VFR REGULATIONS 23 / LEARN · EXPLORE · CHECK
Private pilot privileges & limitations
Sharing a trip is different from selling transportation.
Your learning goals
- Apply the general boundary.
- Recognize the limits and exceptions that affect this flight.
- Explain a decision using the scenario and supporting rule.
The general boundary
A private pilot generally cannot act as PIC for compensation or hire, or carry passengers/property for compensation or hire. Compensation can be more than wages. Do not disguise transportation for others as “free flying” or reimbursement.
Expense sharing needs more than arithmetic
For a genuine common-purpose flight, the pilot must pay at least the pro-rata share, counting the pilot, and shared operating expenses are limited to fuel, oil, airport expenditures, and rental fees. Do not add ownership insurance, maintenance, or loan costs to that list. FAA guidance also examines common purpose and holding out transportation to the public; equal splitting alone does not legalize an offered transport service.
Recognize the narrow exceptions
The rule permits specific activities subject to their conditions: flying incidental to your business/employment without carrying persons/property for compensation; qualifying charitable/community flights under §91.146; sanctioned search/location expense reimbursement; a salesman with at least 200 logged hours demonstrating to a prospective buyer; qualified glider/unpowered-ultralight towing; and specified powered-parachute/weight-shift production-test activity. An exception is not a general commercial privilege.
EXPLORE / APPLY THE RULE
Share a purpose, then the cost
Educational example, not approval of a business arrangement. Common purpose is a factual question, not something established just by checking a box.
FLIGHT SCENARIO
What would change your plan?
You and three friends independently want to spend the weekend in Nashville. Eligible flight costs total $400. Can everyone pay $100?
- NoticeWhat does this situation require?
- VerifyWhat evidence is still missing?
- DecideWhat keeps an option open?
Compare your reasoning
Potentially, if the flight has a genuine common purpose, no prohibited holding out, and only permitted expenses are shared. The pilot’s minimum share is $100. Offering rides to strangers going where they choose is a different question even if you pay a quarter.
SUMMARY
Sharing a trip is different from selling transportation.
Potentially, if the flight has a genuine common purpose, no prohibited holding out, and only permitted expenses are shared. The pilot’s minimum share is $100. Offering rides to strangers going where they choose is a different question even if you pay a quarter.
Before moving on, explain the decision in your own words: what would you verify, and what would make you change the plan?
PRACTICE
Flashcards and knowledge check
Six flashcards, then five questions with explanations.
Enable JavaScript for flashcards and the knowledge check. The lesson and scenario remain available without it.
Sources & lesson notes
Sources & lesson notes
- 14 CFR §61.113Verified against eCFR text current through September 15, 2026.
- FAA AC 61-142Common purpose, expense sharing, and holding out; guidance rather than a separate regulation.
For U.S. private-pilot airplane study. Rules verified against eCFR text current through September 15, 2026, with linked FAA guidance. Scenarios isolate a rule; actual flight decisions require all applicable rules, aircraft limitations, and current information.