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Re a Part 129 air carrier that is short of co-pilots: Can a pilot who usually flies in the left seat (B737 aircraft: non-US registry) as the Pilot-in-Command fly in the right seat as the SIC (co-pilot)?

Steve V.
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Lee Bauer
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1 Answers1

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From the regulations:

Each person acting as a flightcrew member must hold a certificate or license that shows the person's ability to perform duties in connection with the operation of the aircraft. The certificate or license must have been issued or rendered valid by:

(a) The State in which the aircraft is registered; or

(b) The State of the Operator, provided that the State of the Operator and the State of Registry have entered into an agreement under Article 83bis of the Convention on International Civil Aviation that covers the aircraft.

Since a captain can always fulfill the duties of a first officer, then yes, someone who normally occupies the left seat can occupy the right seat.

Simon
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  • Thank you, Simon. As a follow up....if the Captain has never flown in the right seat, your position is that he may do so without any right seat certification? How about right seat landings and any other requirement, such as operation of avionics equipment that is only accessible from the right seat? – Lee Bauer Jul 17 '15 at 21:50
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    Without disagreeing with @Simon's answer, let me add that the actual OpSpecs and procedures at the particular carrier will also play a role. If a captain can routinely occupy the right seat, then he probably gets at least a minimal amount of training in it annually -- perhaps one takeoff, approach, and landing, as well as any duties specific to that seat. I've seen one carrier that used to allow 2-captain crews that decided to discontinue the practice, so now only Check Airmen do the additional right seat events on a Captain sim ride, and thus only they can fly right seat - not line captains. – Ralph J Jul 17 '15 at 21:59
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    @LeeBauer - That's not how it works. You don't get to be Captain of an airliner without spending 1000 hours as First Officer. In addition, the Captain and FO work together on most tasks of the airliner, so the Captain knows what the FO should be doing and v.v. So if a Captain ever has to take the right-hand seat for a flight, he'll know what's up. – KeithS Jul 17 '15 at 22:05
  • That's the key. You can't sit on the left, unless you've done a lot of time, and by definition are certified, in the right seat. – Simon Jul 17 '15 at 22:34
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    @KeithS He's a captain because he did time as an FO, but not necessarily in the same aircraft. 737 FO to 767 FO to MD80 CA is entirely possible, and the knowledge he has for his left seat duties doesn't necessarily translate into proficiency in all the hardware that only the right seat has access to. Not a huge number of things, but maybe the ACARS in an MD-80, or specific Cat II or Cat III duties are different, and knowing what the other guy is supposed to be doing isn't always the same as being ABLE to accomplish it in a timely manner yourself. – Ralph J Jul 17 '15 at 22:34
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    @Simon That's entirely incorrect. There is zero requirement in the FARs or in many company policies & OpSpecs to have anything close to "a lot of time" in the right seat in order to be qualified in the left seat. Now, in many cases the pilot does have right seat time in type, and in many cases the airline keeps him qualified in that seat, but the suggestion that it is a "requirement" to have that experience in the type being flown simply doesn't match the facts at many US carriers. – Ralph J Jul 17 '15 at 22:37
  • @RalphJ I didn't say on type. Are you aware of any operator that does not require that both crew can fulfil the duties of the other if required? I'd be keen to know so that I can add them to my "no fly" list ;) – Simon Jul 17 '15 at 22:41
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    @RalphJ - The requirements changed in 2013: http://aviationblog.dallasnews.com/2013/07/15604.html/. Both Captain and FO need an ATPL (1,500 hours TFT) with type rating, and FOs need 1000 hours in the right-hand seat as FO before they can fly as Captain. I'm sure there's some sort of grandfathering for existing flight crews but someone working their way up the ladder today has a pretty steep climb to Captain. – KeithS Jul 17 '15 at 22:52
  • @KeithS He has been in the right seat of SOMETHING, but not necessarily of the aircraft he is flying as Captain. Thus the 737 FO to 767 FO to MD-80 Captain example. The pilot can be an MD-80 captain with ZERO right seat time in the MD-80, which is why his airline may choose to NOT consider him qualified to sit right seat, only left seat. The rule quoted doesn't change that dynamic. – Ralph J Jul 18 '15 at 02:02
  • @Simon -- yes, very *very* familiar with a carrier that no longer allows 2-captain crews (check airmen excepted) for a particular fleet. A change they made as the right seat role became more specialized. And no, I'm not telling you who. Let's just say you've certainly heard of them. – Ralph J Jul 18 '15 at 02:14
  • I don't believe that this answers the question. The regulation that you quote (by the way, it would be helpful to state which regulation it is when you quote it) is but one of many many regulations that must be complied with by the pilot of an air carrier. Simply holding the "certificate or license" does not qualify them to act as an air carrier crew member, which this implies. There are many training requirements, some of which could apply here... – Lnafziger Jul 19 '15 at 05:15