"David Brooks" wrote
I was referring to the contradiction between the preamble comments and the
actual text of the rule. They can't both be authoritative, and I was working
on the belief the rule overrides its own commentary

Well, not really. In any case, it no longer matters. I understand
now why the TSA decided to handle it that way - they're actually doing
us a favor. By your reading of the rule, BFR's and IPC's would be
Category 4. But by the TSA interpretation, they're not in any
category and require no paperwork, be it for citizens OR aliens.

Well, in a legal sense they are telling us what it means. Less kind
observers will say they are just plain changing the rule, wholesale, with
zero comment period.

You could say that - but in reality, all they are doing is narrowing
the scope of the rule. Our story so far:

A candidate is someone who APPLIES for flight training - so those who
have already started training are exempt.

TRAINING only covers what you need for a certificate or rating - so
BFR's, IPC's, aircraft checkouts, and just regular brushup trainign
with a CFI is exempt.

So yes, they're changing the rule - but always in our favor.

Now if I were an alien looking to get flight training, I would be
pretty unhappy - since these rulings are going to make most of the
opposition to the rule disappear.

Divide and conquer...

Michael