Grandad flier,
I agree fully with you that there should be a designated commander before flight. - I think we both agree on that.
Also you make 2 good points;
1)In the example I quoted, the pilot not flying is no longer a pilot in this enviroment and is only a passenger since the a/c is a single pilot a/c.
I agree that morally you should stop the other guy commiting the offence but legally you have no say in the matter.
The other point of discussion is that of changing commander in flight. I don't know for sure whether you can or cannot do it, the purpose of my example was to highlight the difficulty which may arise with one signature for the tech log and a hand over of command whilst airbourne.
What I have always done is operated as Commander for one leg, signing the tech log for MY acceptance of the a/c and then the other guy signs HIS acceptance of the tech log for the other leg. There is then no ambiguity about who is in command and legally responsible.
Think you are right that you should take someone with you with more experience if you are flying in IFR on the first couple of trips but as for who can log what and who is ultimately in command that is very tricky due to the single pilot nature of light a/c.
Pulse1,
My example may not have been a deliberate act but could have been done purely by accident and could have arisen by
any sort of lapse.
Your example of PPL and PPL/IR pilots flying together is a tricky one and would depend on the validity of the tech log signature and whether you can transfer command in flight.
Flying with people who have different experience and qualifications is always difficult and that of pressonitis. The more experienced pilot should recognise this and make allowances. In the bad whx, 2 pilots scenario surely the PPL/IR pilot should take account of this and be content with the decision taken by the commander at that time?
I seem to be going on a bit here!! By all means use those with more experience to help you make a sound reasoned judgement (even in airline operations the co-pilot may have more experience (hours) than the captain), but ultimately it should be your decision as commander.
Finally, I wholeheartedly agree that a decision on who should be commander should be made on the ground before flight to resolve any ambiguity and make flying what it should be FUN!!!!