Definition
An operating condition in which one pilot is solely responsible for all flight tasks, including aircraft control, navigation, communications, systems management, and decision-making, with no second crewmember to share workload or cross-check actions.
Plain English
Flying alone, where you are the only person handling everything that has to be done in the cockpit.
Context Anchor
Seen in risk management discussions, especially when evaluating workload, distractions, and decision-making during flight.
Why Pilots Care
The absence of a second pilot raises the risk of task saturation and poor decisions, requiring deliberate use of risk management tools such as checklists and personal minimums.
Intuition Check
Do not assume “single-pilot” just means there is only one person in the aircraft. Here it means one pilot is carrying all pilot duties without another qualified pilot helping.
Example Sentence 1
In a single-pilot situation, the pilot decided to brief the approach early to reduce workload before reaching the busy terminal area.
Example Sentence 2
The instructor stressed that single-pilot situations demand extra vigilance because no one else is available to catch errors.