Flight Crew Licensing — Page 72, Lesson 120

Let’s start with the definitions, because these are the exact terms you’ll see on your licence and in every logbook entry you ever make. I’m going to walk you through them one by one, in the order they appear. First, Dual Instruction Time. This is flight time during which a person is receiving flight instruction from a properly authorized pilot on board the aircraft. So the key here is that there’s an instructor on board, and that instructor is properly authorized — meaning they hold the appropriate instructor rating. And the time counts for the person receiving the instruction, not the instructor giving it. Next, Instrument Flight Time. This is time during which a pilot is piloting an aircraft solely by reference to instruments and without external reference points. The word solely is critical. You are flying the aircraft using only the instrument panel — no looking outside, no horizon, no ground references. If you glance out the window and use a visual reference, that time is no longer instrument flight time. Now the big one: Flight Time. This is the total time from the moment an aircraft first moves under its own power for the purpose of taking off, until it comes to rest at the end of the flight. It’s synonymous with ‘block to block’ or ‘chock to chock’. So the clock starts the moment the aircraft starts moving under its own power — that’s the moment the chocks are pulled and the brakes are released — and it stops when the aircraft comes to rest at the end of the flight, when the chocks go back in. Notice the phrase for the purpose of taking off. If you’re taxiing for maintenance, that’s not flight time. But if you’re taxiing out to the runway to depart, that counts. Then we have Instrument Ground Time. This is time during which a pilot is practising, on the ground, simulated instrument flight in a flight simulation training device approved by the Licensing Authority. So you’re not in the air — you’re in a simulator on the ground — but you’re practising instrument flying, and crucially, that simulator must be approved by the Licensing Authority. Not just any device counts. And then Instrument Time is simply the sum of the two: instrument flight time or instrument ground time. So whenever you see ‘instrument time’ on a form, it means either of those two, whichever applies. Next, Rating. This is an authorization entered on or associated with a licence and forming part thereof, stating special conditions, privileges or limitations pertaining to such a licence. So a rating is not a separate document — it’s written onto your licence, or attached to it, and it tells you what you’re allowed to do, or what conditions or limits apply. For example, a type rating says you’re qualified on a particular aircraft type. That’s a privilege. A limitation might say you can only fly by day. That’s a limitation. Now, Synthetic Flight Trainer. This is a broad term covering any one of three types of apparatus in which flight conditions are simulated on the ground. And I want you to remember these three, because they’re distinct. The first is the Flight Simulator. This provides an accurate representation of the flight deck of a particular aircraft type — so it’s type-specific. It’s accurate to the extent that the mechanical, electrical, electronic, etc. aircraft systems control functions, the normal environment of flight crew members, and the performance and flight characteristics of that type of aircraft are realistically simulated. So a full flight simulator replicates the actual cockpit of, say, a Boeing 737, including how the systems respond and how the aircraft handles. The second is the Flight Procedures Trainer. This provides a realistic flight deck environment and simulates instrument responses, simple control functions of mechanical, electrical, electronic, etc. aircraft systems, and the performance and flight characteristics of aircraft of a particular class. Notice the difference — the full Flight Simulator is for a type, but the Flight Procedures Trainer is for a class. It’s less detailed. It gives you a realistic environment and instrument responses, but the systems are simpler, and it represents a class of aircraft rather than one specific type. The third is the Basic Instrument Flight Trainer. This is equipped with appropriate instruments, and it simulates the flight deck environment of an aircraft in flight in instrument flight conditions. So this is the simplest one — it’s basically a cockpit with instruments that lets you practise instrument flying, but it doesn’t have the full systems simulation of the other two. So remember the hierarchy: Flight Simulator is type-specific and fully realistic; Flight Procedures Trainer is class-specific and simpler; Basic Instrument Flight Trainer is just instruments for practising instrument flight. Now let’s move to the general rules concerning licensing. Authority to Act as Flight Crew. This is the fundamental rule. A person shall not act as a flight crew member of an aircraft unless a valid licence is held showing compliance with the specifications of Annex 1 and appropriate to the duties to be performed by that person. So you cannot sit in the crew seat and perform crew duties without a valid licence. That licence must comply with Annex 1 — that’s Annex 1 to the Chicago Convention, which sets the international standards for personnel licensing. And the licence must be appropriate to the duties you’re performing — you can’t act as a pilot if you only hold an engineer’s licence. Then there’s the question of who issues it. The licence shall have been issued by the State of Registry of that aircraft, or by any other Contracting State, and rendered valid by the State of Registry of that aircraft. So there are two steps. The licence is issued by a state — either the state where the aircraft is registered, or another Contracting State. But then it must be rendered valid by the State of Registry. That means the state where the aircraft is registered has to validate it — essentially endorse it — before you can use it on that aircraft. So issuance and validation are two separate acts. Finally, Re-issue of a JAA Licence. The period of validity of a JAA licence is 5 years. Within this period, the licence will be re-issued by the appropriate JAA authority under the following conditions. And there are four conditions. First, after initial issue or renewal of a rating. Second, when paragraph xii of the licence document is full — that’s the section where ratings and endorsements are recorded, and when it runs out of space, you need a new licence. Third, for any administrative reason. And fourth, at the discretion of the JAA member State Authority when a rating is revalidated. So the licence itself is valid for five years, but it gets re-issued — a fresh document — whenever one of those four triggers happens. Let me just recap the key numbers and distinctions so they stick. Flight time is block to block — from first movement under own power for take-off to coming to rest. Instrument time is either instrument flight time or instrument ground time. The three synthetic trainers are the Flight Simulator, the Flight Procedures Trainer, and the Basic Instrument Flight Trainer. And the licence rule is: valid licence, compliant with Annex 1, appropriate to your duties, issued by the State of Registry or another Contracting State, and rendered valid by the State of Registry. JAA licence validity is five years, with re-issue under those four conditions. That’s the full set of definitions and the general licensing rules. Take a moment to let those settle — especially the distinction between the three synthetic trainers, because that’s a classic point of confusion.