Lazy logbook entries

Question number one: “Can I please see your logbook?” OK, so not the big revealing secret you were hoping for, but since you know the first thing the examiner is going to ask, why not knock it out of the park and get off to a great start? When the logbook is done correctly, this can be a simple process that demonstrates both you and your instructor are well-prepared. When the logbook is a mess, however, the review can be tedious and stressful for everyone. Here are some of the common errors to avoid:

Ink color: Black ink is the color of professional documents. I often see logbooks with a mixture of blue, black, and maybe some red thrown in for a splash of color. Don’t do it, and don’t let your instructors write in your logbook with anything other than black either. It’s why a black pen around the airport is a prized possession.

Handling errors: If you make a mistake in your logbook (and you will at some point), simply draw one line through the mistake so it is clear to the reader what adjustment was made. No scribbling. No white-out.

Tally columns: Before you show up on checkride day, please tally all the columns in your logbook. You don’t want the examiner sitting there with a calculator adding up hundreds of hours to be sure you meet the minimum requirements. This process is time-consuming and frustrating for the examiner. I don’t know about you, but when I take a checkride, I try to frustrate the examiner as little as possible.

Checkride prerequisites: This is a big one. I turn away several people a month on the morning of their checkride because they do not meet the minimum prerequisite requirements. For example, a private pilot applicant won’t have three hours of night training or an instrument applicant won’t have 50 hours of pilot-in-command cross-country time. There is a very simple way around this. Read the regulations that apply to your rating and write down the dates when you met each requirement. For private pilot, it’s FAR 61.109. Instrument, 61.65, and so on. There’s no excuse for showing up on checkride day without even being eligible to begin the ride.

When the logbook is done correctly, this can be a simple process that demonstrates both you and your instructor are well-prepared.Cross-country: All checkrides, private through commercial, require some cross-country training to be logged. If an applicant flies to an airport 30 miles away, lands there, then returns, does it meet the requirements for the private, instrument, or commercial ratings? No. FAR 61.1 states the definition of cross-country time for meeting the purposes of those ratings listed above as including a “point of landing that was at least a straight-line distance of more than 50 nautical miles from the original point of departure.” What about flying to an airport that is 52 miles away, doing a low approach, then returning? No. Must do a landing. A touch and go is fine; just make sure you get those wheels on the pavement.

Handwriting: Take your time and write legibly in the logbook. You don’t have to win the calligraphy award, but an examiner should be able to decipher the departure and destination airports at least. It’s only four letters. Take your time.

Be specific: If you log a flight as cross-country, make sure you write in the destination airport. So often, the logbooks I see say a cross-country was flown “KOLV to KOLV.” How can I verify the greater than 50 requirement if the destination airport is not listed? On that topic, for the long instrument cross-country, make sure you list the three different types of approaches that were flown. If you are solo, note that in the remarks. If you have a safety pilot, write that information down as well. The regulations are very specific about how these prerequisite flights must be conducted, so make it easy on yourself and the examiner and go ahead and lay out the answers to the questions before they are asked.

Digital: If you keep a digital logbook, that’s OK, but many of these rules still apply. So be extra diligent and be sure to include any relevant detail that may matter on your checkride.

At the end of the day, take comfort in knowing that you will be judged on your skill as a pilot, so don’t freak out if your logbook isn’t perfect. But now that you know the right way, take care to make your logbook a great first impression of who you are as a pilot—organized and professional.

Natalie Bingham Hoover is a designated pilot examiner working primarily in Mississippi and Tennessee. See myaviation101.com for helpful checkride resources.