Matt13C
Well-Known Member
Joe,
I agree with much of what you posted, however, I have to disagree with your post in regards to the words I've underlined above. The right seater may not legally log this time, even as PIC. He was not the sole manipulator of the controls.
It sounds like you're saying the two pilots would decide who is going to log PIC, and then the other may not. Maybe it was just the way you worded it, but it's not a matter of if the left seater or if the right seater logs the PIC. The left seater logs it and the right seater does not. Even if the right seater logs the PIC, the left seater may log it as well. Not because they are both allowed to, but because the left seater is entitled to, even if the right seater logs it incorrectly (illegally).
The right seater is the ACTING PIC, they are responsible for the safety of the flight and if anything happens it is they who will get in trouble. They filed the IFR plan under their name. The left seater, while the sole manipulator, cannot be the acting PIC on such a flight, they are not rated for it. So the right seater is and therefore should log PIC time.
The left seater is the sole manipulator but he is not a required crew member for the flight, so he can not log PIC as per 61.51.
e) Logging pilot-in-command flight time. (1) A recreational, private, or commercial pilot may log pilot-in- command time only for that flight time during which that person --
(i) Is the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft for which the pilot is rated;
(ii) Is the sole occupant of the aircraft; or (iii) Except for a recreational pilot, is acting as pilot in command of an aircraft on which more than one pilot is required under the type certification of the aircraft or the regulations under which the flight is conducted.
To get around, the left seater could put the hood on and keep it on regardless of IMC or VMC. Then the right seater is both acting PIC and safety pilot, the left seater can log the PIC as sole manipulator as more than one pilot is required. I also think the safety pilot can log the time as actual, since those are the conditions that existed, just as he would log the night time if he was safety piloting during a night flight.
The only problem I see with that is who counts the XC time? If the flight is conducted fully in the IFR system, but the left seater does the take-offs and landings, can either log the XC time? The right seater is the acting PIC but he did not perform the landing. The left seater is the sole manipulator of the controls but is not a required crew member when not under the hood, so he cant log the PIC time, so does the landing count for him either?
....and so the discussion continues.