Pilot Logbook Resource

How to Fill Out IACRA Flight Time on FAA Form 8710-1

A practical field-by-field guide to the IACRA aeronautical experience grid and FAA Form 8710-1 Record of Pilot Time, including total time, PIC, SIC, solo, cross-country, night, instrument, simulator, and class totals.

  • IACRA
  • FAA Form 8710-1
  • flight time
  • pilot logbook
  • aeronautical experience

If you are searching for how to fill out IACRA flight time, you are probably on the Aeronautical Experience screen with your logbook open and a deadline getting closer.

The short answer: IACRA's Aeronautical Experience grid is the online version of the Record of Pilot Time on FAA Form 8710-1. You should enter the flight-time blocks that apply to the certificate or rating you are seeking, and the FAA recommends entering all pilot time, not only the bare minimum. The numbers should come from your logbook or training record, not from memory, a resume, or an airline application summary.

This guide focuses on the flight-time part of the application. It is written for U.S. pilots using IACRA or FAA Form 8710-1 for a certificate, rating, flight review, IPC, ATP, restricted ATP, or similar certification activity. Always follow the specific instructions from your recommending instructor, DPE, certifying officer, FSDO, or training provider.

Quick Answer: What Goes in the IACRA Flight Time Grid?

Use the IACRA grid to summarize your logged aeronautical experience by category, role, condition, and class.

Before you type anything into IACRA, build these totals from your logbook:

  • Total flight time by aircraft category
  • Instruction received
  • Solo
  • PIC
  • SIC, if applicable
  • Cross-country, using the definition required for the certificate or rating
  • Instrument time
  • Night time
  • Night takeoffs and landings, if required
  • Class totals, such as airplane single-engine land and airplane multiengine land
  • FFS, FTD, or ATD time, if applicable and permitted by the regulation

Then compare those totals with the experience requirements for the certificate or rating you are applying for. IACRA can validate fields, but it cannot clean up a messy logbook for you.

Use the Current Form as Your Map

The current FAA Form 8710-1 page lists the form as active with an edition date of March 18, 2026. The PDF is marked FAA 8710-1 (03/26) and includes Section III, Record of Pilot Time.

IACRA's own help page says the Aeronautical Experience screen uses a grid similar to the one on the front of Form 8710-1. That is the mental model to use:

  • IACRA is the online workflow.
  • FAA Form 8710-1 is the underlying application.
  • Section III / Aeronautical Experience is the summary of your pilot time.
  • Your logbook is the source record that supports the numbers.

For faster processing, the FAA encourages applicants to apply online through IACRA. If you are using paper Form 8710-1 because IACRA is unavailable or a certifying officer directs you to do so, the same flight-time logic applies.

Do This Before You Open IACRA

The best IACRA flight-time work happens before you log in.

Make a simple worksheet with one row for each major bucket. Do not try to solve category questions while the application timer is running or while your instructor is waiting to sign.

At minimum, prepare:

  • A current total-time report from your logbook or digital logbook
  • A total by aircraft category and class
  • A PIC/SIC/solo/instruction breakdown
  • A cross-country breakdown for the certificate or rating sought
  • A night and instrument breakdown
  • A simulator/training device breakdown
  • A list of any assumptions or corrections

If your logbook totals are messy, run a full pilot logbook audit checklist before filling out the application.

The Most Important Rule: Enter Supported Numbers

FAA Form 8710-1 is not just a worksheet. The form says your signature certifies that your statements and answers are complete and true to the best of your knowledge.

That means every number you enter should be supportable from your logbook, training record, or other accepted record. Do not round up to meet a requirement. Do not include a planned checkride. Do not copy a number from an old application unless you know it still matches your current logbook.

If you discover a mismatch, fix the source record or document why the current application number is different.

Field-by-Field Guide to IACRA Flight Time

The exact IACRA screen can vary by application path, but these are the flight-time buckets pilots most often need to understand.

