Logging XC Time
- Tizi
- 5 hours ago
- 9 min read
"................" Student after reading the FARs
Maintaining a correct logbook is part of your pilot duties. Statistically, logbook fraud and falsification of records are among the most common pilot "crimes". It's not just a matter of legality: it's a matter of integrity. Logging cross country time may be rather confusing for many new (and seasoned) pilots. This article aims at breaking things down to a digestible manner. Hopefully, you won't read this and be more confused than before (well, it's likely, actually).
WARNING
This is not legal counsel.
Consider this academic guidance only.
For absolute answers, buy AOPA Pilot Protection Services.
Definitions
There are a few definitions we need to discuss to tackle this topic appropriately.
Cross -Country. A cross-country flight is any flight conducted by a pilot where you fly from a point to a different point (and land) using appropriate navigation techniques. Of note, there is no distance requirement. This is covered in 14 CFR 61.1
Cross-Country for the purposes of meeting the aeronautical experience for a particular certificate and/or rating. The FAA determined that pilots ought to be trained on conducting longer flights, where actual planning is necessary. As such, they added to the definitino of cross-country, in 61.1 via paragraphs (ii) through (vii), making it more challening. The baseline is the addition of a minimum distance of 50 NM.
Private / Instrument / Commercial Pilot. Paragraph (ii) specifically deals with PPL, IFR, and CPL. It specifies that in addition to the main definition above, you must land at a point greater than 50 NM straight line distance from the original point of departure.
Airline Transport Pilot. Paragraph (vi) deals specifically with ATPs. The regulation removes the need to execute a landing. This is particular beneficial for flight instructors who may be flying cross-countries with their students but don't physically land the plane. This doesn't even require a destination. You could fly for 51 NM in any direction and come back and log it as cross-country. A more realistic situation is a flight from KSAV to KARW and practicing the RNAV 25 approach with the procedure turn at EPOLE (the procedure turn brings you right over 50 NM). That is a legal cross-country for the purposes of ATP aeronautical experience. The challenge is logging it. Your logbook might say KSAV-KARW-KSAV, which is clearly not a 50 NM distance. Some might add in the notes (e.g., 'proc turn at EPOLE >50 NM') to validate their logging. Just remember that logs should be clear and defendable - so do your diligence.
Sport Pilots, Helicopters, Military. Read the regs...
Logging XC in General
In general, you can log cross country time for any flight where you fly from point A to point B. These need to be two distinct locations. The distance is irrelevant per the first definition in the previous section.
So, if you fly takeoff from KSAV and land at KHXD (26 NM direct distance), as shown below, you can log XC time for the duration of that flight.
That being said, logging those flights doesn't help you much. That is why some logbooks will have two columns for cross country: one general and one 'over 50 NM'. Mine doesn't, and I only log flights that are over 50 NM in length. So here's another simple example: KSAV to KVDI. That is a 60 NM straight distance and can be logged as a cross-country in the following ways:
Private Pilot Candidate. The entire flight time, as long as they land the plane.
Instrument Pilot Candidate. The entire flight time, as long as they land the plane.
Commercial Pilot Candidate. The entire flight time, as long as they land the plane.
Airline Transport Pilot Candidate. The entire flight time (don't have to land the plane).
Flights with Multiple Legs
When your flight has multiple legs, logging cross-country time to demonstrate aeronautical experience may be a little more complicated. Remember that the definition calls for a landing at a point more than 50 NM from the original point of departure. This detail "original point of departure" is fundamental. What this means is that I may fly as many legs as I want to, and those legs can be whatever lenght (more or less than 50 NM). I can log cross country as long as any point of landing is more than 50 NM from the original departure airport - even if I don't fly in a straight line to it.
The Original Point of Departure
So here's an example. I fly from point A to point I by hopping on 9 small legs. Why would I do that? I don't know. Who cares. It's just an example. No single leg is greater than 50 NM. However, point F is 51 NM from my original point of departure, A. As such, this constitutes as a cross country flight, and I can log the entire flight: the entire flight time it takes me to go from point A to point I. Again, this is only valid because point F is more than a straight line distance of 50 NM from my original point of departure. This case is clearly defined in the FAA letter of interpretation to Sisk (2008).
Flights vs. Legs & Repositioning Flights
My IFR student Josh asked me what constitutes a flight vs. a leg. For example, if I fly from KSAV to KATL, refuel and have lunch, and then fly back an hour later, is that a single flight comprised of two legs or is that actually two independent flights? The FAA clarifies that the pilot can choose how to administratively log their flights. The legal interpretation to Van Zanen (2009) covers a situation where a pilot flies multiple legs for different purposes. The pilot has the liberty to choose how to log those.
This topic becomes of interest because your original point of departure (i.e., your first leg) matters when determining if a flight can be logged as cross-country. So here's an example. In the case below, the original point of departure is A. As you can see, no point of landing in this flight is greater than 50NM from the original point of departure, A. As such, this flight cannot be logged as cross-country, even if the distance from B to C is 51 NM.
But here's the loophole. Per Van Zanen (2009), I could call flight A to B an independent flight, and then B to C to A a separate flight with two legs. If I do that, you can consider the flight from A to B a "repositioning flight" and I can then begin logging the flight time from B to C to A as cross-country, because B now becomes the new original point of departure and C is more than 50 NM from it. Since the leg C to A is part of that flight, it can be considered cross-country flight time as well. This specific case is described in the letter of interpretation to Glenn (2009). The new flight can be therefore re-interpreted and logged as shown, below:
Specific Required Training Flights
All cross countries might abide by the definitions covered in previous sections. However, don't forget that the aeronautical experience requirements to acquire a new rating or certificate have additional requirements. I will provide you here with the highlights for the "long cross country" flights required for each certificate/rating. But please note that there exist other cross country required flights that you need to look at. Those are however simpler, so I won't cover them.
