In
commercial aviation
Commercial aviation is the part of civil aviation that involves operating aircraft for remuneration or hire, as opposed to private aviation.
Definition
Commercial aviation is not a rigorously defined category. All commercial air transport and ae ...
with a two-person
flight crew
Aircrew, also called flight crew, are personnel who operate an aircraft while in flight. The composition of a flight's crew depends on the type of aircraft, plus the flight's duration and purpose.
Commercial aviation
Flight deck positions ...
, the pilot flying (PF) is the pilot operating the
flight controls of the
aircraft
An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engines ...
. The other pilot is referred to as the pilot monitoring (PM) or pilot not flying (PNF). Before a flight departs, the
pilot in command
The pilot in command (PIC) of an aircraft is the person aboard the aircraft who is ultimately responsible for its operation and safety during flight. This would be the captain in a typical two- or three-pilot aircrew, or "pilot" if there is only ...
must decide who the pilot flying and pilot monitoring will be for the remainder of the flight, or for any specific phase of flight (e.g. take-off, approach or landing). Typically, the flight crew swap roles on the return leg.
References
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Aircraft operations