Flight Reviews and Recent Flight Experience 14CFR 61.56 and 61.57

Flight Review and Recent Experience 61.56 and 61.57

As pilots, we're well briefed on 14 CFR 61.56 Flight Reviews and 61.57 Recent Flight Experience Pilot in Command. The content of these regulations is drilled into every pilot regardless of their certificate level. Part 61.56 mandates that we must subject ourselves to a flight review every 24 calendar months. To eliminate any miscommunication as to what is required in the review, the FAA has stipulates reviews must consist of minimum of one hour of ground instruction along with an hour of flight training.

This puts pilots in front of an instructor at least once every 24 calendar months. Now that’s a good start, and if you fly frequently-say 100 or more hours a year- it’s a completely appropriate number.

Part 61.57 is different. It details our recent experience obligations to serve as Pilot in Command. When operating VFR,  sections A & B specify that we only need concern ourselves with three take offs and landings within 90 days and the type landings they should be, day or night; three take off and landings every ninety days equal one per month.

Naturally, instrument pilots must delve deeper. To stay IFR legal we have section C and its requirement to perform six (6) approaches intercepting and tracking courses and flying holds within the preceding 6 calendar months. If we allow our “six in six” to elapse, section D is very clear in specifying that remediation comes via an instrument proficiency check (IPC) with an examiner, or an authorized instructor. These rules specify the absolute minimum quantity of experience that we need to be legal: twelve approaches a year, or one per month.

It’s interesting that the FAA wants us to conduct one flight operation per month, whether we’re flying VFR or IFR. That doesn’t sound too difficult, does it?

So why is it that many pilots find themselves bumping into the edges of their currency requirements? May I suggest "life gets in the way"?

I’m fond of saying “time, funds and weather, pick any two”. You can have the time and the weather but lack the funds; you can have the time and the funds but lack the weather, or the funds and the weather and be short of time.  Lord knows, there are numerous other values that we can plug into that matrix as reasons we don’t fly often enough.

This strikes me as odd when one considers the level of effort expended to obtain these certificates and ratings in the first place. Personally, I’ve found that injecting some training into my flying adds purpose to the experience. I can then justify expending limited time and funds by creating personal goals which put a "credit" on the achievement side of “my ledger”.  Rather than just going out for an hour airplane ride, I spend the same hour practicing pylon turns and then head to another airport for some take-off and landing practice.  

Filing and flying IFR on every $100 hamburger trip is a good way to stay connected with the system. You’ll have to fly accurately and precisely, while learning the routes in and out of your airport in good weather so you’ll know what to expect when it folds while you’re trying to get home. That’s good to know, because whether you’re planning, or already flying the trip, you’ll be able to visualize where ATC will be sending you (regardless of what you filed), and make an appropriate decision as to whether you’re going to want to fly that.

At the end of the day, by getting these ratings, we’ve committed to adhere to certain legal standards. Whether we want to just meet the minimum standard or to strive to rise to some level above it is a personal choice each pilot makes.

Make the right choice.