IACRA / 8710 area What it usually means Common mistake
Total Total pilot time in the applicable category or row Forcing total to equal instruction plus solo
Instruction Received Logged training from an authorized instructor Counting all non-solo time as instruction
Solo Time when you were the sole occupant, where applicable Forgetting student solo can also be PIC when 61.51 allows it
PIC Loggable pilot-in-command time under 14 CFR 61.51 Counting only acting PIC or only passenger-carrying PIC
SIC Loggable second-in-command time under 14 CFR 61.51 Logging SIC when the operation or aircraft did not support it
Cross-country Cross-country time under the definition required for the certificate or rating Using a broad logbook XC total when the application needs a narrower total
Instrument Instrument time that is properly logged and supportable Blending actual, simulated, and device time with no source detail
Night Night flight time and, where required, night takeoffs/landings Treating night landings as hours instead of counts
FFS / FTD / ATD Simulator or training device time Putting device time into aircraft class totals without checking the rule
Class Totals Time in the aircraft class for the certificate or rating sought Dumping all airplane time into the class sought

Use this table as a starting point, not as a replacement for the regulation that applies to your certificate or rating.

Total Time Is Not Always Dual Plus Solo

One common IACRA mistake is assuming total time must equal instruction received plus solo.

That may look true for a student pilot preparing a private pilot application, because most of the pilot's time may be dual instruction or solo. But it is not a universal rule.

For example, a commercial pilot applicant may have hundreds of hours of post-private PIC time carrying passengers, flying personal cross-country flights, or building experience. Those flights may be total time and PIC time, but they are not instruction received and they are not solo if other people were on board.

Ask this instead:

  • Was this time logged as pilot time?
  • Which role did I log: PIC, SIC, solo, instruction received, or another category?
  • Which aircraft category and class does it belong to?
  • Does this time apply to the certificate or rating I am seeking?

The total should be a supported summary of pilot time, not a forced math equation that hides valid flight experience.

Student Pilot Solo and PIC on Form 8710-1

Student pilot PIC time is a frequent source of confusion.

Under 14 CFR 61.51, a student pilot may log PIC time only when the student is the sole occupant of the aircraft, has the required solo endorsement, and is undergoing training for a pilot certificate or rating.

Practically, that means private pilot applicants often have solo time that is also PIC time. If you completed 10.0 hours of qualifying student solo, those hours may appear in both the Solo bucket and the PIC bucket when the logbook supports it.

Do not use that rule to log PIC for dual lessons with an instructor. Student solo PIC and dual instruction are different categories.

Cross-Country Time: Use the Right Definition

Cross-country is one of the easiest IACRA totals to overstate.

14 CFR 61.1 defines cross-country time differently depending on the purpose. A broad point-to-point cross-country total in your digital logbook may not be the same number you need for private pilot, instrument rating, commercial pilot, ATP, or restricted ATP experience.

For many private, instrument, and commercial airplane requirements, pilots focus on flights that include a point of landing more than 50 nautical miles straight-line distance from the original point of departure. ATP cross-country experience has a different standard.

Before you enter cross-country time:

  • Identify the certificate or rating sought.
  • Read the applicable cross-country definition and experience requirement.
  • Total only the flights that meet that standard.
  • Keep a note explaining which definition you used.

If your logbook only has one cross-country column, you may need to rebuild the total from individual routes before submitting IACRA.

Instrument Time: Separate Aircraft, Simulated, and Device Time

Instrument time can be valid in different contexts, but it needs to be traceable.

Before you enter instrument time, separate:

  • Actual instrument time in aircraft
  • Simulated instrument time in aircraft
  • Instrument time in an FFS, FTD, or ATD
  • Approaches, holds, and safety pilot details when required
  • Instructor signatures for required training or device sessions

14 CFR 61.51 allows instrument time to be logged only when the person operates the aircraft solely by reference to instruments under actual or simulated instrument conditions. It also includes rules for using simulator, flight training device, or aviation training device time for instrument aeronautical experience when the required instructor observation and logbook/training record verification are present.

The practical point: do not enter one blended instrument number unless you can explain what it contains.

