X-Country Question

tehmightypirate

tehmightypirate

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TehMightyPirate
I'm sure cross-country hour questions are answered 20 times each year but don't know how to phrase this one for a google search so I'll take the easy way out and post here.

Trying to build more X-country time for my IFR (50 nm and all that). I'm looking at a flight from A --> B --> A which is less than 50 nm. I'll then be repeating that flight in the afternoon A --> B --> A.

However, if I fly a little farther from A --> C --> B --> A I can rack up some X-country time (C is > 50 nm from A) for my IFR and still accomplish my mission; two birds with one stone.

Now my question is can I log X-country time for the afternoon A --> B --> A flight if I stopped at airport C in the morning?

My thought is that if I flew a complete flight with out parking the plane (bear with me here) from: A --> C --> B --> A --> B --> A then I would log cross-country time for the entire thing as the flight included "a point of landing that is more than 50 nm straight-line distance from the original point of departure" per 14 CFR 61.1(b)(3)(ii)

So the only difference between my "non-stop" flight and my proposed flight is a 10 hour stop at my home airport of A, this doesn't seem to violate the written definition of 14 CFR 61.1(b)(3)(ii) as I'm reading it but doesn't really seem to match the intent of a "flight".

Thoughts?

Edit: To stem the tide of joke answers; I'm not seriously considering logging this because to me a "flight" ends when you stop at your destination. I'm simply wondering what "rule" prevents you from doing this other than common sense.
 
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Of course!
I'm still on my original XC flight and I've been at it for 10 years now. :goofy:
XC doesn't stop until I say it stops!
 
Yeah, yeah. Get it out of your system guys.

I guess what I'm looking for is the definition of a flight? I seriously can't find one that covers this. What constitutes a stop to a flight? Flight time ends when you land but a touch and go doesn't end a flight or how would those round-robin flights count for our cross-country flights during our primary training.

Is it a 10 minute stop? 15 minute gas stop? A 30 minute lunch stop? Or my 8-hour stop? What's the cutoff point?

Yes, I know this is a stupid question. I'm not seriously considering logging this. I should have made it clear this is entirely an academic question.
 
I reread the OP 5 times and can't figure out what you're talking about. g'night.
 
Ron Levy is active on the red board. He would know.

Or PM Rotor & Wing.
 
tehmightypirate said:
What defines the "end of a flight" in regard to cross-country flight experience requirements for IFR flight.
Click to expand...

Honestly, it's up to the pilot. There is nothing that says the flight has to finish the same day. In my logbook any out and back or round robin goes in as one flight.

If you fly A->B->C->A that's all loggable as XC
If you fly A->C->B->A that's all loggable as XC


Now, for me when I've returned to A, that terminates my flight. I would not personally count your A->C->B->A->B->A as one flight.

If you have to ask, you're cheating.
 
AggieMike88 said:
Ron Levy is active on the red board. He would know.

Or PM Rotor & Wing.
Click to expand...

You do realize there are other people here fully capable of answering questions correctly, yes? I mean, I know you got a Ron crush and all...
 
Hypothetically flight? Just log it; no one is gonna care, or do the math. If your log entry shows one freakin' long duration entry that would clearly take you further than fifty miles, figure you met the spirit and intent. Though I seem to remember some reference like"a point greater than. . .et."

Call a couple of FSDOs; one of them will probably give you the answer you want. zno teo of them answer a question the same anyway. . .
 
straight line > 49.99 miles. Land it
 
EdFred said:
Honestly, it's up to the pilot. There is nothing that says the flight has to finish the same day. In my logbook any out and back or round robin goes in as one flight.

If you fly A->B->C->A that's all loggable as XC
If you fly A->C->B->A that's all loggable as XC


Now, for me when I've returned to A, that terminates my flight. I would not personally count your A->C->B->A->B->A as one flight.

If you have to ask, you're cheating.
Click to expand...

Interesting. So there is actually no concrete definition for "end of flight"? I've always treated it as you said, it's cross-country until you hit your home airport (or the airport you started at that day).
 
tehmightypirate said:
Interesting. So there is actually no concrete definition for "end of flight"? I've always treated it as you said, it's cross-country until you hit your home airport (or the airport you started at that day).
Click to expand...

No, there isn't. Even where you started isn't necessarily your original point of departure as the FAA has stated you may relocate and then start from there for XC purposes. I disagree with their stance, but they gave it the OK.

For me, the flight ends when the day is over (I go too sleep) or when I return to wherever I started. I did a 12 day trip that technically could have been all one flight, but I logged each day as a separate flight.
 
Weird, thanks for at least confirming why I wasn't able find an answer to this question because it doesn't appear an official answer exists.
 
tehmightypirate said:
What defines the "end of a flight" in regard to cross-country flight experience requirements for IFR flight.
Click to expand...
As EdFred indicates, Whatever you say it does, within reason. The FAA has even suggested that an overnight stop might not break up the single xc flight.

What's within reason?? :dunno: I heard someone claim all of his flights over the years have been just one xc flight with many stops. That one probably isn't. OTOH, I had no trouble using a 2-day xc as the qualifying flight for my commercial. I diverted for weather overnight before reaching my originally intended destination.
 
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