What a complete mess and ample demonstration of why some people claim to have experience which they really don't possess.
How can a first officer EVER be PIC? In truth, he can't but that doesn't mean some pilots aren't claiming it. As alluded to above, the FAA have a daft regulation that says if you're qualified as a PIC on an aircraft then you can claim hours as a PIC and I've seen this in operation. When I've flown captain/captain with an FAA licensed pilot and the guy in the right seat is acting as PM and is NOT on any paperwork as PIC, he has claimed the hours as P1/PIC (whatever you want to call it), despite the fact that I was the PIC. In the same situation, I've claimed only P2 hours. Small wonder that some of our guys have exaggerated PIC experience with regulations like that. I am NOT blaming the pilots because that's what the FAA says but I am blaming the authorities that can't get their act together and sort out exactly what should and shouldn't be claimed. Surely it is ridiculous that two people can claim to be PIC on a flight. Throw into the ring the added complication of some authorities having command ratings and others having no such thing or the differences in interpretation of PICUS and it just makes a complete mess of the whole thing.
If only there was an organisation that harmonised the way these things should be done
