P8ASW

I have anupcoming flight with someone who is senior in rank to me. I have more qualifications and more time, but he is senior rank wise. I know typically the senior person signs for the aircraft, but I can not find that mandated in 3710. Anyone have a reference addressing this?

Doesn't matter to us either way, but curious about the "real" answer.

Appreciate the help!

Hobbit64

I am just a simple Army pilot, and your 3710 frightens and amazes me, but I have to ask....

1. Who is closer to retirement/interviews?
2. Who needs it more for making the majic 1000 PIC (FAR Part 1 PIC)

Vito

In ir force the designated Aircraft Commander signs for the flight regardless of rank. Typically in the Reserves/Guard its not unusual to see a Captain (O-3) in command of a jet with 3 or 4 O-5's onboard.

HercDriver130

yea.. that... I was going to say.. Air Force paperwork showed WHO the intended AC A code is.. regardless of rank......

e6bpilot

Who is the AC on the flight schedule? That's who should sign for it. I always defer to rank when haggling over the flight schedule, but it has never happened to me on the jet or in maint control unless I was picking someone (Skipper or XO) up and giving them the courtesy of asking if they want to sign for this leg. 99.9 percent of the time, they say no and take their seat in the back or next to me. Never an issue.

Packrat

Same for me. In the old VR world, the TAC was the guy designated on the schedule regardless of rank. I've been an O-3 TAC with everything from an O-4 to O-7 2P.

Most of the time, the senior guys just wanted the stick time and didn't give a hoot who signed for the airplane.

One of the funniest incidents with a senior 2p (O-6): We landed in a C-12 on a Sunday. No one was around and our hangar door was open so I could put the plane away. Usually, the O-6 would get out, I'd attach a little tug to the nose gear and walk it into the hangar.

As we pulled up, he says, "Just taxi it into the hangar."

"No, I'll just shut down out here and use the goat."

"I said, taxi it into the hanger."

"Yes, Sir."

It was the only time in my Navy career I actually taxied an aircraft into the hangar and shut it down. I figured he was the second highest ranking officer on the base and just did what he told me to.

T45Heinous

I find it a little odd you asking this question...I assume you must be fairly junior, but then again if you are a qualified a/c commander you can't be that junior....so how do you not know the process of who should sign for the plane and who the a/c commander is??? The answer is always how it was scheduled...(unless of course they made some sort of mistake). If you are written on the sked as the PIC and are qualified as such, you are the PIC, even if you have an O-6 sitting next to you and you are wearing LTJG.
I'm not trying to be rude, but if it comes off that way I appologize, but I am scratching my head on this one....

T45Heinous

I always wanted to do that!! When I was standing duty once we had a NASA T-38 park on our line, there was a bad T-storm coming and we didn't have a tow bar to get that plane into a hanger, so he just fired it up, hit the gas, and coasted it right into the hanger! Brilliant!!

Pilot7576

P8...

I too am mystified how this question arises. AC should be indicated on the flight schedule. Even on buddy hops and 2P solos, the AC was always clearly defined. Just because you have more hours/quals doesn't mean squat. As long as the other pilot is AC qualified, he may be the AC.

Pilot7576

Yumav8r

He may only have experience flying single seat aircraft where that rule is never used. I myself flew several tours flying single seat aircraft the only time I was in something with two seats was when receiving instruction and in that case the instructor was the AC.

AV8-