How to log PIC, PICUS and SPIC time under EASA rules
Checked against the sources below on 29 October 2026. How these guides are written
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Under EASA you log as PIC all flight time in which you are the PIC. AMC1 FCL.050 also lets you log as PIC your solo time, SPIC time, time under supervision and passed skill tests and checks, once the instructor or examiner countersigns. A co-pilot acting as PICUS enters the time as PIC, with the PIC's countersignature in Remarks. For the ATPL(A), FCL.510.A(b)(2) accepts 500 hours PICUS, 250 hours PIC, or 250 hours with at least 70 as PIC and the rest PICUS.
- PIC
- All flight time during which you are the PIC
- Each flight
- AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(i)
- Solo, SPIC, supervised time, passed tests
- Log as PIC when countersigned by the instructor or examiner
- Each flight
- AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(ii)
- PICUS
- Co-pilot on an aircraft needing more than one pilot; PIC countersigns; supervision method acceptable to the authority
- Each flight
- AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(v), (b)(5)
- Instructor and examiner
- Log as PIC all time instructing in an aircraft, or examining from a pilot's seat
- Each flight
- AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(iii), (iv)
- ATPL(A) command time
- 500 h PICUS, or 250 h PIC, or 250 h with at least 70 h PIC and the rest PICUS
- Before the ATPL(A) skill test
- FCL.510.A(b)(2)
- Integrated course SPIC credit
- Up to 50 h of SPIC instrument time toward the PIC time required
- ATP or CPL/IR integrated graduates
- FCL.035(a)(2)(ii), (iii)
What EASA means by PIC, PICUS and SPIC
FCL.010 defines all three. The pilot-in-command is "the pilot designated as being in command and charged with the safe conduct of the flight." PICUS is "a co-pilot performing, under the supervision of the pilot-in-command, the duties and functions of a pilot-in-command." SPIC is "a student pilot acting as pilot-in-command on a flight with an instructor where the latter will only observe the student pilot and shall not influence or control the flight of the aircraft."
The logbook instructions in AMC1 FCL.050 add how the designation works on a crewed aircraft. When two or more pilots operate the aircraft, the operator designates one as PIC before the flight, and that pilot "may delegate the conduct of the flight to another suitably qualified pilot." All flying as PIC goes in the logbook as PIC.
Instructors and examiners also log PIC. AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(iii) lets an instructor certificate holder log as PIC "all flight time during which he or she acts as an instructor in an aircraft", and (b)(1)(iv) gives the same to an examiner who "occupies a pilot's seat and acts as an examiner".
How do you log PICUS time?
AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(v) allows PIC time for "a co-pilot acting as PICUS on an aircraft on which more than one pilot is required under the type certification of the aircraft or as required by operational requirements provided that such PICUS time is countersigned by the PIC". Point (b)(5) adds the test for each sector: provided the method of supervision is acceptable to the competent authority, a co-pilot may log PICUS as PIC "when all the duties and functions of PIC on that flight were carried out in such a way that the intervention of the PIC in the interest of safety was not required."
In the logbook you enter PICUS time in the PIC column (column 10), and the PIC countersigns in Remarks (column 12). The AMC example reads "PIC(US): signature of NAME(S) PIC". The Remarks notes list the "name and signature of PIC if the pilot is recording flight time as SPIC or PICUS" among the entries that should always be made.
Keep a separate running total of your PICUS hours in your own records as well. FCL.510.A counts PIC and PICUS differently, and the countersigned Remarks entries are how you show which hours were which. A separate case is (b)(1)(vii): where Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 requires a pilot to act as PIC under the supervision of another pilot, "both the pilot and the supervisor may log the flight time as PIC."
How do student pilots log SPIC and solo time?
AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(ii) lets an applicant for, or holder of, a pilot licence log as PIC "all solo flight time, flight time as SPIC, flight time under supervision as well as flight time of successfully completed skill tests, proficiency checks and assessments of competence", provided the SPIC time, supervised time and tests are countersigned by the instructor or examiner. Solo flight time is "flight time during which a student pilot is the sole occupant of an aircraft."
SPIC depends on what the instructor does. If the instructor only observes, the student logs SPIC as PIC with the instructor's signature in Remarks. If the instructor teaches or handles the controls, the flight no longer meets the SPIC definition and it is dual instruction time.
SPIC has limits on the integrated courses in Appendix 3 to Part-FCL. On the ATP(A) and CPL/IR(A) integrated courses you need 70 hours as PIC, "of which up to 55 hours may be SPIC", and "the instrument flight time as SPIC shall only be counted as PIC flight time up to a maximum of 20 hours." After graduation, FCL.035(a)(2)(ii) and (iii) credit up to 50 hours of SPIC instrument time toward the PIC time required for the CPL, a multi-engine type or class rating and, for ATP integrated graduates, the ATPL.