PRIVATE PILOT CANDIDATES
14 CFR 61.109(a)(5)(ii), which covers the solo long cross country for private pilot candidates, clearly states that there must be a leg in the flight that is more than 50 NM in length:
Paragraph (ii) stipulates that the solo cross-cross country must:
be at least 150 NM total distance;
have three airports where the student will land at;
one segment (i.e., leg) must be greater than 50 NM.
Those requirements are in addition to those specified in 14 CFR 61.1. That means that I need to have a point of landing that is more than 50 NM from the original point of departure and I must also have a leg that is more than 50 NM.
Here are two flights that DO NOT MEET THE REQUIREMENTS.
This first flight is the one proposed in the previous section concerning multiple legs. This particular flight meets the definition of 14 CFR 61.1 but not the definition of 14 CFR 61.109(a)(5)(ii). So even though it can be logged as cross-country time, it cannot be used for the solo long cross country required to receive your private pilot certificate.
This second scenario is a common flight erroneously logged as cross country. In this case, the pilot flies from Point A to point B, which is 40 NM west, and then from B to C, which is 80 NM east, and then back to A, 40 NM west. It has three landings and one leg is greater than 50 NM. The total distance is 160 NM. This flight complies with 14 CFR 61.109(a)(5)(ii), but not with 14 CFR 61.1, since the point of origin (A), does not have any points of landing greater than 50 NM away from it. If you wanted, you could only log cross-country for the portion of the flight from B to C to A (120 NM) if you consider leg A to B as a repositioning flight. But in that case, the flight could not be used as the solo long cross-country flight.
INSTRUMENT RATING CANDIDATES - PART 61
The instrument rating requires a "long cross country" as well, described in 14 CFR 61.65. The regulations specify that the flight must be at least 250 NM total distance:
Since you cannot anticipate routing by ATC, you should plan the flight based on the direct distance between the airports. For example, KSAV-KCAE-KCHS-KSAV. The total distance is 266 NM. Don't forget that there is no minimum leg distance in this requirement. The only other consideration you must do is that to be a cross country, it has to abide by 14 CFR 61.1. Therefore, you must land at one of these airports whic is more than 50 NM away from the original point of departure.
INSTRUMENT RATING CANDIDATES - PART 141
For IFR candidates under part 141, the long cross country is slightly different, as defined in Appendix C of part 141. The regulations require that of the 250 NM flight, at least one leg be a straight line distance of more than 100 NM.
In the case of our flight KSAV-KCAE-KCHS-KSAV, the distance between KSAV and KCAE is 109 NM, making it a good cross country flight.
COMMERCIAL PILOT CANDIDATES
Commercial pilot candidates also need to conduct a long cross country flight, described in 14 CFR 61.129.
This regulations provides two additional requirements to the basic definition from 14 CFR 61.1. It first requires a total distance of 300 NM. So you must find at least three airports to land at, and the distance in betewen them must be at least 300 NM. Moreover, one of these points must be at least 250 NM away from the original departure point. Note that this last addition supersedes the minimum 50 NM defined in 14 CFR 61.1. My long cross country was, for example, KSAV-KCHA-KCHS-KSAV (628 NM total distance). I was in a small A152, so I refueled along the way. CHA is more than 250 NM away from SAV (my origin), and the total flight is clearly over 300 NM.
Logging XC with a required Crew Member
In my article on logging Pilot in Command time, I touched on the topic of cross country when two pilots fly together as required crew members. Let me provide further details.
Two pilots fly together on a cross-country. One of them wears the foggles (i.e., simulated instrument), and the other pilot acts as safety pilot (i.e., required crew member). Per FAR 91.109, both can log PIC time. Ok, but who can log cross-country time? Well, only one can, and it must be who conducts the entire flight (i.e., takes off, cruises, and lands). This is covered by the legal interpretation to Gebhart (2009). So, on a 3 hour flight from KSAV to KMIA, the following breakdown could be hypothesized (boo boo numbers to give the idea).
Pilot A (sim IFR) | Pilot B (safety pilot) | |
Total Time | 3.0 | 2.5 |
PIC Time | 3.0 | 2.5 |
Cross Country Time | 3.0 | 0 |
The idea of the cross country time is to note experience conducting a long, complex flight. That can only be accomplished by the pilot "flying the airplane" the entire time: the sole manipulator of the controls. The safety pilot can log PIC and total time for the portion of the flight where pilot A was under the hood (it must be less than the total time, else it's called cheating).
Furthermore, the legal interpretation to Hilliard (2009) covers another intersting hypothetical where two pilots flying on a cross country flight exchange controls back and forth. Who can log what, then? Well, if we want to be literal, then each can log total and PIC time for portion of the flight they were at the controls. Neither can log cross-country, as neither truly flew the entire flight. My personal belief is that the FAA did not consider small cases where controls may be exchanged for the brief moment of - for example - calming the kids in the back, grabbing a water bottle, or changing batteries in your headset. As such, be reasonable and ethical. Integrity is a big part of being a pilot - and you are required to have a good moral character to earn your ATP.
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