Which condition allows a private pilot with an airplane single-engine land rating to act as PIC of a glider being towed by an aircraft?

Which condition allows a private pilot with an airplane single-engine land rating to act as PIC of a glider being towed by an aircraft?

• A. The pilot has completed a glider towing endorsement
• B. The pilot has a current medical certificate
• C. The pilot has made three flights as PIC of a glider towed by an aircraft within the preceding 24 months
• D. The pilot has towed a glider at least five times this year

Answer: (C)

The key idea is currency for glider towing operations. To act as PIC of a glider being towed by an aircraft, you must have recent experience specifically in glider towing. The rule is that you must have completed three flights as the PIC of a glider being towed by an aircraft within the preceding 24 months. This recency ensures you’re current with the procedures, coordination, and safety practices involved in tow operations, including communication with the tow plane, understanding release points, and managing the interaction between the glider and towing aircraft. Having a glider towing endorsement isn’t what provides that current authority here, and a medical certificate, while required for flight, doesn’t substitute for this particular currency. Tow counts from five times this year don’t establish the required 24-month recency either. So the three PIC-tows in the last 24 months is the condition that makes you current to act as PIC of a glider being towed.

The key idea is currency for glider towing operations. To act as PIC of a glider being towed by an aircraft, you must have recent experience specifically in glider towing. The rule is that you must have completed three flights as the PIC of a glider being towed by an aircraft within the preceding 24 months. This recency ensures you’re current with the procedures, coordination, and safety practices involved in tow operations, including communication with the tow plane, understanding release points, and managing the interaction between the glider and towing aircraft.

Having a glider towing endorsement isn’t what provides that current authority here, and a medical certificate, while required for flight, doesn’t substitute for this particular currency. Tow counts from five times this year don’t establish the required 24-month recency either. So the three PIC-tows in the last 24 months is the condition that makes you current to act as PIC of a glider being towed.