Adding Time and Activity to a Flight Log
Summary
Record flight time, instrument time, ground training, landings, and approaches for each lesson within a debrief log. Time and activity data is entered per lesson and feeds into course progress totals, training insights, and compliance records. Only the instructor assigned to the flight can add or edit this data.
Who this is for
- Instructors recording flight time and activity after a debrief
- Chief Instructors and Assistant Chief Instructors reviewing time entries on flights within their organization
Before you begin
- The student must have an active log (debrief) already recorded
- At least one lesson must be associated with the log
- You must be the assigned instructor on the flight, or an admin in the same organization
- The course must be in an active (not archived) state for editing—archived courses display time and activity as read-only
Steps
1. Open the student's log
From the Instruct tab, select the student, then tap the flight you want to add time and activity to.
2. Navigate to a lesson
Tap the lesson card within the log. The lesson detail view opens showing content, ACS tasks, and resources.
3. Tap "Time & Activity"
Tap the blue Time & Activity button (clock icon) below the lesson content. This button only appears if you have permission to manage courses for this student.
A sheet slides up with the Time & Activity form. If existing data has been saved for this lesson, it loads automatically.
4. Enter flight time
The Flight Time section includes these fields:
| Field | Input Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Total Flight Time | Decimal hours | Total time for this lesson's flight (e.g., 1.5) |
| Dual Received | Decimal hours | Time the student received dual instruction |
| Solo | Decimal hours | Time the student flew solo |
| Cross Country | Decimal hours | Cross-country flight time |
| Night | Decimal hours | Night flight time |
5. Enter instrument time
The Instrument Time section tracks:
| Field | Input Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Actual Instrument | Decimal hours | Time in actual instrument conditions |
| Simulated Instrument | Decimal hours | Time under simulated instrument conditions (hood/foggles) |
6. Enter ground and simulator time
The Ground & Simulator section tracks:
| Field | Input Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ground Training | Decimal hours | Pre/post-flight ground instruction time |
| AATD (Simulator) | Decimal hours | Time in an approved aviation training device |
7. Enter landings and approaches
The Landings & Approaches section tracks counts (whole numbers):
| Field | Input Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Day Landings | Count | Number of daytime landings |
| Night Landings | Count | Number of nighttime landings |
| Instrument Approaches | Count | Number of instrument approaches completed |
| Holding Procedures | Count | Number of holding patterns performed |
8. Save
Tap Save in the top right. A brief spinner appears while saving, then the form dismisses automatically with haptic confirmation.
To discard your changes, tap Cancel in the top left.
What happens next
Once saved, the time and activity data:
- Links to the specific lesson within the log via an internal reference
- Aggregates into the student's course progress totals (computed server-side)
- Feeds into the student's training insights and performance trend analysis
- Becomes available in compliance reports and record-keeping views
- Syncs in real time across the web admin portal and the mobile app
Common issues
| Problem | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| "Time & Activity" button doesn't appear | You don't have course management permission for this student | Confirm you are the assigned instructor on this flight and the student is in your roster. Admins should check role assignments. |
| Form opens in read-only mode with a "Done" button instead of "Save" | The course is archived, or you don't have edit permission on this flight | Archived courses lock all time entries. If the course is active, check that you are the assigned instructor—logs from other instructors in the same organization can only be edited by admins. |
| "This log belongs to another instructor and cannot be edited." | Another instructor in your organization recorded this flight | Only the instructor who recorded the flight (or an organization admin) can edit time and activity. Coordinate with the original instructor if changes are needed. |
| "This log belongs to a different organization and cannot be edited." | The flight was recorded under a different organization | You can only edit flights within your own organization. |
| "Failed to save activity logs. Please try again." | Network error during save | Check your connection and try again. The app will retry the save—no data is lost locally until you dismiss the form. |
| Values look wrong after saving | Decimal vs. count confusion | Flight time fields accept decimal hours (1.5 = 1h 30m). Landing and approach fields accept whole numbers only. |
How this works
Per-lesson tracking
Time and activity is recorded per lesson, not per flight. If a single flight covers multiple lessons, you enter time and activity separately for each lesson. This allows FlightSense to track exactly how much time a student spent on each training objective.
Data storage
Each field value is stored as an individual activity log entry linked to the student lesson record. When you update a value, FlightSense deletes the previous entry and creates a new one. When you clear a value, the entry is removed. Unchanged values are left untouched—only your actual edits trigger network requests.
Ownership and edit guards
FlightSense enforces instructor ownership on logs. The rules depend on the flight type:
- Organization flights (recorded within a flight school): The assigned instructor and any admin in the same organization can edit. Other instructors in the organization can view but not edit.
- Independent flights (instructor-linked but no organization): Only the assigned instructor can edit.
- Student personal logs (no instructor assigned): No instructor can edit time and activity.
How time feeds into progress
Course progress totals are computed on the server by summing all activity log entries linked to lessons within that course. The iOS app does not calculate these totals locally—it fetches them from the backend after each save. This means your time entries appear in the student's course progress view within moments of saving.