Trial Flights?
 

Hello everyone,

I was wondering, I know PPL pilots can't get paid, but are they allowed to take up members of the public for a flight? Then the club gets money from the trial flight? Surely it's not different to the gliding world where tug pilots don't normally get paid but the club memebers or general public pay the club for the launch.

I would have thought that Trial Flights are just that.
If you are paying to have a Trial Lesson, you would want to fly and means having a instructor next to you, to take control when needed.

This is completely different to a tug pilot towing a glider.

A "trial flight" is an introductory flying lesson. It must therefore be conducted by a flying instructor. It is Hire and reward.

If you want (as a PPL) to take somebody for a flight as a passenger, you can do so provided it is not for hire and reward. However that is not a "trial flight."

I was always under the impression that you could have fuel costs etc contributed to?

Nothing wrong with you taking friends up and having a share of the costs paid for, but the trial flights you are on about would require either an instructor rating, or if it were a pleasure flight a CPL and AOC.

Adam,
A trial flight is classed as a trial lesson, this means the person having the Trial will want to fly the aircraft.
If a PPL pilot was letting others handle the aircraft, well..........
There is a reason why Trial Lessons are given by instructors.
If anyone I knew wanted a Trial Lesson, I would want an instructor on board next to them, after all there is a big safety issue, if you cannot see that or understand that, judging by your last comment you cannot, well...

There is nothing o stop a PPL taking his/her mates or others up and sharing the costs.