Originally Posted by
120PC
Ok, well I dont want you under the impression that my CFI has put any restrictions on me because he hasn't. Also, he wouldn't tell me I couldn't fly if the weather was nice. I am asking purely hypothetical questions to find out what I can and cant do... legally. I will always tell him before I fly. He is my friend also, not only my CFI. I have known him a very long time.
Check the back of your logbook. Your instructor must have put limitations with visibility, ceilings, crosswind component, headwind component, etc. These are your restrictions, and legally, you have to operate under the limitations that the CFI has given you in this endorsement. If your limitations state 5000 foot ceilings, then you can't legally go solo with 4500 Broken.
The student that I mentioned who went flying solo without telling me, he was perfectly legal to start and finish the flight, however it's not what we had talked about... so he lost his privileges to fly solo. There are enough things that can go wrong on a solo flight, a CFI doesn't want anyone with "hazardous attitudes" flying solo on their ticket.
Originally Posted by
120PC
I am asking purely to find out, HYPOTHETICALLY if I did do something like that, could my instructor loose his liscence. If I had his permission and messed up, could he then? Like I said before.. I would never put my instructor in jeopardy. I could care less about looking like a douche.
IF you violate a regulation or operate in an unsafe manner on a SOLO flight that it causes an incident or accident, then the FAA would get involved. At that point, it depends on how serious the issue is. An incident could raise a NEW issue that may not have anything to do with your incident. For example, if you run off the side of the runway during a crosswind, and the FAA sees that you never got any logged ground instruction in your logbook, the FAA might then do "remedial training" with the instructor. Worst case scenario, the instructor could get a 709 ride. You can read about 709 rides here -
The 709 Ride
Originally Posted by
120PC
It seems like it would be hard to find an instructor to let you solo at all if he were to be held liable if you crashed at any point even during a supervised solo.
Not really, I've got many students from other instructors. I've gone up for 2 flights, given them a pre-solo written test and then signed them off to solo. It depends on how well you have been trained. Instructors know that we are liable when students are flying around with our endorsements, it's part of the responsibility of being a flight instructor. Experienced instructors will be more comfortable taking on someone else's student compared to fresh new CFIs.
Originally Posted by
120PC
I dont need more solo time? I need to fly as much as possible. I need to get my commercial ASAP. I work for an agricultural flying service (going on 4 years) and my boss has promised me a flying job after i get my ticket.
That is correct, you don't NEED additional solo time. You met the 10 hours solo requirement (assuming you have met them since you have 20 hours of solo time) which is required as per 14 CFR Part 61. At this point, it is for your CFI to decide if he wants you to fly solo. Yes, any additional solo time gets counted towards your total time, but you'd be better off getting some dual training instead of flying local solo flights. You might think "but I get so much experience when I'm flying solo". That is correct, however, to your CFI, it only means experience at the risk of something happening on the flight where the CFI is responsible. Your instructor may not want the additional liability, since you already have your 10 hours of solo time. If you really want to build experience, go fly after you get your Private Pilot certificate where you are the PIC of the flight, without any "safety umbrella" or "restrictions" from your CFI. If you plan to work on an instrument rating after your Private, find a CFII to provide you with some much needed "hood time".
Originally Posted by
120PC
All of this is stemming from the burning desire Ive had to fly my 120 by myself this entire year I've owned it while I was waiting on my medical. Ive been tempted to go take her up when no one is around but have abstained from such behaivior. It's going to be a lot harder to do that after he endorses me to solo. Then it will be legal and my insurance will cover me by myself.
Honestly, this is a conversation between you and your CFI. Yes, you're covered legally and by your insurance, but the last thing any CFI wants is to have one of his students involved in an incident/accident while with his solo endorsement. If your CFI feels comfortable to let you keep flying solo ON HIS TICKET, having met your minimum solo time requirements as per Part 61, then keep flying solo and have fun. If he doesn't feel comfortable, then you don't fly solo. It's as simple as that. It's your CFI's signature in your logbook allowing you to solo, so you do what he tells you to do. Since your instructor is also your friend, give him a link to this thread and ask for his feedback.