Best prep for IPC?

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Vincent Vuoto

Filing Flight Plan
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Vinny
Hello all, I earned my Instrument Rating in 2004. Kept my currency for a while but life got busy of course and I will need an IPC now. It’s been about 10 years since I’ve flown IFR. I fly approx 120hrs VFR per year and desperately want to get my IFR currency back.
I’ve been ground prepping with Sporty’s full online instrument course, reading the oral exam guide, and Rod Machado’s IFR book. I feel like I’m doing all the ground reading but procrastinating on actually getting into the airplane with an instructor.
In your opinions/experiences, what’s the best way to prep after being out of the IFR world for a while?
I have easy access to good instructors and airplanes at my flight club.
Thanks so much!
 
MauleSkinner said:
Get with an instructor for some ground time to see where you need to direct your study, and start flying with an instructor.
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Thank you for your reply. Nice and simple. I feel I’ve been over complicating it by trying to prep too much on my own. But I wanted to regain as much knowledge before I went in for a ground session.
 
Vincent Vuoto said:
Thank you for your reply. Nice and simple. I feel I’ve been over complicating it by trying to prep too much on my own. But I wanted to regain as much knowledge before I went in for a ground session.
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Very understandable, but especially when you’ve been out of it for as long as you have, some direction would be highly beneficial, even if it means a couple hours of ground and an hour-and-a-half flight, and you go back home and study for a month. You’ll have some idea of what your study goals need to be.
 
Vincent Vuoto said:
Thank you for your reply. Nice and simple. I feel I’ve been over complicating it by trying to prep too much on my own. But I wanted to regain as much knowledge before I went in for a ground session.
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You can prep knowledge. There will be a lot you either lost or never knew after a 10 year hiatus. You might even consider doing an instrument ground school. Live or online, there are many good ones to choose from.

Right @write-stuff?
 
MauleSkinner said:
Very understandable, but especially when you’ve been out of it for as long as you have, some direction would be highly beneficial, even if it means a couple hours of ground and an hour-and-a-half flight, and you go back home and study for a month. You’ll have some idea of what your study goals need to be.
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Thanks for the great advice!
 
You could start with the Instrument Rating ACS. There is a task table listing what tasks are required for an IPC.
 
Why not do an hour of ground and a flight (sim or airplane) and see what you need to study. Like a Flight Review, you cannot fail an IPC, you just end up with some dual.

I took off 20 years. 1.5 ground, 1.8 sim, 1.3 airplane and IPC DONE.
 
Vincent Vuoto said:
It’s been about 10 years since I’ve flown IFR. … and want to get my IFR currency back. … out of the IFR world for a while.
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Sounds like resources for ground study covered.
AOPA ASI also worth a look:
- IFR Proficiency
- IFR Proficiency Kneeboard

Also consider updates/practice with respect to technology for flying IFR.
- EFB
- electronic filing & weather brief tools
- in-panel avionics … etc.
 
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I don't see any problem with just hiring an instructor to get you proficient and when you are proficient get signed off, presuming that all of the elements were completed. Am I missing something that says those have to be done separately?
 
dbahn said:
I don't see any problem with just hiring an instructor to get you proficient and when you are proficient get signed off, presuming that all of the elements were completed. Am I missing something that says those have to be done separately?
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That's essentially how I do it. I have a list of the things that are required by the ACS, and once you complete each one without assistance, I check it off. If I check some of them off the first time we fly, some more the next time, and the rest the next time, I sign off your IPC.

I do make sure that we're doing all of these in a reasonable time period. If you do half the items but then don't fly with me again for a few months, you're going to start over. I haven't had a problem, especially since most people needing an IPC seem to need it specifically for an upcoming flight. So they're motivated, and we'll fly multiple times that week and get it all done.
 
I would just take a few flights with a cfii, at a point where they are comfortable they'll sign off on the ipc

make sure to actually fly in clouds 8)
 
midlifeflyer said:
You can prep knowledge. There will be a lot you either lost or never knew after a 10 year hiatus. You might even consider doing an instrument ground school. Live or online, there are many good ones to choose from.

Right @write-stuff?
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Yep, absolutely right. Just make sure to pick a ground school that isn't focused on test-prep only. There are a lot like that so make sure to pick a comprehensive program.
 
Absolutely do an hour of ground and flight instruction with an instructor to determine where your instrument skills are. Then focus your self-study and any additional flight time necessary to bring yourself back up to standards. The last flight instruction session can be your IPC, then go fly in the system.
 
Get an instructor,who likes doing IFR training and go fly. The instructor can tell you when you’re ready.
 
