rickair7777

Insurance has absolutely nothing to do with the FARs.

The CFI must be PIC if the student is not rated/current in the aircraft, or for the type of operation.

A CFI can give instruction without being PIC under circumstances such as these...

- BFR
- Aircraft Fam Flight (legal, but probably not insurable)
- Commercial Manuevers
- Day/Night Commercial X-country
- Etc.

A non-medical CFI cannot teach a student pilot, or an instrument student in IMC or on an IFR flight plan. He could not teach an ASEL pilot in a ME airplane. There is some question about whether you need a medical to teach hood work, I think you do since you have to maintain a lookout.

The rule allows this so older CFI's who lose their medicals can still instruct under circumstances which are safe.

It's definately in the regs somewhere, I don't have them handy.

NoyGonnaDoIt

Depends on for what. If the "student" is a certificated pilot, rated in category and class, current, etc, there's nothing special about a CFI that always makes him PIC. There are many pilots who, for example, own their own planes, and have a standing rule that they - the owner- is always the PIC in his own airplane.

Because the CFI is receiving compensation for being an instructor, not for being a pilot. That's been the FAA policy for a long time and the reason the reg is written the way it is.

Here's the way the FAA puts it (Preamble to the 1997 Part 61 revision Final Rule - Federal Register: April 4, 1997 (Volume 62, Number 65), Page 16220-16269 at Page 16242):

==============================
With respect to the holding of medical certificates by a flight instructor, the FAA has determined that the compensation a certificated flight instructor receives for flight instruction is not compensation for piloting the aircraft, but rather is compensation for the instruction. A certificated flight instructor who is acting as pilot in command or as a required flight crewmember and is receiving compensation for his or her flight instruction is only exercising the privileges of a private pilot. A certificated flight instructor who is acting as pilot in command or as a required flight crewmember and receiving compensation for his or her flight instruction is not carrying passengers or property for compensation or hire, nor is he or she, for compensation or hire, acting as pilot in command of an aircraft. Therefore, because a certificated flight instructor who is acting as pilot in command or as a required flight crewmember and is receiving compensation for his or her flight instruction is exercising the privileges of a private pilot, he or she only needs to hold a third-class medical certificate. In this same regard, the FAA has determined that a certificated flight instructor on board an aircraft for the purpose of providing flight instruction, who does not act as pilot in command or function as a required flight crewmember, is not performing or exercising pilot privileges that would require him or her to possess a valid medical certificate under the FARs.
==============================

Elcapiperu

Thanks for the help guys! A lot of good info!

NoyGonnaDoIt

Have you read the requirements for the commercial multi?

Riverside

Are you saying to get my commercial multi I need insurance?

Ewfflyer

Um yeah......and insurance has nothing to do with nothing as far as the FAA is concerned.

rickair7777

He's correct. They do make an allowance for not actually soloing a twin, since you would never be able to get insured to do that. You can bring a CFI along and pretend it's solo.

But the original point stands...insurance requirements do not equal regulatory requirements.

250 or point 65

absolutely there is.

anytime a CFI is giving instruction in an aircraft in which he is rated, he logs PIC.

Bernoulli Fan

Please, let's not get into the logging vs. acting as PIC debate.

I was just saying at the flight schools I've flown with, the CFI is always PIC. Even though the regs don't require it, insurance does, and if the appropriately rated student (though allowed to be PIC by regs) demands to act as PIC, no one flies.

I can understand the student-owned airplane thing (hasn't happened to me).

Bernoulli Fan

I'm really glad you posted this. I honestly can't believe the FAA interpreted their own regs this way. I would certainly never have read them as such.