Certified Flight Instructor medical requirements

[djohnson]

Can a CFI legally give primary flight instruction in a Cessna 150 without having a current third class medical?

[FlyingRon]

If by primary instruction you mean a pilot who does not hold a recreational or better certificate, then NO he can't do it without a medical.
The instructor in that circumstance MUST be the pilot in command and a pilot in command needs a medical.

If the pilot under instruction has a pilot certificate, other than a student one, and meets the other requirements to be pilot in command, then the instructor can forgo the medical since he's just giving instruction, and instruction by itself doesn't require a medical. The trap here is that if they do something like simulated instrument flight, the instructor again because the required crewmember (safety pilot) and has to have a medical.

We worked this out nine ways to Sunday when a close friend who was a CFI lost his medical. He could do my BFR as long as I was still within the currency period.

[djohnson]

Thank you FlyingRon for the clear simple explanation. I'm in the same situation that you described with your CFI friend. I have a CFI friend that thinks he does not need a medical as long as his student has a medical. I was sure that he does need a medical, and I don't want to see him get himself in trouble. Now I just have to figure out a way to convince him. Again. thanks for your help.

[Frank Giger]

And he can't even cite the Sport Pilot rule, as a C150 isn't LSA eligible!

[RickFE]

AOPA discusses this. I'm sure if he contacts them they can help. If you have a CFI and you do not need to act as PIC, you may give instruction.

Here is an article from their site. http://www.aopa.org/asf/publications/inst_reports2.cfm?article=4674

[Gil]

Simple enough. Someone has to be the PIC. A student pilot can only be PIC when he or she is alone in the airplane, and the student certificate is also a medical certificate. In an instructional flight, the CFI is PIC and needs to have at least a 3rd class medical.

The only time a CFI does not need a medical certificate is when the other pilot is qualified to be PIC. And that does not include student pilots.

[FlyingRon]

[QUOTE=Gil;46861 the student certificate is also a medical certificate. [/QUOTE]
The student pilot certificate is USUALLY a medical certificate.