Logging Sim Time

Mark Kolber

Wednesday, August 23, 2023 at 08:50 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

The FAA expanded the use of approved training devices (Full Flight Simulators, Flight Training Devices, and Aviation Training Devices) in 2018, allowing pilots to log instrument currency tasks—including approaches, holding, and course tracking—without an instructor.
Properly logging training device time, particularly in paper logbooks, requires using a dedicated "ground-trainer" column for time, detailing accomplished currency tasks in the remarks section, and avoiding entry into aircraft-specific flight time categories.
The specific logging capabilities of a training device, especially Aviation Training Devices (ATDs) common in general aviation, are defined and limited by its FAA Letter of Authorization (LOA), which pilots must consult.

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Back in 2018, the FAA expanded our ability to use training devices to maintain instrument currency. Incomprehensible distinctions between aircraft and various types of simulators were removed. Rated pilots may log currency tasks without an instructor. An increased market for training devices and their increased use—often by pilots who logged little or no device time in the past—was predictable and beneficial. Let’s walk through a simulator exercise for currency and see how we might log it.

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