How to log night flight time (FAA rules explained)

Short answer: you may log night time whenever you fly between the end of evening civil twilight and the beginning of morning civil twilight (14 CFR 1.1, the official definition). That is roughly 20 to 40 minutes after sunset and before sunrise in the continental US, and longer at high latitudes.

The confusion comes from the FAA using three different definitions of "night" for three different purposes.

The three night clocks

Purpose	When it applies	Regulation
Position lights on	Sunset to sunrise	14 CFR 91.209
Logging night time	End of evening civil twilight to beginning of morning civil twilight	14 CFR 1.1, 61.51(b)
Night currency landings	1 hour after sunset to 1 hour before sunrise	14 CFR 61.57(b)

So a landing at 25 minutes after sunset may count as night time in your logbook, but it does not count toward night passenger currency, because that window does not open until a full hour after sunset.

Logging night time

Under 14 CFR 61.51(b), your logbook records the conditions of flight, day or night. For each flight, the night portion is the time flown after evening civil twilight ends or before morning civil twilight begins. On a flight that crosses the boundary, you log the day portion as day and the night portion as night; the two together equal total flight time.

Civil twilight times change daily and vary by location. The official source is the Air Almanac, but any reliable sunrise/sunset data for your route is acceptable in practice.

Night currency (carrying passengers)

To carry passengers at night, 14 CFR 61.57(b) requires 3 takeoffs and 3 landings to a full stop within the preceding 90 days, made between 1 hour after sunset and 1 hour before sunrise, in the same category, class, and type (if a type rating is required). Touch-and-goes do not count at night; the landings must be to a full stop.

How KármánLogs handles this for you

Calculating civil twilight for your specific route and date, then splitting a flight across the day/night boundary, is exactly the kind of math that goes wrong in a paper logbook. KármánLogs computes your night time automatically from each flight's locations and times, and counts your takeoffs and landings too. See how OOOI times power automatic logging and log a flight in seconds.

This guide is educational and summarizes the regulations as of the date above. Always verify against the current 14 CFR text before a checkride or when in doubt.

Still need help? Email support@karmanlogs.com.