Q9:   What about logging cross-country time?

    You *may* log as a cross-country flight any flight at which you leave
    the immediate vicinity of the airport.  From the point of view of
    cross-country flight experience requirements any FAA rating or
    certificate, you need to *land* at an airport other than the airport of
    departure for the flight to be counted as a cross-country flight.  You
    don't even have to do a full-stop landing at the second airport -- a
    touch-and-go (shudder) is fine.  You do have to land -- an instrument
    missed approach doesn't count, as far as the FAA is concerned.
    However, it's also true that you are not *required* to log any flight
    as cross-country.  It's up to you.

    The requirements for certain ratings make restrictions on which logged
    cross-country flights may be counted towards a given rating.  To make
    your logbook simpler, you may wish to count as cross-country flight
    time only those flights which are relevant to ratings which you are or
    might be seeking.  Note that the mileage requirement is the
    _straight-line_ distance between two airports -- if you take a
    circuitous route, that won't help.  (The summary below applies to
    airplanes only; rotorcraft, Gliders, etc. differ.)

    for the Private Pilot certificate (see FAR 61.109(b)(2)):
        Dual cross-country:  no restrictions.  Solo cross-country:  more than
        50nm from the point of departure.

    for the Instrument rating (see FAR 61.65(e)(1)):
        more than 50nm from the point of departure.

    for the Commercial certificate (see FAR 61.129(b)(3)(ii):
        more than 50nm from the point of departure.

    for the ATP certificate (see FAR 61.155(b)(2)):
        no restrictions.