MikeNY said:
Sounds like resources for ground study covered.
AOPA ASI also worth a look:
- IFR Proficiency
- IFR Proficiency Kneeboard

Also consider updates/practice with respect to technology for flying IFR.
- EFB
- electronic filing & weather brief tools
- in-panel avionics … etc.
Click to expand...
Thx for the link. I had no idea AOPA has air safety materials
 
My friend is a standards check airman at his work, comes in handy for BFR and IPCS.
We fly together pretty often in his plane and mine. So he knows my lack of IFR skills, lack of flying skills in general.
Every flight together is a learning experience for me.
He says a IPC is min 2 hours of ground and 2 hours of flight time.
It takes 2 days. First day we will do an hour of ground and then go fly and finish it the second day. He is tough and does not allow me to cut any corners.
He provided this book he made up for me to refer to for each IPC. He has all the highlights in it and then some NASA reports in it for me to read. I start brushing up a couple days before. He told me long ago, relax. He can't fail me, just make me fly some more until he signs my log book.
I kind of dread it before then I want I want more when were finished.
Also need to know your POH well for the plane your gonna be flying.
IMG_2902.JPG

IMG_2903.JPG

IMG_2908.JPG
 
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Vincent Vuoto said:
It’s been about 10 years since I’ve flown IFR.
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One additional comment to what's already been mentioned: Depending on how much instrument flying you used to do with GPS, this may be an area where some reading and training are appropriate. VORs and ILS still work, of course, but real-world instrument flying is getting pretty hard to do without GPS:

- Know when you can legally substitute GPS for another NAVAID, and when not​
- Understand TAAs (Terminal Arrival Area) and how they are different from MSA​
- Read the AFM Supplement for your GPS. Understand the limitations of the GPS. Know what you can and cannot do with an expired navigation database.​
- Understand what WAAS does for alternate planning (as opposed to a non-WAAS GPS)​
- Know what MON airports are, and how to find them on an enroute chart​
- Make sure whatever system you use to file flight plans (ForeFlight, Garmin Pilot, Leidos, ...) has a good aircraft profile with all the right equipment codes​
​
Best of luck for getting back into the clouds!

- Martin
 
I bought this manual after being offered a nice discount. It's very good. Get a copy of ASA's FAR/AIM to cross reference as you read through it.

IFR Procedures

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Gary Ward said:
"He says a IPC is min 2 hours of ground and 2 hours of flight time.
It takes 2 days. "
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Not going to kick on your friend, but that is just plane (get it) crazy!

2 days to do an IPC?! We do 135.297 checkrides in less than 4 hours including ground and air opeations and that is darn sure comprehensive.

When I conduct an IPC we start by going over instrument questions that the PIC is not really comfortable with and answering questions that the PIC may have. Lately, I have been discussing the importance of NOT relying on the vertical nav indicator on a non precision approach as it could lead you into a rising terrain situation. Ground time usually work out to abour 2 hours.

From the ground, we go to the airplane and work our way through the manuevers. Like I mentioned earlier, we fly A and B patterns and from there I usually throw in some slow flight while under the goggles. After that it's off the the approaches and again, working through any items that the PIC is not really comfortable with.
 
k9medic said:
Not going to kick on your friend, but that is just plane (get it) crazy!

2 days to do an IPC?! We do 135.297 checkrides in less than 4 hours including ground and air opeations and that is darn sure comprehensive.

When I conduct an IPC we start by going over instrument questions that the PIC is not really comfortable with and answering questions that the PIC may have. Lately, I have been discussing the importance of NOT relying on the vertical nav indicator on a non precision approach as it could lead you into a rising terrain situation. Ground time usually work out to abour 2 hours.

From the ground, we go to the airplane and work our way through the manuevers. Like I mentioned earlier, we fly A and B patterns and from there I usually throw in some slow flight while under the goggles. After that it's off the the approaches and again, working through any items that the PIC is not really comfortable with.
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Aren't you saying pretty much 4 hours then for IPC?

I have done them in one day maybe 3 hours total. But he said the other hour could include us flying together the week before when we went to lunch in my plane and time we spend talking in the hangar.
We don't always do them in 2 days but we have. They are sometimes a week/s apart when he comes home the next week or 2. It doesn't bother me as the book get signed and he makes sure he is not cutting any corners. It's because of time. Neither of us might not have 5 hours for it in one day.
 
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What plane will you be flying? What navigator will be in it? GTN 650? GNS?

In addition to the other great ideas listed above, download the appropriate simulator from Garmin/whomever to your I Pad. Watch YouTube tutorials on how to use them, download and read the pilots user manual, and then practice using them. As well, as your CFII to show you how he/she uses it.

The IFR world for GA is now 90%+ GPS, and your familiarity, proficiency, and speed on using your plane's navigator will help a lot from being distracted, taking eye's off of the instruments, loosing altitude/heading/etc.

You'll also need to get up to speed on IFR planning. If you don't have an EFB, suggest ForeFlight Pro level which allows you overlay approach plates on the moving map.

Good luck!
 
Gary Ward said:
Aren't you saying pretty much 4 hours then for IPC?
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No issues with the time. The issue was doing it over 2 days. That’s the crazy part.

Do the ground, then go fly. Simple as that. I have done an IPC for pilots with just an hour of ground and an hour of flight. I have also initially declined to sign off an IPC on a guy who had just upgraded his aircraft to all glass. We did a bunch more training before he was signed off.
 
k9medic said:
We do 135.297 checkrides in less than 4 hours including ground and air opeations and that is darn sure comprehensive.
Click to expand...
And sometimes we cram 4 hours of 135.297 checks into 6 hours, because the pilot is just that bad.
 
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