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4 Answers

Sample Logbook Entry for PIC/Safety Pilot

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FAA Regulations, Private Pilot

Hey All,

So I'm adding to the very confusing discussion about logging PIC time while acting as a safety pilot.  For simplicity, my scenario and assumptions are for two private pilots with a ASEL rating, no CFI or anything else. My main question is how do the two pilots log the time in their logbook to be able to count towards a future rating. Sorry if this is a copy of another question.  

My scenario involves two private pilots (Adam and Ben) who are going on a two hour cross country flight (over 50 NM away).  Adam is going to be the PIC on the way to the destination and conduct simulated instrument training while Ben is the safety pilot.  The total flight duration is two hours with one hour of simulated instrument time.  On the return flight, Adam and Ben switch roles so Ben is the PIC on the return and conduct the simulated instrument training while Adam is the safety pilot. 

My understanding of how to log the time:

  • Only one of the two pilots is the sole operator and is able to log the cross country, PIC, and total duration time. 
  • If the sole operator does simulated instrument training under the hood, then they require a safety observer.  During this time period, and only this time period, can the other pilot also log PIC time.  However, since they are not conducting the takeoff or landing, they do not get the cross country time. 
  • Once the sole operator stops operating under the hood, the safety observer is no longer required and therefore no longer logging any time.
  • When the flight is completed, the sole operator logs the entire flight duration, cross country,  PIC, sim instrument, and SEL times.  The safety pilot only logs PIC time during the portion of the flight with sim instrument. 

 

With my understanding above, would the below example of a logbook entry (top two are Adam and bottom two are Ben) be correct? 

  Remarks and Endorsements Nr TO Nr LDG Aircraft Category And Class Conditions of Flight Type of Piloting Time Total Duration
Pilot SEL MEL Night Act Inst Sim Inst Cross Country PIC
Adam Flew with Ben as my safety pilot 1 1 2 0             1 0 2 0 2 0 2 0
Adam Flew with Ben as their safety pilot 0 0 1 0                     1 0 1 0
                                       
Ben Flew with Adam as their safety pilot 0 0 1 0                     1 0 1 0
Ben Flew with Adam as my safety pilot 1 1 2 0             1 0 2 0 2 0 2 0


Thank you for any assistance you can provide.  

 

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4 Answers



  1. KDS on Sep 21, 2017

    Again, I’m sorry for not being able to give you a reference, but here is how I understand the rules to be:

    Your interpretation is correct, EXCEPT that if the safety pilot is not the actual PIC (i.e. acting as PIC), then that person can only log SIC time when the PIC is under the hood. If the safety pilot is in fact the PIC, then they can log PIC time while the other pilot is under the hood.

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  2. SFGiants21256 on Sep 22, 2017

    Thanks for the help.

    So if the safety pilot is PIC and can log that time, while the other pilot is under the hood, what does the other pilot log?

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  3. John Scarry on Sep 22, 2017

    As mentioned in another thread, “SIC is for required multi-pilot operations. Since you were a required crewmember in order for that flight to take place (ie: He would not have been legal to fly without you in the aircraft), therefore you log that as PIC. ” So you cannot log SIC time in an aircraft that only required one pilot. The FAA makes this clear in the Gebhart (2009) legal interpretation. Note 61.51(e) covers logging PIC time—not SIC time.

    Section 61.51(e) governs the logging of PIC time and states, in relevant part, that a sport, recreational, private, or commercial pilot may log PIC time for the time during which that pilot is “the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft for which the pilot is rated or has privileges” or “acting as pilot in command of an aircraft on which more than one pilot is required under … the regulations under which the flight is conducted.”

    In your example, Pilot A may log the entire flight (2.2 hours) of PIC flight time because that pilot was the sole manipulator of the controls for the entire flight. Pilot B may log the portion of the flight during which Pilot A operated in simulated instrument flight and Pilot B acted as the safety pilot (2.0 hours) because Pilot B was a required flight crewmember for that portion of the flight under 14 C.F.R. § 91.109(b).

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  4. KDS on Sep 24, 2017

    The answer to your question of “So if the safety pilot is PIC and can log that time, while the other pilot is under the hood, what does the other pilot log?” is that the pilot who is under the hood and the sole manipulator of the controls logs PIC time regardless if they are acting as PIC or not.

    The FAA’s Gebhart legal interpretation of June 22, 2009 states in a much longer fashion what I said when I earlier wrote “If the safety pilot is in fact the PIC, then they can log PIC time while the other pilot is under the hood.” The Gebhart legal interpretation does not address how time is logged if the safety pilot is not acting as PIC. I covered that case when I wrote “Your interpretation is correct, EXCEPT that if the safety pilot is not the actual PIC (i.e. acting as PIC), then that person can only log SIC time when the PIC is under the hood.”

    The following is a cut and paste from an AOPA web site that does an excellent job of explaining it:

    “Second in Command (SIC)

    Second in command (SIC) flight time is a category some pilots find elusive. By regulation, many turbojet and transport category aircraft require two pilots – a PIC and SIC. If you are qualified and sitting in the right seat while flying one of these aircraft, it’s appropriate to ink that flight time in your logbook’s SIC column.

    Even if you’re flying a two- or four-seat trainer certificated for single-pilot operations, you can sometimes log right seat-time as SIC. For example, if you’re flying under FAR Part 135 in an operation that requires two pilots (e.g. IFR in an aircraft with no autopilot), the time is legally logged as SIC. Likewise, a pilot with at least a private pilot certificate and the appropriate category and class ratings can log SIC time when acting as a safety pilot while the other pilot practices instrument flying in VFR conditions. In this circumstance, the safety pilot is required by regulation (FAR 91.109)(b)), and may legally log the time as SIC (FAR 61.51)(f)(2)).

    Safety Pilot

    A safety pilot is required by FAR 91.109(b) when the other pilot is “under the hood.”

    The safety pilot requirements:

    • Must be at least a private pilot. (FAR 91.109[b][1])

    • Must hold the category and class ratings (airplane, single-engine land) for the aircraft flown. (FAR 91.109[b][1])

    • As a required flight crewmember, the safety pilot must have a current medical certificate. (FAR 61.3[c])

    • Must occupy the other control seat (normally, although not required, the right or “copilot’s” seat). (FAR 91.109[b][1])

    Safety pilot logging:

    • Pilot-in-command time may be logged if acting as PIC.
    o The two pilots must agree that the safety pilot is the acting PIC.
    o PIC time may be logged only while the other pilot is “under-the-hood.”
    o PIC time may be logged because FAR 61.51(e)(1)(iii) allows certificated pilots to log PIC when acting as PIC of an aircraft on which more than one pilot is required by the regulations (91.109[b]) under which the flight is conducted. A safety pilot is required for “hood work.”

    • Second-in-command time may be logged if not acting as PIC.
    o Usually the case if the safety pilot cannot act as PIC. An example might be when the safety pilot is not endorsed for the particular airplane (such as in a high-performance aircraft).
    o SIC time may be logged because FAR 61.51(f)(2) allows a pilot to log all flight time during which he acts as second in command of an aircraft under which more than one pilot is required by the regulations (91.109[b]) under which the flight is conducted.”

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