Ferry flight a commercial op?

"Travis Marlatte" wrote in
. net:

"Neil Gould" wrote in message
t...
ambiguities as those we're discussing. A service that you get for
free that you would otherwise have to pay for is recorded in the
credits column, and just that could qualify the service as a
commercial transaction. If that service is of sufficient value, it
*will* be of interest to the IRS and thus the FAA and so forth,
regardless of the year-end financial picture.


I don't think so. As a PPL, your analysis could apply to any of my
passengers. They are getting a flight for free that otherwise they
would have to pay for.

"...no person who holds a private pilot certificate may act as pilot
in command of an aircraft that is carrying passengers or property for
compensation or hire; nor may that person, for compensation or hire,
act as pilot in command of an aircraft..."

The first part seems to refer to the aircraft. i.e. it is the aircraft
that is carrying passengers or property for hire and a PPL is
prohibited from acting as PIC of such an aircraft. If that's not the
case, then a PPL could volunteer to take paying passengers (or cargo).
The second part seems to apply to the pilot and we know that required
flight experience is considered compensation.

So a PPL could volunteer to deliver a plane for a ferry service. The
ferry service is being paid. The PPL is not being compensated (not
even logging the time) or hired. The plane isn't carrying any
passengers or property for hire. That sounds like a doable mission
according to the letter of the FARs. I suspect that the FAA could make
the arguement that the nature of the flight is beyond the trained
judgement of the PPL.



Nope.

They'd do him for that.

Mone's changing hands for moving the airplane, it's a commercial
operation.


What about this one...
Could I advertise a no-cost ferry business? Not much different than
borrowing a friends plane except that I'm advertising. I'm not being
compensated. I won't log the hours. The plane is not carrying anything
and isn't for hire. In this case, there isn't a ferry service that is
getting paid either. Again, I think the FAA could make an argument,
since I am entering into a contract with the general public, that the
flights warrant a commercial license.

The wording has probably lasted this long because there are not that
many people with the time and net-worth to be flying around not making
any money. Doing it for the logged flight hours has been held up as
compensation so it must be un-logged, volunteer flying.

How about a teenage PPL who just wants to go flying (and log it). His
parents are so desperate to get him off the couch that they pay for
all his flight time. Sounds like compensated flying.
-----------------------------

Please tell me you don;'t work for the FAA. Last thing needed there is
an imaginative policeman.


Bertie