Hello,
supposing two people, A and B, with current PPLs are in a C172. Total flight time is 01:00 and A acts as PIC for 00:50 while B acts as PIC for 00:10.
Pilot’s A logbook says 00:50 everywhere while pilot’s B logbook says 00:10 everywhere
or
pilot’s A says 01:00 total and 00:50 PIC while pilot’s B says 01:00 total and 00:10 PIC?
What happens if A and B change PIC “titles” every 5 minutes?
A 172 is a single-pilot a/c. Therefore whoever is not acting as PIC cannot write the time. In your scenario (two PPLs, no instruction involved) the correct logbook entries are:
Pilot A: 00:50
Pilot B: 00:10
Obviously, this looks different in a multi-crew airplane.
Thank you, this makes sense, but how would they write down the actual UTC times (departure – arrival) in their logbooks? It would look funny if pilot’s B logbook said departure 05:00Z, arrival 06:00Z and total time/PIC time 00:10.
And what would happen if PIC responsibilities change frequently during the flight?
And what would happen if PIC responsibilities change frequently during the flight?
I don’t know how it is regulated in Greece, but in my part of the world, the pilot in command is nominated by the operator of the aeroplane. If no one has been nominated, then the pilot occupying the seat of the pilot in command (in fixed wing aircraft usually the left hand seat) is PIC for the entire flight. Who actually handles the controls (i.e. acts as “pilot flying”) is irrelevant in this respect. The time you write in your logbook is your PIC time, not your “pilot flying” time (training and multicrew flying apart).
A 172 is a single-pilot a/c. Therefore whoever is not acting as PIC cannot write the time.
I can only speak for Austria, but here things are different: The local CAA made it clear some years ago that also in a single pilot a/c, you can log P2 time.
Otherwise, the already minimal flying hours of many “average” privat pilots would have been halfed, provided they log their times honestly …
Of course, 172drivers’ statement, as made above, was wrong. And still: it keeps on coming up in each and every forum thread about logging flight hours.
Many CAAs mandate two pilots for IFR flight (in some cases: unless…).
Also, if a student pilot couldn’t log his hours, he would never be admitted to the check flight …;-)
No, Bosco, it’s not wrong. The OP’s scenario is two PPLs (no instruction) in a single-crew airplane. Only one pilot can log the flight, although who that is can change during the flight. If Germany and Austria have different rules, fine. How that works under EASA I don’t know.
PS: AFAIK there is one exception to this. If the PIC has a medical condition and has an endorsement that he/she can only fly with a safety pilot, then the P2 can log the hours as such.
Thank you, this makes sense, but how would they write down the actual UTC times (departure – arrival) in their logbooks? It would look funny if pilot’s B logbook said departure 05:00Z, arrival 06:00Z and total time/PIC time 00:10.
I wouldn’t worry about it, I don’t think anyone is going to compare two peoples log books. I often fly with another PPL and if say on a 2 hour flight, I flew between 1700 – 1745’ then 1845 – 1900, then in our logbooks we split it 50/50 and I might log 1700-1800 and the other guy logs 1800-1900. I don’t even bother saying I did one take off and no landing (if for example I was in the LH seat, and the other guy landed from the RH seat.
If there was some kind of incident (airpsace bust, then I would be extremely precise with my time as PIC if it was the other guy who did it ;-)
How that works under EASA I don’t know.
Logging of flight time is regulated according “AMC to FCL.050” in this document here: http://www.easa.europa.eu/system/files/dfu/rulemaking-docs-npa-2008-NPA-2008-17b.pdf
And the (German) national regulation regarding who is PIC on a flight can be found in paragraph 2 Luftverkehrsordnung (http://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/luftvo/__2.html). National regulations beat EASA, so every pilot should be familiar with his local regulations. Swapping the role of PIC during a flight should not be possible under any regulation because it would create a “legal vacuum” regarding responsibility. If I see that something is going wrong, I shout “You are in command” and the bill is on you… This is not the way it works. Nowhere.
To answer the original Q – no reason why you could not do that.
Nobody is going to compare the two logbooks and if they did, the explanation is reasonable.
It would be highly unusual however to interleave the PIC duty in that way 
I am surprised any European country allows P2 logging in the 2 x PPL scenario. But hey this just shows how much variation there is across Europe.
Incidentally you can log anything you like in your logbook. It is your logbook, not the CAA’s. The only issue is whether the logged time is admissible towards some license or a rating which you are seeking. I know a guy, UK PPL but long lapsed, who logs passenger time, for sentimental reasons. You could log the time you spend eating your burger after a flight. It is all 100% legal. It would be illegal only if you logged it as PIC or whatever.
