Oh please, you're the one saying the FAA can go after someone because SOMEONE ELSE didn't log something that they aren't even required to log in the first place. If anyone here needs to be educated on the FARs, it's you.
Scenario: Joe Pilot attends a professional pilot program at Big Time University to obtain a degree in aviation management. During his senior year he decides to get his private pilot license. As far as he's concerned, he completed all the experience requirements for private pilot in airplanes per 61.109(a). It's at the end of his senior year and his instructor says he's completed the requirements. But, since the school year is over and he has to leave, he's told he can go to a local instructor at home and get ready for his checkride since he needed to brush up a little anyway.
He came to me. The first thing we do is audit his log book for experience requirements. We find he's short .3 hours in hood time and .7 of night flight. We also find there is no proof he ever attended ground training, either in class or individually with an instructor. It gets worse. The accumulated night flight was spread among four log entries for a total of 2.3 hours of night flight. The hood time was spread over seventeen separate flights for a total of 2.7 hours of hood time.
He tells me he knows he did a lot more night flight than that and certainly had more hood time than that. So, let's say he goes into his log and adds that time he knows he has already flown. But, there's a problem. If he puts in on a new line, it's done without an instructor's signature to certify that training took place. If he modifies an existing line, he's altering a legal record of flight experience.
There's nothing to back up that experience but his word and those instructors are no where to be found, or at least not easily or cheaply. He certainly cannot submit that log on his checkride as it would be insufficient to meet the requirements. Beside that, I won't endorse him for a checkride without those requirements met and properly certified. If I did, I'll be the one to get chewed on by a DPE or inspector.
If he makes a non-certified entry or modifies an existing line, he's violating 61.59(a)(2). His chance for a ticket goes out the window for years or possibly forever.
Even if there is an entry in line with other experience and is not certified (signed) by the instructor giving that training, it will be disallowed to meet experience requirements. Again, the student is held accountable.
Students should let the instructors make the entries and stand there until they are done. In many cases, the student is left to fill out the log after which the instructor reviews it then signs. Had all the entries been made by the student and one was left unsigned by the instructor, sadly the student pays for the lack of the instructor's signature.
That log book is your personal record of flights for purposes of experience and currency. It is entirely your responsibility to insure its accuracy and full completion of all aspects of that flight lesson, flight review, IPC or any procedure done for the purpose of currency.
The only way the instructor is responsible is if he intentionally writes a false amount of flight time such as indicating night flight training that did not take place or if he inscribes ground instruction that did not take place or some other type of training, any of which must be followed by the instructor's signature. That signature and CFI number attests to the accuracy and truthfulness of the entry. Upon such an entry, the instructor is then in violation of 61.59(a)(2). His ticket to teach is forever toast along with his pilot certificate.
Short of what I described in that last paragraph, I'm confused why the student would not be held accountable. The next time you go for a new certificate or rating, take a look at Section V on the 8710. You "certify" that all information on that form "are complete and true." That includes Section III just above it which is your experience requirements... which is based on your log book.
As for that student, we did a night cross country flight of about 2 1/2 hours, more than half of which was under the hood. His experience requirements were then complete and could be legally indicated as such in his log book. He gained a significant amount of experience and skill in VOR tracking. Furthermore, all of it was a true cross country experience from scratch rather than the cookie cutter cross countries that school's students did for every flight, both dual and solo.
