"Robert Henry" wrote in message news:3p2Ta.19903$o54.11459@lakeread05...

I think the logbooks will come into evidence....

The logbooks aren't very good evidence.

1. There is (in general) no requirement for logging anything.
2. The rules for loging PIC time are disassociated (in general) from who
is PIC.

The FAA and the NTSB have never used the log books to make a determination
of who is PIC to my knowledge. The NTSB usually just uses the person in the
prime pilot position (left seat on most planes unless they have compelling evidence
that that person wasn't the PIC...like he wasn't a pilot). The FAA just goes after
whoever they can cause the most damage to (preferring to bang an instructor or
commercial pilot on board over a private).

If both pilots are violated because it can't even be determined who was
operating the controls,

Operating the controls has nothing to do with who is pilot in command.


I'm only parroting (more or less) the information the AOPA counsel provides
to its members. See also Other Considerations in the URL listed below - if
you can access it.

http://www.aopa.org/members/files/topics/sftyplt.html

You're not parrotting it very well, it says stuff completely contrary to the points
you made here.