Assuming Command

Now that you've earned that private pilot certificate you worked so long and hard to get, what's next? Your first inclination may be to grab your closest friend and say, "Hey, wanna go flying?"

What if the answer you hear is "Yes"? Have you thought much about what it really means to be pilot in command (PIC) of an airplane carrying your first nonpilot passenger, or flying with a pilot who is not your instructor now that you're running the show? You know how to fly the airplane. The question is whether you've thought through the role of PIC and all that it entails.

Part 1 of the federal aviation regulations partially defines pilot in command as "the person who...has the final authority and responsibility for the operation and safety of the flight." That includes passengers. PIC means thinking a lot more about the other people in the airplane with you than you probably have.

If you're like a lot of recently certificated pilots, it's normal to take a breather after you get your ticket to catch up on the aspects of your life that were put on hold during your training. A little respite also can help your budget recover a bit from the cost of your flight training. If that's what you've done, why not use some of that time to think about carrying others in the airplane with you? If it's been a few weeks or months since you got your ticket, no problem! Review procedures that may be less than fresh in your mind, hop in an airplane, and go get current. No more solo endorsements. No more CFI-imposed crosswind limits. No more - well, you know - all of that other extra stuff you had to endure as a student pilot. (Of course, it's a good idea to impose some crosswind limitations of your own - and if it's been awhile since you last flew, consider a brush-up flight with an instructor before you take along passengers for the first time.)

Now that you're off the leash, you might think that the FAA doesn't much care what you do as long as you stay out of trouble. Not so fast. When you think about it, you've never really been pilot in command - regardless of the fact that you've been authorized to log solo flights as PIC time in your flight records - have you?

Pilot in command, pure and simple, means "with passengers." There's a big difference between logging solo PIC and being PIC of a passenger-bearing aircraft.

If you aren't carrying passengers, for instance, there's no legal requirement for landing currency, is there? The requirement for making three landings every 90 days (to a full stop in the case of night qualification) applies only when you carry passengers. If you don't fly with passengers, all you have to do is get a flight review every 24 months. (If you rent the airplane you fly, your flight school or FBO may have a separate currency requirement - perhaps driven by insurance considerations - that may be even shorter than 90 days, but this is not a regulatory requirement.) How about flying at night? If you haven't made a night landing in six months, who cares? If you want to go cross-country in the dark of night, as far as the regulations are concerned, have at it - but should you? Three landings at night to a full stop get you legal to fly passengers at night, but it certainly doesn't mean you're proficient. There can be a lot of ground between legal, current, proficient, and safe.

But as a certificated pilot, your new privileges now permit you to take unsuspecting and unknowing passengers flying.

With those privileges comes significant responsibility that has until now been only an intellectual exercise. The examiner asked you a few questions, tried to distract you a few times, and otherwise was a good citizen in the right seat. Contrast an examiner's measured distractions with a right seat occupied by a nervous friend when you're trying to restart an engine that just quit on you. Ever thought about how you'd handle that? For some pilots, there can be a big difference between flying with an instructor, examiner, or another pilot in the right seat and having an honest-to-goodness passenger there. Good training should have minimized those differences. Nonetheless, as pilot in command you are legally responsible for the passengers (and even the other pilots) in your airplane. When you are truly PIC, you must consider some things that you never really thought much about before - such as the preflight passenger briefing.

Two briefing points to discuss even before the day of the flight are the proper clothing to wear and the flight's duration. An otherwise great experience for both the pilot and passenger can turn into a disaster if his time crunch is a surprise factor, or if your passenger doesn't understand that some time will be spent outside. Does temperature play a role in your part of the country? If so, discuss it, and make sure your passenger knows what to wear. Emphasize to your friend that there will be things to do both before and after the flight that might take more time than he or she imagines. Good communication makes for an enjoyable experience.

When the big day arrives, what should a good passenger briefing contain? Are there any legal requirements that we need to satisfy? Some of the rules seem hazy for small airplanes, but the guide is, "How can we brief our passengers so that they stay safe and feel like a part of what's happening?" There are as many briefings as there are PICs. But there also is some regulatory guidance that we can follow.

Where would you find a good outline for a passenger briefing? Do you suppose you'd cover the same things you heard the flight attendant talk about on your last airline flight? Probably, but flying in so-called "little airplanes" gets a little more personal. There will be no flight attendant to open the exit door - your passenger needs to know how to do that.

FAR 91, Subpart F, Large and Turbine-Powered Multiengine Airplanes, is a good place to start. We can use this large-airplane requirement to begin forming a checklist of our own, regardless of the types of airplanes that we fly. Paragraph 91. 519 provides guidance.

