Solo Mode
How 5-by-5 works for single-owner pilots on the Solo plan.
What is Solo Mode?
Solo mode is designed for pilots who own or operate an aircraft by themselves — no co-owners, no club members, just you and your airplane. Everything in 5-by-5 that makes sense for a single pilot is included; features that only apply to group coordination (scheduling, member billing, shared expenses) are simply hidden so they don’t clutter your experience.
Solo is a full-featured plan. It is not a stripped-down version of the product.
What’s Included
| Feature | Solo Free | Solo (paid) |
|---|---|---|
| Flight logging | ✓ | ✓ |
| Maintenance tracking | Up to 5 items | Unlimited |
| Pilot currency | Basic | Full (with expiry dates, IPC, grace periods) |
| Squawk reporting | ✓ | ✓ |
| Squawk photos | — | ✓ |
| Tach cascade management | — | ✓ |
| AD auto-import | — | ✓ |
| Documents Library | — | ✓ |
| Calendar sync (device) | — | ✓ |
| A&P mechanic access | — | ✓ |
| Web dashboard | — | ✓ |
Scheduling, group billing, member ledger, and member management are not included in Solo — those are Club-only features.
The Solo Home Screen (Mobile App)
The home screen in Solo mode is streamlined. You’ll see:
- Your aircraft header with photo and tach reading
- Grounding squawk banner (if applicable)
- Maintenance alerts for items due soon or overdue
- Your personal flight stats (YTD flights, YTD hours, this month)
- Estimated monthly bill (if you’ve set an hourly rate in Settings)
- Weather widget for your home airport
- Pilot currency status
- Quick action buttons
The Upcoming Flights and Member Balances sections are hidden — those are group features.

Flight Logging (Mobile App)
Flight logging works identically to Club mode. You enter your tach times, route, landings, and any squawks. On the paid Solo plan, tach cascade management keeps your tach timeline continuous — each new flight pre-fills tach-out from the previous tach-in.
See Flight Logging for full details.
Maintenance (Mobile App)
Maintenance tracking is fully available on the paid Solo plan with no item limits. You can:
- Track maintenance items by tach hours, calendar date, or both
- Log completions with notes and tach readings
- Import Airworthiness Directives (ADs) automatically from the FAA Federal Register
- Access the Documents Library (POH, manuals, service bulletins, and your own uploaded documents)
The paid Solo plan is the only plan that includes AD auto-import and the Documents Library without also requiring a Club subscription.
See Maintenance Tracking for full details.
Adding an A&P Mechanic (Paid Solo)
On the paid Solo plan, you can give your A&P or IA access to your maintenance records without giving them access to your flights or billing. See Members & Roles for instructions on adding a mechanic.
Pilot Currency (Mobile App)
Pilot currency tracking is fully available on the paid Solo plan, including:
- Day and night passenger-carrying currency
- IFR currency with instrument approaches and holds
- IPC (Instrument Proficiency Check) date tracking
- Medical certificate expiration
- Flight review (BFR) tracking
On the free Solo plan, currency shows as current or not current without expiry date details.
See Pilot Currency for full details.
The Web Dashboard (Paid Solo)
Solo paid subscribers have full access to the web dashboard at the same URL as Club users. Your dashboard includes:
- Overview — aircraft summary, recent flights, open squawks, maintenance alerts
- Flights — detailed flight log with charts and stats
- Maintenance — Gantt timeline, oil analysis tracking, component time tracking, documents
The Finances tab is present but primarily useful if you’ve set an hourly rate and want to track your own estimated costs over time. The member ledger and group billing features are not applicable.
See The Web Dashboard for full details.
Switching from Solo to Club
If you take on a co-owner or join a club, you can upgrade from Solo to a Club plan. Your existing flights, maintenance records, and aircraft data carry over completely. You’ll be prompted to add members and configure group settings after upgrading.
Contact support if you need help migrating from a Solo account to a Club.
Starting a Second Group or Account
If you have a Solo account and later want to add a Club account (or vice versa) — for example, you join a flying club while still maintaining your solo aircraft — you don’t need a second login. From the Settings screen, tap Create New Group or Solo Account and follow the setup wizard. Your personal information (name, contact details, emergency contact, certificates, and ratings) carries over automatically.
See Settings for details on managing multiple groups.