Help with overcoming "IFR bordem"...

[mscard88]

We got rid of our PAR about 2 years ago. Happiest day of my life since I'd been running PAR approaches since 1993 and started on the FPN 62 with raw radar and screwdriver adjustments. Kids I trained in the latter years were spoiled. Uphill, both ways, barefoot...you get the picture.

I've unplugged a few trainees in my time, threw their plug towards the stairs and told them to follow it.

Yup, and when I was in the 2nd CCG we had MPN-14s (3 or 4 of them) that were the same way, tubes and all, no solid state. We could get those puppies up in 22-24 hours, on the air, and flight checked by C-140s back then. Boom, full blown approach control in the middle of anywhere w/ PAR and the mobile control towe, all powered by generators.

 

[Eric Gleason]

Tim, I can empathize with you too. I don't find IFR or long cross countries all that enthralling, especially when everything is going as planned. On some flights I'll plan an unnecessary waypoint every 75-100 miles just to make sure I have something to keep track of and keep my mind in the game. Adding these dog legs makes the flights take a few extra minutes, but it also keeps me from getting too complacent.

How precise is your flying? Are you crossing the station dead-on so the needle is confused about which way to go? Are you tracking radials within 1 degree? Do you have the numbers memorized (i.e. 2500 RPM @ 80 knots results in 500 fpm or whatever.) That's the kind of stuff that kept me engaged while I was training the first time (about to start the 2nd time).

It's pretty easy to log your flight tracks and compare them to your expected routes. Doing that is eye-opening.

 

[stratobee]

You still doing just basic instrument flying? Or actually flying routes? Because for me, it got much more interesting when the challenges stacked up - reading back the clearances, arrival procedures, actually flying the IR routes, fixes, approaches etc. That's still fun and it's what I enjoy with IR flying the most. Doing standard rate turns on the instrument and having the scan down, isn't as exciting.

 

[chemgeek]

We already did...bored then too.

Keep seeking actual. That's what I did with my instructor. I think we had something like 17 hours of actual during my 40 required hours. Once you "get it" IFR training can be pretty interminable. However, flying in actual will get you more weather judgment experience. The biggest challenge of instrument flight is not flying the plane, but rather managing in-flight weather data (or lack of same) and making good decisions while working with ATC and managing IMC flight.

 

[chemgeek]

I'm planning on starting IR training not because I'm looking for excitement, but rather because I want to be able to travel a bit without worrying about getting stuck or cancelling all together. You want excitement I think aerobatics would be a better place to spend your training dollars.

For light singles without deicing, IFR is not a ticket to all-weather flying. What an IFR rating will do for you is to remove the stress out of flying in MVFR conditions. With an IFR rating, MVFR in benign weather is a non-event. In the summer in CNY, VFR flight is often limited to the bumpy low altitudes beneath a thick cloud deck, while IFR is but a short climb to the smooth sunny air above.

 

[dmspilot]

If it's so easy why not take the checkride already?

 

[tawood]

If it's so easy why not take the checkride already?

Because a check of my log only shows 26 hours under the hood. I’m flying regularly with a friend now, several times a week. He’s a good guy, and he’s fun to be around which helps, but I’m still board as hell with the flying. As I said before though, I’ll get through it.

 

[Dave Krall CFII]

Hi all,
For the past month or so, I finally got the time that I've been working on the flying portion of my IR...I passed my written about a year ago. When I studied for my written, I found the information interesting and I enjoyed studying.
Now that I've started the flight training portion, I'm finding the training HIDEOUSLY BORING!!! I mean, like watching paint-dry / grass-grow boring. I've got about 18 hours so far with a francis hood, and 2 hours of actual...When flying on instruments, its like you're just sitting there, staring at gauges (and not many gauges, as my instructor seems to be covering up most of them, nearly all the time).
I like my instructor, and I truly don't believe that he is the problem at all. He tells me I'm doing really well, and he's recently cut me loose to fly with a friend/fellow pilot for the next 20 hours or so of hood time. I was hoping that flying with my friend would be better, but after flying with him for an hour and a half last night, it is not. I find myself absolutely dreading my next practice flight...not trying to be a troll, but am I alone in this feeling?
I've been flying for over 20 years VFR, and I do still enjoy flying VFR very much. I'm actually at a point where I'm thinking maybe IFR is not for me. Since I'm not a quitter, I see myself getting the rating, then never, EVER, using it. Or at least, avoiding using it, at which point I would become rusty, THEN never use it, etc.

For me it was mostly just work of the least interesting kind in my flight training, so your boredom is understandable to me. However I needed it to facilitate scheduled flights in IMC so it was obtained. I use the IFR rating for about 15% of my total flights (not total flight hours) but, for those flights, its use is mandatory or the whole flight would be cancelled. IMC for those 15% of flight’s might only be for 5 minutes taking off or landing. The IFR rating does help produce all round better pilots too. Flying to interesting destinations under the hood will help. Best of luck!

 

[FlySince9]

For light singles without deicing, IFR is not a ticket to all-weather flying

. Duh...

 

[SbestCFII]

Hi all,
For the past month or so, I finally got the time that I've been working on the flying portion of my IR...I passed my written about a year ago. When I studied for my written, I found the information interesting and I enjoyed studying.
Now that I've started the flight training portion, I'm finding the training HIDEOUSLY BORING!!! I mean, like watching paint-dry / grass-grow boring. I've got about 18 hours so far with a francis hood, and 2 hours of actual...When flying on instruments, its like you're just sitting there, staring at gauges (and not many gauges, as my instructor seems to be covering up most of them, nearly all the time).
I like my instructor, and I truly don't believe that he is the problem at all. He tells me I'm doing really well, and he's recently cut me loose to fly with a friend/fellow pilot for the next 20 hours or so of hood time. I was hoping that flying with my friend would be better, but after flying with him for an hour and a half last night, it is not. I find myself absolutely dreading my next practice flight...not trying to be a troll, but am I alone in this feeling?
I've been flying for over 20 years VFR, and I do still enjoy flying VFR very much. I'm actually at a point where I'm thinking maybe IFR is not for me. Since I'm not a quitter, I see myself getting the rating, then never, EVER, using it. Or at least, avoiding using it, at which point I would become rusty, THEN never use it, etc.

