Canadian AME Licensing Guides
Free, factual explanations of Canadian Aircraft Maintenance Engineer licensing — written independently by PassCARs and referenced against official Transport Canada publications throughout.
Licensing
How to Become an AME in Canada: The Full Path
Training, experience, and examinations are three separate requirements that all have to come together — here is how the path actually works, end to end.
Canadian AME Licence: A Complete Overview
What the licence actually authorizes, the five rating categories, and how Transport Canada structures the credential.
M1 vs M2: Understanding the Two Canadian AME Mechanical Ratings
The two mechanical AME ratings are defined by aircraft type, not by seniority — here is exactly how Transport Canada draws the line.
AME E Licence Guide: Electronic Systems Rating
The E rating covers aircraft electronic systems specifically — separate from, and independent of, the mechanical M1/M2 ratings.
AME S Licence Guide: Structures Rating
The S rating covers aircraft structural maintenance and repair specifically — with its own, shorter experience path than the other ratings.
AME Apprenticeship in Canada: How the On-the-Job Path Works
Not everyone goes through a full-time college program first — here is how building your licence through on-the-job apprenticeship actually works.
Who Can Sign a Maintenance Release in Canada?
Holding an AME licence is necessary but often not sufficient — the CARs attach several separate conditions to the authority to sign.
CAR 571.11 Type-Training Requirements for Canadian AMEs
An appropriate AME rating alone does not establish authority to sign every maintenance release — for transport category aeroplanes and turbine-powered helicopters, CAR 571.11(4) adds a separate, additional condition.
What Is Elementary Work Under the Canadian Aviation Regulations?
A narrow, exhaustively itemized category of maintenance that needs no maintenance release — but only for the exact tasks listed, performed by one of a limited set of authorized persons.
Exams
The AME Regulatory Exam: What It Tests and How It's Scored
The regulatory exam tests the CARs framework itself — the "what and why" of aircraft maintenance regulation, separate from rating-specific technical knowledge.
AME Technical Exams: What They Cover by Rating
Technical exams test the "how" — the rating-specific systems knowledge — and Transport Canada publishes an official study guide for exactly what they may cover.
AME Practice Questions: How to Use Them Effectively
Practice questions are one tool in AME exam prep, not a substitute for understanding the material — here is how to use them well.
AME Exam Preparation in Canada: How to Study for the Transport Canada Exams
What the Transport Canada AME exams actually test, how they're scored, and a practical approach to studying for them.
Experience & Logbook
AME Experience Requirements: What Counts and How Much You Need
Experience requirements aren't one number — they're several categories tracked separately, and not all maintenance work counts equally toward each one.
CARs Standard 566 Explained: The Rulebook Behind Your AME Licence
The standard that sets out exactly what Transport Canada requires before you can hold an AME licence — in plain language.
CARs Standard 566, Appendix A: The Table of Requirements
Appendix A is where the specific numbers for your rating actually live — here is how to read the table correctly.
CARs Standard 566, Appendix B: The Maintenance Task List
Appendix B is the specific list of maintenance tasks your logged experience needs to demonstrate — organized by ATA chapter, with a 70% completion threshold.
The AME Logbook: Documenting Maintenance Experience for Transport Canada
Your maintenance experience only counts toward licensing if it is documented the way Transport Canada requires — here is what that actually means.
Reference
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