How PICUS counts toward the EASA ATPL(A)
FCL.510.A(b) requires 1,500 hours of flight time in aeroplanes. Point (b)(2) gives three routes for command time: "(i) 500 hours as PIC under supervision; or (ii) 250 hours as PIC; or (iii) 250 hours, including at least 70 hours as PIC, and the remaining as PIC under supervision". A pilot with 100 hours PIC therefore needs 150 hours PICUS to complete route (iii).
PICUS also counts in (b)(3): "200 hours of cross-country flight time of which at least 100 hours shall be as PIC or as PIC under supervision". FCL.035(a)(3) credits a co-pilot or PICUS with "all of the co-pilot time towards the total flight time required for a higher grade of pilot licence", unless Part-FCL says otherwise.
Helicopter pilots have a parallel rule in FCL.510.H(c)(2): 250 hours PIC, or 100 hours PIC and 150 hours PICUS, or 250 hours PICUS in multi-pilot helicopters. On the last route the ATPL(H) privileges are limited to multi-pilot operations until you complete 100 hours as PIC.
Mistakes pilots make
- Logging PICUS without the PIC's name and signature in Remarks. AMC1 FCL.050 makes the countersignature part of the entry.
- Logging PICUS in a single-pilot aircraft. AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(v) ties PICUS to an aircraft on which more than one pilot is required by type certification or operational requirements.
- Adding PIC and PICUS together and claiming the 250 hour route. FCL.510.A(b)(2)(ii) is 250 hours as PIC; a mix needs at least 70 hours PIC under (iii), and PICUS alone needs 500 hours under (i).
- Logging an instructed flight as SPIC. If the instructor teaches or touches the controls, the FCL.010 SPIC definition is not met and the time is dual.
- Logging instructor time only in the instructor column. The column 10 notes say instructor time is recorded as appropriate and also entered as PIC.
What Off Chocks tracks
- The flight form's EASA seats are PIC, Co-Pilot, Co-Pilot (relief), PIC Under Supervision and Dual. There is no separate SPIC seat.
- The printed EASA logbook keeps PIC (P1) and PIC under supervision (P1 u/s) in separate columns and totals, so your PICUS hours stay visible.
- Off Chocks does not collect the PIC's or instructor's countersignature. Get the printed pages signed.
- The ATPL bar and new ATPL goals test the three FCL.510.A(b)(2) routes in aeroplane time (500 hours PICUS, 250 hours PIC, or 250 hours with at least 70 PIC) and name the route you are closest to. An older ATPL goal offers Update goal when its reading differs.
Common questions
- Can both pilots log PIC time under EASA?
- The designated PIC logs PIC. A co-pilot acting as PICUS also enters the time as PIC, countersigned by the PIC. Where Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 requires a pilot to act as PIC under a supervisor, both may log PIC (AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(vii)).
- Does PICUS count as PIC for the EASA ATPL?
- FCL.510.A(b)(2) lists it separately: 500 hours PICUS, or 250 hours PIC, or 250 hours with at least 70 hours PIC and the rest PICUS. PICUS also counts toward the 100 hours of cross-country as PIC or PICUS.
- What is the difference between SPIC and dual?
- On an SPIC flight the instructor "will only observe the student pilot and shall not influence or control the flight" (FCL.010). If the instructor instructs, it is dual instruction time.
- Can I log a skill test as PIC?
- Yes, when it is successfully completed and countersigned by the examiner (AMC1 FCL.050(b)(1)(ii)).
- Who decides whether a PICUS sector counts?
- AMC1 FCL.050(b)(5) needs a method of supervision acceptable to the competent authority, and the PIC must not have needed to intervene in the interest of safety. The PIC countersigns each entry.
Sources
- EASA Easy Access Rules for Aircrew, October 2026 revision: FCL.010 Definitions
- EASA Easy Access Rules for Aircrew: AMC1 FCL.050 Recording of flight time
- EASA Easy Access Rules for Aircrew: AMC1 FCL.050 Pilot logbook
- EASA Easy Access Rules for Aircrew: FCL.035 Crediting of flight time
- EASA Easy Access Rules for Aircrew: FCL.510.A and FCL.510.H ATPL experience
- EASA Easy Access Rules for Aircrew: Appendix 3, training courses for the CPL and ATPL
This is a plain-words summary to help you keep your own records, not legal advice. The regulation and your operator's procedures always take precedence.