The aviation register, in the public mind, is the register of aircraft. It is also the register of pilots, of mechanics, of instructors, of medical examiners, and of the various ground-based personnel whose certification is part of the aviation system. The records sit alongside one another, accessible to anyone who knows the right query.

A pilot's licence record includes the type of licence, the ratings held (the categories of aircraft the pilot is qualified to fly), the date of initial issue, the date of most recent medical examination, and any restrictions or limitations. The address on file is, in many jurisdictions, public. The flight hours, while not always disclosed in the public record, are recorded in the regulator's file and can be inferred from the ratings held.

Type ratings (the qualifications for specific aircraft models) are a clear signal of what kind of pilot a person is. A type rating for a large jet implies a different experience than a type rating for a single-engine piston aircraft. A reader who notes the type ratings on a pilot's record is, in effect, reading a partial career history.

For a private pilot who also owns the aircraft they fly, the records are linked through the aircraft registration: the registered owner, the addresses, and the maintenance organisation appear on one record, the pilot's qualifications on another, and the connection between them is straightforward to make.

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The desk reads aviation records as part of the ordinary picture available about a client whose life involves aviation. The reading is non-investigative; the records are public to anyone who knows where to look.