Night Currency w/ students

[Cosmo1999]

Hello. I was wanting to ask all you instructors out there, do you need to be night current to do night flights with students? The reason I ask is because the regulation states that no person may act as PIC in ain airplane carrying passengers during the period between 1 hour after sunset and one hour before sunrise etc etc... The way I see it the student is not a passenger. Passengers do not log flight time, they are just there for the ride. Under part 1 a crewmember is a person assigned to perfom duty in an aircraft during flight time. To me a student is a crewmember because well he is assigned to do all of the dutys in the aircraft and the instructor is there acting as PIC to assure that all dutys are carried out properly. Therefore a CFI does not have to have 3 T/O and Land to full stop w/in the precedding 90 days the way I interpret this reg. My chief pilot told me everyone needs to be night current to take up students. When I got my CFI 2 years ago me and my CFI had this same debate and we concluded that you did not need to be night current to take your students on a night flight. I think the reg is a little vague but I really dont want to have to go out and rent an airplane just to get night current again. The CFI that helped me work on my CFI said he would get night current all the time with his students in the cockpit. In my 2 years of instructing this is the first time that I actually havent flown at night for over 3 months so ive never really thought about it. About half the people at work think you need to be current and about half dont. I was hoping to get your input on this to have something to go back to work and debate more with. Thanks to all, sorry bout the elongated post

[Buzo]

The student is a passenger because they are not required to be there.

[aviator]

I can't point to the reg but I was always told the student is not a passenger and you don't need the night currency for a lesson....

[Baronman]

Thus far I have considered my student as a passenger and I am or become night current for the flight.

Additionally, I don't consider landings done by my students as my landings meaning I don't become current through their lessons. I'm not the sole manipulator blah blah blah.....

[Cosmo1999]

Yea I dont consider the landings students do as mine for currency. However every now and then I will ask a student while flying at night if he minds if I do a landing or two. Most dont mind so I usually keep my currency that way since I am sole manipulator of the controls. My company doesnt pay to keep instructors current and I dont think I should have to pay for flight time anymore. I have spent a lot of money so most of the time I manage to stay current. Technically speakng though I dont think the student is a passenger as far as the FAA goes so if im not current when I fly with a student I think its ok. Then I can do a landing or two with different students and get current again.

[Hunter]

Here is my take. Yes you can fly with students at night even if you are not night current....how? well the same way you can instruct without a medical....as long as the instructor is not PIC and the student is , then you can do it. But the student has to hold the proper ratings to be pilot in command, so no IFR flight plan if the student is not instrument rated...n that case, the instructor would have to be PIC.