There are three categories of initial membership
Why Become A Member
- Master Air Pilot/Navigator Certificates
- Guild Publications
- Honorary Medical Advisers
- Honorary Chaplains
- Legal Advice
- Technical Advice
- Assistance in Distress
Associate
Be engaged in training to become a professional pilot or navigator or the holder of a PPL or equivalent with less than two years experience or be under 35 years of age.
Freeman
Similar qualifications as an Upper Freeman but with less than five years experience or a private pilot with two years experience and a minimum of 75 hours.
Any other person who, in the opinion of Court, has rendered or may render outstanding service to the profession or to the Guild.
Upper Freeman
A professional pilot or navigator, military, civil or test pilot, with five or more years experience.
* Equivalent experience in a glider, hang glider, balloon, microlight or airship is acceptable. In accordance with the By-Laws of the Honourable Company, Associate members are required to submit an annual report in order to enable the Honourable Company to monitor eligibility of Associates for election as Freemen and to furnish up-to-date information on their flying progress so that appropriate professional advice can be given. A completed copy of this report form is to be submitted to the Clerk annually.
The Livery
This is limited by statute to 600 and is conferred by the Court on persons who have contributed significantly to aviation or the Guild. Liverymen are required to have the Freedom of the City of London. Any Freeman can apply for this privilege, it is not necessary to be invited to the Livery.
NOTE: Prior to becoming a Liveryman, a member must have obtained the Freedom of the City of London. A member need not wait until an invitation to take the Livery has been extended – any member may become ‘Free of the City’. It is a relatively simple process for those UK based, but since two visits to the Chamberlain’s Court at Guildhall are required, it may be a little more difficult for those based overseas. Members living overseas may ask the Honourable Company office to make the first visit. The second visit entails a delightful ceremony in the Chamberlain’s Court, a procedure which it is believed dates back to the 13th Century.
The medieval term ‘freeman’ meant someone who was not the property of a feudal lord, but enjoyed privileges such as the right to earn money and own land. Town dwellers who were protected by the charter of their town or city were often free – hence the term ‘freedom of the City’.