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Personal Minimums
Pilot-specific limits that are more restrictive than legal weather, altitude, or aircraft limits — such as ceiling, visibility, crosswind, fuel reserves, or an oxygen-use altitude. Written personal minimums keep go/no-go and equipment decisions consistent under schedule or passenger pressure.
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- PIC (Pilot in Command)The pilot designated as the final authority and directly responsible for the operation and safety of the flight. The PIC has the authority to deviate from any rule in an emergency to the extent required to meet the emergency.
- PIC TimePilot-in-command time logged under 14 CFR 61.51. Student pilots may log PIC only for solo flight when they are the sole occupant and properly endorsed; rated pilots log PIC when they are the sole manipulator of the controls of an aircraft for which they are rated, when they are the sole occupant, or when acting as PIC of an aircraft that requires more than one pilot under its type certificate or the regulations for the flight.
- Pilot-Controlled Lighting (PCL)Airport runway and taxiway lighting that a pilot activates by keying the aircraft microphone on a published frequency, usually CTAF or UNICOM. The Chart Supplement and AIM describe the click sequence and timing; confirming PCL availability is a standard night preflight step at many nontowered airports.
- Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (PHAK)The FAA handbook (FAA-H-8083-25) covering foundational aeronautical knowledge topics such as aerodynamics, aircraft systems, flight instruments, weather, and human factors. Ground schools and checkride prep commonly treat the PHAK as a core reference alongside the AIM and Airplane Flying Handbook.