Simulator, FTD, and ATD Time

FAA Form 8710-1 includes spaces for full flight simulator, flight training device, and aviation training device time. The form instructions say that FFS, FTD, and ATD time may be credited toward total time in the category, class, and instrument time as permitted by the regulations.

That last phrase matters. "As permitted by the regulations" means device time is not automatically aircraft flight time. Keep it in the proper row or block, and use it only where the rule for your certificate or rating allows it.

Also note the military-experience section of the form says ATD, FTD, or FFS time cannot be used for that military competence or experience block.

Class Totals: SEL, MEL, SES, MES, and More

The Class Totals block is not a place to repeat your entire logbook.

The Form 8710-1 instructions say the time entered in Class Totals should reflect time in the aircraft class for the certificate or rating sought with the application.

For airplane applicants, that may mean:

  • SEL: single-engine land
  • MEL: multiengine land
  • SES: single-engine sea
  • MES: multiengine sea

If you are applying for an airplane single-engine land rating, your SEL total matters. If you also have helicopter, glider, or multiengine time, keep those totals accurate, but do not use the wrong class bucket to make a requirement look satisfied.

Section II Aircraft Time Is Different From Section III Total Time

On Form 8710-1, Section II asks for the aircraft to be used if a flight test is required and asks for total time in that aircraft and/or approved FFS or FTD, including flight time and PIC time.

That is not the same thing as your overall total pilot time in Section III.

For example, a private pilot applicant may have 65.0 total hours, but only 12.4 hours in the specific aircraft make/model used for the checkride. A type-rating or ATP applicant may need to be precise about aircraft, simulator, or training-device time tied to the practical test or training event.

Do not copy your grand total into the aircraft-used block unless it is truly the total time in that aircraft or approved device.

What If IACRA Asks for Hours I Do Not Have in the Current Aircraft?

The FAA's IACRA FAQ addresses this exact issue. IACRA may require aeronautical experience entries that are not all from the current aircraft because the grid is for all pilot hours that apply toward the current certification action, not only time in the aircraft you are using that day.

In plain English: if your applicable experience came from multiple aircraft, the grid can still ask for the total experience that applies to the certificate or rating.

Keep Section II aircraft-used time separate from Section III aeronautical experience.

Corrections: Fix Problems Before Signing

If you have not submitted the IACRA application for review, the applicant can edit it from the user console.

If it has been submitted for review, the certifying officer may be able to return it to the applicant for correction before continuing. Once an application has been signed and submitted to the Airman Certification Branch, correction gets more formal and may require a corrected IACRA package or paper correction process.

That is why the best correction is the one you make before submission.

Before your instructor or certifying officer signs:

  • Print or save the IACRA review copy.
  • Compare every flight-time number with your worksheet.
  • Confirm certificate number, date of issue, medical information, and name formatting.
  • Ask your recommending instructor to review the flight-time grid before you sign.
  • Keep a copy of the submitted application for your records.

Pre-Submit IACRA Flight Time Checklist

Use this immediately before submitting:

  • My logbook totals are current through the application date.
  • I entered the minimum required experience and, where applicable, all pilot time.
  • Total time is not forced to equal instruction plus solo unless that is actually true.
  • Student solo PIC is handled correctly under 14 CFR 61.51.
  • PIC and SIC are based on loggable time, not assumptions.
  • Cross-country time uses the definition required for this certificate or rating.
  • Instrument time is traceable to actual, simulated, aircraft, or device time.
  • FFS, FTD, and ATD time is entered only where permitted.
  • Class totals match the class for the certificate or rating sought.
  • Section II aircraft-used time is not confused with Section III total time.
  • Decimal points are clear and consistent.
  • The application has been reviewed before signature.

When to Get Help

Get help if your logbook has multiple sources, handwritten pages, missing totals, old paper carry-forward errors, military records, foreign training, simulator/device records, or previous applications that do not match your current totals.

Beyond Blue Logbooks converts paper, digital, military, and mixed pilot records into a consolidated Excel logbook with summary sheets. If you want clean IACRA-ready totals before your checkride, interview, or application deadline, start with the Deluxe Logbook service or compare options on the shop section.

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