"91.519(a): Before each takeoff the pilot in command of an airplane carrying passengers shall ensure that all passengers have been orally briefed on" - and the paragraph goes on to list several required briefing points -including the use of safety belts and shoulder harnesses, location of and means for opening the passenger entry door and emergency exits, and the location of survival equipment (for small aircraft, this should include the fire extinguisher). Not many of the airplanes that a newly certificated pilot normally gets to fly have formal, printed passenger briefing cards like those found on airliners. But don't let your equipment stop you. Nothing prohibits you from developing such a briefing aid for your own passengers. It is highly recommended that every pilot carry a personalized passenger briefing in his or her flight bag, tailored to the specific aircraft that you fly.

The subjects on which to brief are all common sense, concise, and important points. In 91.519, they include - in addition to the points listed above - smoking, ditching procedures and the use of flotation equipment (for a flight over water), and normal and emergency use of oxygen equipment installed on the airplane. Because the typical GA passenger doesn't have to pass through security and isn't herded standing erect through the main entrance door, our checklists need to include a few extra items. One of these, of course, is an admonition to stay clear of propellers and to avoid hitting your head on obstructions, like a Cessna's high wing - and we aren't even in the airplane yet.

Before the airplane

Discuss some of these little-talked-about items with your passenger(s):

• Do you need to use the restroom before we fly?
• Do you have any questions about what we're going to do, so that we can discuss them here on the ground?
• This is our map - pilots call them charts - and here's where we're going to go.
• Smoking is prohibited in the airplane and on the ramp near the airplane.
• While we do the preflight check, be careful not to hit your head on the wings or any other part of the airplane while you're looking at it - and stay clear of propellers at all times.
• If you see another airplane while we're flying, tell me about it - even if you think I already see it.
• As far as that's concerned, if you are confused about anything we're doing, ask me about it.
• Even though the weather should be good, take one of these airsickness bags. If you need it, use it.
• We'll use pilots' headphones and be able to converse through the intercom (if so equipped) throughout the flight; I'll hear anything you say and you can hear me. Speak in a conversational tone.

Entering/inside the airplane

• Here's how the door opens and closes; here's how your window opens and closes. I'll be reaching across you to close the door before we depart.
• This is where you will sit. You can adjust your seat like this. We'll do that now to make sure you can see out OK. (Get a cushion before coming to the airplane if your passenger is short and would have difficulty seeing.)
• Now that you're in your seat, here's how the seatbelt and harness(es) work. This is how they close. Here's how to open them. Now, you do that - then open the door for me so you know how to get out of the airplane when we finish the flight. Don't open the door until I ask you do open it.
• Here are the air vents, and this is how to work them. Why don't you try it? Let me know if you need heat at any time.
• If you have any emergency equipment on board that you want your passengers to access, explain how and when they should use it.
• Can you hear me OK on the intercom now? After I start the engine, I'll make some radio calls and you can hear them all.

After engine start, make sure your passenger is comfortable and "have at it!" A thorough, professional preflight briefing sets the stage for your flight and assures your passenger that you know what you're talking about and are in charge of what's happening.

In checklist form, the above passenger briefing might look something like the example on page 57.

Design a flexible preflight briefing that is tailored to what must always be included and those additions that suit your passenger(s).

You might want to talk about electronic equipment you will not allow to be used on the flight, although regulatory guidelines for things like this in general aviation airplanes are difficult to find. Talk to your local avionics shop to determine the peculiarities of any of your airplane's systems and some common electronic devices - such as portable TVs for the kids in the backseat. You might be surprised. It's worth checking out.

Now lets talk about another situation. If your first passenger also happens to be a certificated pilot, some additional cautions apply. FARs Explained, an authoritative book on aviation law published by Jeppesen Sanderson, contains this statement. "CAUTION: When flying with another pilot, always agree on who will be the pilot in command before the flight begins."

There can be only one PIC. PIC responsibility is not shared. There can't be any confusion about that in the cockpit, either. Who will be PIC should be determined before boarding the aircraft.

Once that issue is diplomatically clear, conduct your regular briefing for the pilot-passenger accompanying you. If the passenger is already familiar with specific items, the regulation allows you to dispense with an oral briefing. I'd want to make sure that was the case, however, because briefings should be aircraft-specific.

Over and above normal passenger briefing items that are just as applicable to pilots as to nonpilots, it might be prudent to cover other items as well. Some of them are very important. I personally brief weather and notams, which I get before every flight; the route of flight and ATC clearance, if appropriate; positive transfer of control procedures ("You have the flight controls - I have the flight controls - You have the flight controls"); any special procedures, traffic calls, or unique aspects of the flight; and emergency plans, routes, responsibilities, etc.

Take time to get organized when you embark on being a real PIC. You and your passengers will appreciate it, and all of you will benefit from a little thoughtful reflection. It's all part of flying safely.

Wally Miller is president of an aviation training, consulting, and marketing firm in Monument, Colorado. He is a Gold Seal CFI who has been instructing for more than 30 years and flying for more than 40.