Civil Aviation Authority — caa.co.uk aeromedical section, certification, training and policy; Aeromedical certification overview | UK Civil Aviation Authority — caa.co.uk aeromedical section, medical standards
You start with Class 2, not Class 1
The CAA publishes no direct entry to Class 1. Class 1 privileges are described as an extension of UK Class 2 privileges, so you must first be certificated as a Class 2 AME and meet every minimum criterion on that route.
The Class 2 entry criteria are specific. You need full, valid, unrestricted UK GMC registration with a licence to practise, and you must be on the GMC register either in general practice or on the Specialist Register for an acceptable adult clinical medicine specialty.
You must then show aviation medicine or flying experience through one of four routes: a diploma or master's in aviation medicine from King's College London or the University of Otago; at least one year of full-time (or part-time equivalent) aviation medicine practice, such as care of aircrew and air traffic controllers or air ambulance work; a private pilot licence (aeroplane or helicopter); or completion of the UK CAA Approved Introduction to Multi-crew Jet Operations course.
Separately from that experience, you must complete an approved aviation medicine course and pass its final exams: either the UK CAA Approved Basic Course in Aviation Medicine or a qualifying diploma or master's. You also need suitable premises with the equipment and procedures required for CAA medical examinations.
Once your application and facilities form are assessed as acceptable, you complete 5 days of mandatory training at a UK Aeromedical Centre. The centre will ask for a confirmatory letter from the CAA before arranging this training, and every aeromedical centre charges its own fees for it.
- Full, valid, unrestricted UK GMC registration and a licence to practise
- GP register entry, or Specialist Register entry in an acceptable adult clinical medicine specialty
- One aviation medicine or flying experience route: aviation medicine diploma or master's, a year of aviation medicine practice, a PPL, or the approved IMJO course
- Pass in the final exams of the approved Basic Course in Aviation Medicine, or a diploma or master's in aviation medicine
- Suitable premises with the necessary equipment and procedures
Official sources: Guidance on AME Certification | UK Civil Aviation Authority — caa.co.uk aeromedical section, certification, training and policy
The five criteria for extending to Class 1
To extend from UK Class 2 to Class 1 privileges, the CAA lists a minimum of five requirements: at least 30 Class 2 examinations in the preceding 3 years with evidence of the knowledge and skills needed for Class 1 work, an advanced aviation medicine qualification, 2 further days of mandatory training in some cases, a CAA audit with an observed examination, and a pass in the Class 1 Upgrade Examination.
Two of these are qualification steps you may already partly satisfy. The advanced course requirement is met by passing the final exams of the UK CAA Approved Advanced Course in Aviation Medicine, or by holding a diploma or master's in aviation medicine from King's College London or the University of Otago. The training requirement is 2 days at a UK Aeromedical Centre, unless you already completed the full 5 days during your initial Class 2 certification.
The experience requirement is at least 30 UK CAA Class 2 medical examinations completed in the preceding 3 years, plus evidence of the knowledge and skills required to act as a Class 1 AME. Count only UK CAA Class 2 examinations towards that total.
The final steps are practical and set by the CAA itself: an audit visit that includes a UK CAA aeromedical examination you perform at your premises while observed by a CAA auditor, and a pass in the UK CAA Class 1 Upgrade Examination. Meeting the minimum criteria starts the process; it does not replace any of these individual steps.
Worked exercise
A doctor holds UK Class 2 AME privileges. Over the preceding 3 years she has completed 28 UK CAA Class 2 medical examinations, and she has passed the final exams of a diploma in aviation medicine from King's College London. She has already completed the 5 days of mandatory training at initial Class 2 certification. She now wants to book the UK CAA Class 1 Upgrade Examination straight away. Against the published minimum criteria, what is she still missing?
Show answer
She has not yet met the examination-experience minimum: 28 Class 2 examinations fall short of the required 30 in the preceding 3 years. Her diploma satisfies the advanced qualification requirement, and her earlier 5 days of training covers the training step. She also still has the CAA audit with an observed aeromedical examination at her premises ahead of her, and the Class 1 Upgrade Examination itself remains to be passed.
