Private Pilot Night Training Checklist: 14 CFR 61.109(a)(2)

Night is one of the easiest places for an airplane private-pilot logbook to look fine and still fail a DPE's eligibility check. You can have more than three hours of night dual and still be short if the night cross-country was under 100 NM or you only have eight full-stop night landings. This page walks the airplane single-engine night line items in 14 CFR 61.109(a)(2), with the Alaska exception in 61.110.

It is a deep dive on night only. For the full hour checklist, see 61.109(a) Private Pilot Logbook Checklist.

What 61.109(a)(2) requires

Except as provided in § 61.110, a private pilot airplane single-engine applicant must log 3 hours of night flight training in a single-engine airplane that includes:

# Requirement Reg
1 3 hours night flight training in a single-engine airplane 61.109(a)(2)
1a One night cross-country flight of over 100 nautical miles total distance 61.109(a)(2)(i)
1b 10 takeoffs and 10 landings to a full stop, each involving a flight in the traffic pattern, at an airport 61.109(a)(2)(ii)

Source: eCFR Title 14 Part 61, § 61.109(a)(2), verified via the eCFR API (title up to date as of 2026-10-22).

What counts as "night" for this training

For Part 1 of the FARs, night means the time between the end of evening civil twilight and the beginning of morning civil twilight, as published in the Air Almanac, converted to local time (14 CFR 1.1, "Night").

That is not the same window used for passenger night currency. To carry passengers at night under 61.57(b), the takeoffs and landings must be in the period beginning 1 hour after sunset and ending 1 hour before sunrise. Training logged toward 61.109(a)(2) uses the 1.1 "night" definition; currency for carrying passengers later uses the narrower 61.57(b) window. Ask your instructor which clock you are flying to on a given lesson, and log the condition so the two are not mixed up later.

Night cross-country: "over 100 NM total distance"

The night XC under 61.109(a)(2)(i) is measured as total distance, and it must be over 100 NM (100.0 does not meet "over 100"). Write the route and the total distance in the remarks so you can show how you got the number.

Separately, for private airplane aeronautical experience, cross-country time itself needs a landing point more than 50 NM straight-line from the original departure point (14 CFR 61.1, "Cross-country time" (ii)). So a night XC that is only a 90 NM out-and-back with no landing beyond 50 NM may fail both the distance test for (a)(2)(i) and the XC definition for logging the time as cross-country toward 61.109. Confirm both with your instructor before you treat the flight as done.

Full-stop night landings (not touch-and-goes)

61.109(a)(2)(ii) requires 10 takeoffs and 10 landings to a full stop, each with a flight in the traffic pattern, at an airport. Touch-and-goes do not satisfy "to a full stop." Count landings from the landings column (or remarks), not from night hours. Having 3.5 hours of night dual with eight full-stop night landings still leaves you two short.

Alaska exception (61.110)

If you receive flight training in and reside in the State of Alaska, you are not required to meet the night flight training requirements of this subpart, subject to the limits in 61.110:

  • You may be issued a certificate with the limitation "Night flying prohibited."
  • You must complete the appropriate night training within 12 calendar months after the certificate is issued, or the certificate becomes invalid for use until you do.
  • The limitation can be removed after you complete the night training and present an instructor endorsement that verifies it.

61.110(c) also allows a "Night flying prohibited" limitation for certain other categories (gyroplane, powered parachute, weight-shift-control) that do not meet their night requirements; that paragraph does not create a general opt-out for airplane single-engine applicants outside Alaska. Airplane ASEL night training is required unless you qualify under 61.110(a)/(b).

Worked example (made-up logbook, for illustration only)

Example student: 3.4 hours night dual in a Cessna 172. Night XC: home → airport A → home, total route distance 98 NM, farthest landing 41 NM straight-line. Night landings: 9 full-stop in the pattern.

  • Night hours: 3.4 ≥ 3.0 → hours met.
  • Night XC: 98 is not over 100 NM → not met (61.109(a)(2)(i)). The farthest landing also fails the >50 NM XC definition in 61.1(ii).
  • Night landings: 9 of 10 → not met (61.109(a)(2)(ii)).

Fix: replan a night XC with total distance clearly over 100 NM and a landing beyond 50 NM straight-line, and add one more full-stop night landing in the pattern.

Self-check before you schedule the checkride

  1. Sum every dual night entry in a single-engine airplane. Need at least 3.0 hours.
  2. Find the longest night XC. Confirm total distance over 100 NM and that it qualifies as XC under 61.1(ii).
  3. Count full-stop night takeoffs and landings in the traffic pattern separately. Need 10 and 10.
  4. If you train and live in Alaska and plan to skip night for now, confirm the 61.110 path and the 12-calendar-month clock with your instructor and examiner.
  5. Do not treat 61.57(b) passenger-currency landings as automatically satisfying 61.109(a)(2)(ii), or the reverse, without checking the time-of-day window.

Related guides

Want a second set of eyes on your night rows? Cleared 2 Checkride reads photos of your paper logbook, totals every page, and checks each 61.109(a) item — including night hours, the night XC, and night full-stop landings — plus the AC 61-65K endorsement checklist. Look at the sample report on cleared2checkride.com first. $24.99 per check, re-check after fixes included. It's a prep aid: your instructor and examiner make the final call.

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