How to export your DaPilot logbook

Your logbook is yours. Any time you want a CSV of every flight, every aircraft, every FDP, and every rest period, you can pull one from inside the iOS app in about ten seconds. The file format is MyFlightBook-compatible, which means LogTen Pro, ZuluLog, CrewLounge PILOTLOG, and most other digital logbook tools read it without conversion.

Why this matters

A logbook lock-in is a logbook risk. If your provider ever raises prices, gets bought, or shuts down, you want to be able to leave the same way you came in. DaPilot does not gate exports behind a subscription. The free tier exports the same format as the Pro tier. Your data is portable on day one.

What you need

DaPilot installed and signed in. Free or Pro tier both work.
Somewhere to send the file (email, AirDrop, iCloud Drive, Files).

Export the file

1Open Settings → Export

Tap the gear icon on the dashboard, then Export. Pick CSV (All data) as the format. The other formats listed (e.g., PDF logbook, JSON) are roadmap items; CSV is what ships in v1.

2Pick a date range

The default is "All flights." If you only want a slice (e.g., the last 12 months for a hiring application), pick a custom range. The exported CSV includes flights, FDPs, and rest periods within the range.

3Tap Generate

DaPilot builds the CSV on-device. A typical export takes one or two seconds for thousands of flights. The result is a file named dapilot-logbook-YYYY-MM-DD.csv.

4Share the file

The iOS share sheet opens. Pick the destination: AirDrop to a Mac, Mail to yourself, save to Files, or open in another app. The file is yours; we do not store a copy server-side.

What's in the file

The CSV has three sections, separated by comment lines that MyFlightBook's parser stops at, so MyFlightBook cleanly imports just the flights and ignores the rest. DaPilot's own importer reads all three sections.

Section 1: Flights

The MyFlightBook flights block. Standard 40-column format covering:

Date, route (departure and destination)
Aircraft tail number and type designator
All FAR 61.51 time categories: total, PIC, SIC, dual received, CFI given
Cross-country, night, simulated instrument, actual instrument
Ground simulator time
Solo time
Day landings (full-stop, T&G), night landings (full-stop, T&G)
Approaches (count and names)
Holds
Block out, wheels off, wheels on, block in (UTC ISO 8601)
Remarks
Engine time and flying time (derived from block and OFF/ON)
Pilot role on flight
Approach names (verbatim, e.g., "ILS 28L")

Section 2: Flight Duty Periods

Only present if you used Airline Mode. The block starts with a comment line:

# FLIGHT DUTY PERIODS

Columns: report time UTC, release time UTC, segments, augmented crew, acclimated, FDP duration in hours, max FDP per Appendix B, paragraph reference (§117.X).

Section 3: Rest Periods

Only present if you used Airline Mode. Block header:

# REST PERIODS

Columns: rest start UTC, rest end UTC, duration in hours, physiological-night flag, paragraph reference (§117.25 for weekly, §117.X for pre-FDP).

Compatibility with other apps

App	Reads DaPilot CSV
MyFlightBook	Yes (stops cleanly at the FDP section)
LogTen Pro	Yes (FAR-format columns map cleanly)
ZuluLog	Yes
CrewLounge PILOTLOG	Yes
Logbook Pro (NC Software)	Mostly; some columns require manual mapping
ForeFlight	No public CSV import format; manual import required
APDL	No public CSV import format

If you're switching to an app not on this list, the column headers in the file are explicit, and most spreadsheet-aware logbook apps can map them with a one-time configuration.

Round-tripping

You can re-import a DaPilot CSV back into DaPilot. The duplicate detection runs on date + departure + destination + tail, so you won't accidentally double up.

You can also import a MyFlightBook CSV that includes flights you previously exported from DaPilot. The dedupe takes care of the overlap. This means MyFlightBook can act as a backup destination; periodically import the DaPilot CSV into MyFlightBook and you have an offsite copy in a different vendor.

Common pitfalls

Exporting before the import finishes. If you scanned an OCR page or imported a CSV moments before exporting, the totals row may not include the new flights yet. Wait for the dashboard to settle.
Picking the wrong date range. Some hiring apps want exactly 12 months; others want career totals. Read the requirement before you generate.
Sharing the file to a public destination. The CSV contains every flight, every aircraft, every passenger remark. Send it to known recipients, not a public Slack channel.
Editing the CSV by hand and re-importing. The format is comma-delimited with quoted strings; manual edits break the parser easily. If you need to fix something, fix it in the iOS app.
Assuming PDF export is available. PDF is on the v1.1 roadmap; the v1 release ships CSV only.

Backup strategy

If your logbook matters (it does, for currency and hiring), set a recurring reminder to export. Once a month is a reasonable cadence. Save the file with a date in the name (dapilot-2026-04.csv) and keep three months of files in iCloud Drive or wherever you back things up. If anything ever goes wrong with your account, you have a portable record.

The other backup mode is "leave it in the cloud and trust the provider." DaPilot's data lives in Supabase Postgres in the United States with point-in-time recovery enabled. That's a real backup. But the CSV in your hands is the strongest portability guarantee a digital logbook can offer.

Privacy reminder

The CSV contains every detail you logged: routes, aircraft, times, remarks. Treat it like a sensitive document. If you publish a screenshot or share with a recruiter, redact passenger names and any operational detail you don't want public.

Last updated April 27, 2026 · 5 min read