Definition
The person who has final authority and responsibility for the operation and safety of a flight, who has been designated as pilot in command before or during the flight, and who holds the appropriate category, class, and type rating, if appropriate, for the conduct of the flight.
Plain English
The pilot who is in charge of the flight. They have the final say on every decision and are legally responsible for the safety of the aircraft and everyone on board.
Context Anchor
You will see PIC in regulations, logbooks, training records, flight planning, and any discussion of who is responsible for a flight.
Derivation
Pilot comes from older words meaning a person who steers or guides. Command comes from Latin roots meaning to entrust or order. Together, pilot in command means the pilot entrusted with authority over the flight.
Why Pilots Care
Determines who is accountable for decisions, logbook entries, and compliance with regulations.
Intuition Check
Do not assume the PIC is always the person holding the controls. The PIC is the pilot legally in charge, even if another pilot is flying the airplane at that moment.
Example Sentence 1
As pilot in command, she briefed the passengers on the safety equipment before starting the engine.
Example Sentence 2
During a training flight the instructor served as pilot in command while the student handled the controls.