In both a practical and legal sense, only one pilot may act as PIC for any given flight. However, there are situations where a pilot can log PIC time while not acting as pilot in command. “One of the biggest issues when considering PIC time is that in order to understand it, you have to look across multiple regulations in 14 CFR parts 1, 61, and 91,” explains Allan Kash, an Aviation Safety Inspector (ASI) with the Flight Standards General Aviation and Commercial Division. To understand when you can log PIC time, you also need to understand how and why the FAA requires pilots to log flight time. For FAA purposes, a pilot is required to log certain flight time primarily to qualify for or maintain an airman certificate or rating.
Inspector Kash elaborated, “The next big issue is that the requirements . . .
Coutesy of: November/December 2016 issue of FAA Safety Briefing magazine