My strict reading of 61.51(e) says that if you are not the "sole manipulator", then even if you =are= the PIC, then so long as anybody else is handling the controls, you can't log PIC time,Y

You better read 61.51 again. There are three more clauses than the
one you're reading.

I didn't think they were relevant to the discussion.

Rec, private, or comm pilot may log PIC if...
sole manipulator (& rated) ... or sole occupant ... or (not except for
rec pilots) =is= PIC when two pilots are required.

The other clauses pertain to ATPs, authorized instructors, and student
pilots. So I was focusing on the first set.

We were discussing a situation where only one pilot is required, and
there is another occupant of the aircraft. In this case, I believe that
as I wrote above, a strict reading says that even if you =are= the
actual Pilot In Command (perhaps by dint of being the only pilot aboard,
perhaps by another dint), then if anybody else is handling the controls,
you can't log PIC time. However, if an FAA approved robot is handling
the controls, then you can.

Handling the robot (turning on the autopilot) apparantly counts as
handling a control. You can program the FMS to do the takeoff, cruise,
and landing, take a nap, and set an alarm for when your wheels touch the
ground again, and log the whole thing as PIC. You can do this with a
non-FAA approved robot too, if you are flying an experimental class
aircraft. (At least I think that's true - how much does the FAA get
involved in certification of instrumentation and such for
experimentals?) It's unclear as to whether you can let a monkey operate
the controls and still log it as PIC (which may be a problem for those
that employ the cat-dog-duck method of IFR flight), but if you let a
human act as your autopilot, a strict reading of the rules says nix on
the logbook.

So, you (a regular private pilot) go up in a 172 with a friend who is
not a pilot, you let him take the controls while you very carefully
supervise her, and you can't log the time PIC. The next day you fly a
Cirrus by programming the CID (Cirrus Autoflight Device) and pushing the
GO button, essentially become a passenger while the glass cockpit does
the work, and all that time goes in your book as PIC.

Doesn't make sense to me. This is why I mention the organic autopilot.

Jose
--
I used to make money in the stock market, now I make money in the basement.
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.