Each published criterion must be met individually; satisfying one does not compensate for another. The diploma route is explicitly named alongside the Advanced Course in Aviation Medicine as an accepted alternative qualification, so that criterion is already met. The training criterion is waived because the source states the 2 days are required only if the 5 days of initial mandatory training were not already completed. The examination count is the blocking criterion here, and the audit and upgrade examination are additional steps in their own right, so booking the upgrade examination first would not complete the route.
| Class 1 extension criterion | What the CAA requires |
|---|---|
| Examination experience | At least 30 UK CAA Class 2 medical examinations in the preceding 3 years, with evidence of the knowledge and skills for Class 1 work |
| Advanced qualification | Passes in the final exams of the UK CAA Approved Advanced Course in Aviation Medicine, or a diploma or master's in aviation medicine (King's College London or University of Otago) |
| Mandatory training | 2 days at a UK Aeromedical Centre, if the initial 5 days of mandatory training were not already completed |
| Audit | A UK CAA audit with an observed UK CAA aeromedical examination at the AME's premises |
| Examination | A pass in the UK CAA Class 1 Upgrade Examination |
Official sources: Guidance on AME Certification | UK Civil Aviation Authority — caa.co.uk aeromedical section, certification, training and policy
What is known about the Class 1 Upgrade Examination
The CAA's published guidance confirms that you must pass the UK CAA Class 1 Upgrade Examination to extend your privileges, but the retrieved guidance page does not publish its syllabus, format or pass mark.
This matters for your planning. Lists of clinical topics you may see attached to aeromedical certification, such as cardiovascular, neurological or ophthalmological standards, describe the medical standards AMEs apply, but no retrieved official document maps them to this examination's content. Treat any topic list from a training provider as preparation material, not as the confirmed exam specification.
The practical route is to ask the CAA directly. The Authority handles AME applications and queries through its AME support contact, and it can confirm current examination arrangements, booking and any required evidence before you sit the upgrade examination.
Official sources: Guidance on AME Certification | UK Civil Aviation Authority — caa.co.uk aeromedical section, certification, training and policy
Keeping Class 1 certification once you hold it
Class 1 certification carries ongoing duties: mandatory aeromedical refresher training, at least 10 hours of aeromedical CPD each year recorded on the CAA's e-learning platform, a minimum number of examinations per year, and periodic on-site audits.
The CPD requirement is specific to each privilege level. Class 1 examiners need at least 10 hours of aeromedical CPD per annum; Class 2 is measured as 20 hours across a 3-year period, and Class 3 requires 3 hours of ATCO-related CPD in 3 years. All aeromedical CPD must be recorded on the AME e-learning platform, where the CAA assesses it and audits it regularly.
The examination-volume minimum is also changing. AMEs currently need at least 10 UK CAA aeromedical examinations every year to maintain certification; from the start of 2027 this rises to a minimum of 50 every year. If you are building a practice now, factor that increase into your plans.
Audits are part of normal certification, not a sign of a problem. The CAA requires an initial audit visit and routine audits every 3 years, covering your facilities, equipment, policies, procedures, CPD records and the certification cases you manage, with an observed medical examination at every audit. The CAA can also conduct for-cause audit visits.
Official sources: Guidance on AME Certification | UK Civil Aviation Authority — caa.co.uk aeromedical section, certification, training and policy
Applying and what the process costs
You begin by requesting a Proposed Location Form from the CAA's AME support contact and returning it with an email stating which criteria you meet. Meeting the criteria does not guarantee certification, because the CAA prioritises applications for UK locations where there is real licence-holder need.
The CAA is explicit on this point: it receives a large volume of AME applications that exceed stakeholder need, and it prioritises UK locations with a geographical need for aeromedical examinations. Where you intend to practise is therefore a real factor in whether certification is granted.
Costs come from two directions. Charges payable to the CAA are set out in its Scheme of Charges (Personnel Licensing), which you should check for current amounts. Separately, every Aeromedical Centre charges its own fee for the mandatory training, so contact each centre directly and compare before arranging your 5-day or 2-day placement.
Official sources: Guidance on AME Certification | UK Civil Aviation Authority — caa.co.uk aeromedical section, certification, training and policy
Your next steps as a candidate
Your first action depends on where you already are: gathering Class 2 entry criteria, counting your Class 2 examinations, or preparing for the audit and upgrade examination.
Use this checklist to locate yourself in the process and pick your next concrete step.
- If you are not yet an AME: confirm your GMC registration status and register entry, then choose one aviation medicine or flying experience route and book an approved Basic Course in Aviation Medicine
- If you are applying for Class 2: request the Proposed Location Form from the CAA's AME support contact, prepare your premises and facilities form, and budget separately for the CAA charges and the Aeromedical Centre's training fee
- If you hold Class 2 and want Class 1: count your UK CAA Class 2 examinations over the last 3 years against the 30 minimum and book the Advanced Course or confirm your diploma or master's qualifies
- If you are close to applying for Class 1: confirm your mandatory training status, prepare for the CAA audit at your premises, and ask the CAA for current Class 1 Upgrade Examination arrangements
- If you already hold Class 1: track your annual 10 CPD hours on the AME e-learning platform and plan for the examination-volume increase from 2027
Official sources: Guidance on AME Certification | UK Civil Aviation Authority — caa.co.uk aeromedical section, certification, training and policy
Official sources
Facts checked against CAA sources retrieved September 2026: