Logging Cross Country time
 

Does anybody know what the requirements are for a flight to be classed as cross country in the uk. ive seen older threads saying that the flight just needs to be outside of 3NM of the airport, however they are from the early 2000s and i cannot find anymore up to date information.

I found the aircrew regulations state that "Cross country means a flight between a point of departure and a point of arrival following a pre-planned route, using standard navigation procedures" this never states if the two airfields need to be different?

Im trying to make sure I get enough XC time for starting MEP/MEIR courses.

The definition is broad, so some use of common sense is required. As long as you were doing some kind of enroute navigation, and you weren't staying in a circuit or a very nearby practice area, you can log cross country, even on an A-A flight.

perfect, that’s what I was hoping. I only log it for when I’m actually following some sort of route, so that’s great that it counts.

You might want to keep a careful record, or supplementary details.

If in future you again need to justify cross-country time, the rules differ for different purposes. For example, FAA needs an away landing, but not for ATP. Some certificates have a minimum distance. Some categories, eg Rotorcraft, halve that distance for same level certificate.

In general, it’s all X-C if it’s away from the circuit. However, you may not be able to count all for every purpose.

Good luck.

Air Navigation Order 2009 No. 3015 Schedule 7, Part B, Section 1, Sub-Section 2 (5): "Cross-country flight means any flight during the course of which the aircraft is more than three nautical miles from the aerodrome of departure." Google and the UK Regs are your friend. It's the last bit of text in that section, so scroll all the way down to the bottom.

But, I'd have you take a moment and consider what the purpose of cross-country training is and what you're meant to get from it. If you're headed down the road of multi-engine flying in an instrument environment (as you state) or you ever want to pursue flying beyond a hobby, you have to be comfortable with going a lot further afield than 3 miles. Consider this definition from another regulator as it applies to what a sector is defined as for airline pilot training "a take-off, departure, arrival, and landing including at least a 50 nm enroute segment." Getting out of your local area and having to actually navigate is why regulators require 200 nm and 300 nm cross-country flights for license validation.

Don't make the mistakes I've seen other students make - they go out building hours for the sake of the logbook, but they're not putting into practice the principles and lessons they have already learned. As a result, when it comes time for the next course, their knowledge and skills have dropped well below that required for the license held in the first place, and they end up spending way more money than they otherwise would have because they're too rusty to start the course. So get out there, plan a lot of cross-countries, fly a few of them, and safely push your comfort zone.

..... except that it is ANO 2016 that is currently in force and the definition of cross-country is as found in Schedule 1.