Your logbook, like any book, is made of paper. Keep Your Logbook in a Controlled Environment It is important to remember that the FAA has clarified that this definition applies as long as there is a continuing “purpose of flight.” In other words, even if the aircraft is delayed after moving under its own power (due to a mechanical or weather-related issue, for example), it will continue to accrue “flight time.”įor a more detailed example of how to log flight time to reduce mistakes, check out this article. What Counts as Flight Time?ġ4 CFR 1.1 defines flight time as “ when an aircraft moves under its own power for the purpose of flight and ends when the aircraft comes to rest after landing.” Some pilots also log decimal hours to two decimal places (e.g., 1 hour 13 minutes = 1.22), making entries more accurate but also more complex.Įngine Hobbs meters also count in decimal hours and are often used to record flight time, particularly when renting aircraft. You will, however, have to perform some mental math or use a calculator when making logbook entries using this format Each decimal hour (0.1) is equal to 6 minutes, which means your flight minutes will have to be divided by 6 to obtain decimal hours (e.g., a flight of one and a half hours (1:30) = 1. Logging flight time in decimal hours is more common and makes the totaling of flight time far more manageable. This time format does make adding time more difficult without the use of a scientific calculator, however. Recording flight time is easy, as flight time is entered in an understandable time format (e.g., a flight of one and a half hours is entered as 1:30). Logging flight time in hours and minutes is somewhat deprecated and less commonly used today.ĭespite this, it has its advantages. Decimal Hours (e.g., 1.3 = one hour and eighteen minutes).Hours and Minutes (e.g., 1:18 = one hour and eighteen minutes).There are two accepted formats for logging flight time: When using a logbook for the first time, one of the first things that you need to decide is the format you will use to log time. By applying the few basic rules in this article, you will ensure that your logbook stays pristine and professional for the rest of your aviation journey. If you have more experience, your logbook can quickly (if it hasn’t already) spiral out of control and become a mess of corrections, dissimilar text, and worse of all – errors. If you’ve just begun your aviation journey, the pilot logbook can seem intimidating with all of its columns, rows, and acronyms. The pilot logbook is far more than a timekeeping record A pilot’s logbook represents their professional history and flight experience, and because no one logbook is the same, their personality. If the aircraft is the pilot’s sword, the logbook is their battle scar.

Pilot logbook excel template