Shorter flights, planned and executed A-->B flights to other airports, ending with an approach to landing are far more interesting than droning for hours under the hood going nowhere.

 

[tawood]

Shorter flights, planned and executed A-->B flights to other airports, ending with an approach to landing ...

This is pretty much all we do, with about 50% going missed and 50% landing. No “droning going nowhere” but anything under the hood feels like droning to me, just droning going somewhere. I’m currently stuck at a little over 30 hours...We are short at work and I’ve been working lots/flying little. Then my plane goes in for annual on Thursday. Soooo, a few down weeks.

 

[eman1200]

This is pretty much all we do, with about 50% going missed and 50% landing. No “droning going nowhere” but anything under the hood feels like droning to me, just droning going somewhere. I’m currently stuck at a little over 30 hours...We are short at work and I’ve been working lots/flying little. Then my plane goes in for annual on Thursday. Soooo, a few down weeks.

I'm curious, are these 30 hours all with an instructor or have u grabbed a safety pilot to just build hours under the hood?

 

[tawood]

I'm curious, are these 30 hours all with an instructor or have u grabbed a safety pilot to just build hours under the hood?

I have less than 20 (maybe 16-17) with my instructor. The remaining is with a safety pilot/friend. In all honesty, I’m learning more with my friend. He’s an older guy with over 5,000 hours (Nearly all in the same Cherokee 140 if you can believe that). He gives me lots of tips, intentionally messes with me to distract me while I’m flying, etc. He really seems to know his stuff too.

 

[Skyrys62]

Maybe you should take the Monkey with you.
I hear he can get wild..

Also I can mail this to you and him for extra fun.

for you, that's just 8 seconds bottle to throttle.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

OP, are you flying approaches on these flights?

I would suggest you tell your CFI that you feel bored. You should never feel bored on a training flight - Your CFI's job is to push you to the limit and if you're bored, he's clearly not doing that.

My CFII was excellent. He never let me get bored. He was constantly pushing me to fly more accurately, showing me techniques to add "finesse" to my IFR flying, and challenging me in any way he could. Partial panel unusual attitudes in actual. All instruments failed except airspeed, mag compass, and nav 2 in actual.

Now, my IFR flights may be "boring" in comparison, but they're not really boring. Once you get the IR, you can see outside again, and it's pretty rare to be in the soup for the entire flight. You'll see lots of neat sights in, around, and above the clouds that you wouldn't see as a VFR pilot.

 

[Bill Watson]

OP, are you flying approaches on these flights?

I would suggest you tell your CFI that you feel bored. You should never feel bored on a training flight - Your CFI's job is to push you to the limit and if you're bored, he's clearly not doing that.

My CFII was excellent. He never let me get bored. He was constantly pushing me to fly more accurately, showing me techniques to add "finesse" to my IFR flying, and challenging me in any way he could. Partial panel unusual attitudes in actual. All instruments failed except airspeed, mag compass, and nav 2 in actual.

Now, my IFR flights may be "boring" in comparison, but they're not really boring. Once you get the IR, you can see outside again, and it's pretty rare to be in the soup for the entire flight. You'll see lots of neat sights in, around, and above the clouds that you wouldn't see as a VFR pilot.

Good points here... if you are bored, you aren’t being trained. Once rated, you may never/rarely get a chance to be worked as hard as you should be now. I too discovered that I could pass the tests long before I had the required hours. I wasted some of them when they could have been put to better use.

If you fortunate enough to have a ‘mission’ that will get you flying places on a frequent basis, you will find the IR gives you a capability to keep things interesting... more or less so depending on your location. But having the mission is the tough part.


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[Eric Gleason]

Are you hand-flying all this time that's boring to you? When I'm hand-flying, my mind is constantly engaged as I'm trying to maintain course and altitude accurately. It may not be exciting, but it's just about impossible to be bored when your mind is engaged like that.

Since I started flying planes with autopilots, I'm kind of enjoying being relaxed and a little bored while George worries about the course and altitude


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[Kritchlow]

OP, are you flying approaches on these flights?

I would suggest you tell your CFI that you feel bored. You should never feel bored on a training flight - Your CFI's job is to push you to the limit and if you're bored, he's clearly not doing that.

My CFII was excellent. He never let me get bored. He was constantly pushing me to fly more accurately, showing me techniques to add "finesse" to my IFR flying, and challenging me in any way he could. Partial panel unusual attitudes in actual. All instruments failed except airspeed, mag compass, and nav 2 in actual.

Now, my IFR flights may be "boring" in comparison, but they're not really boring. Once you get the IR, you can see outside again, and it's pretty rare to be in the soup for the entire flight. You'll see lots of neat sights in, around, and above the clouds that you wouldn't see as a VFR pilot.

Partial panel unusual attitudes in actual.

Not sure I know what to say about that.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Partial panel unusual attitudes in actual.

Not sure I know what to say about that.

I have a few...

"I'm glad his name was on the flight plan"
"I'm glad I had an instructor who never let me get bored on a training flight"

And the ceilings were several thousand feet AGL, so it's not like we were going to crash if he managed to do it so badly he got disoriented himself.