Instrument Rating

newbiepilot

newbiepilot

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newbiepilot
Hey Guys,

I passed my PPL checkride last week and I am so excited.

Just want to thank you all in this forum.

Next up, IR training. Any suggestions, tips to get started.

Thanks a lot.
 
Welcome and congrats! Get flight following and get comfortable talking with ATC. if you aren't already.
 
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Congrats.

My suggestion is to start building PIC Cross-Country time. You'll need a total of 50 hours.
 
I'd wait till you have like 100hrs before you jump on the IFR stuff. Get some VFR time first!

Also start doing epic x/c trips
 
Agree with others that x/c trips are what should be done now. You have been provided a nice starting aviation tool box. Now it's time to get out, use them, sharpen them, and figure out what additional ones are needed.
 
Agree with jumping right into instrument training.
Nothing says that can't be interspersed with cross country VFR flying.
I don't think you are a true pilot before you get your IR (but don't intend to get into a dogfight over it).
 
I agree, no need to put off the IR, and it's one of those things it's easy to procrastinate on and then never do. If you're keen to do it now, do it. You can always rack up some XC time on the side, in fact if you're doing a lot of heavy instrument training, doing VFR XCs is a good way to throw in some variety. You can still practice precision flying and even instrument-based navigation while you're VFR - in fact, it's a good way to cement what you're learning into your brain.
 
Go fly, and not just vanilla GA stuff. Go get a glider or seaplane rating have some fun. Then decide if the IR is for you. There is no prescribed path for hobby pilots so find your fun and full speed ahead. If your fun is submarine driving that's cool, but get the aviation humanities degree first.
 
Combine these suggestions: Start piling up 50nm+ trips and get flight following, but while you are enroute, work on maintaining heading, altitude, and airspeed to tight tolerances. When you can maintain altitude within 50 feet and heading within 5 degrees, make your new target 20 feet and three degrees. Don't expect to meet these goals right away...that's why they are called goals.

Go up with an instructor and begin to collect "the numbers" for your airplane. IOW, what power setting and pitch attitude results in 120 knots straight-and-level (or speed appropriate to your plane)? Trimmed to fly hands-off, of course.
Now, without touching the trim, what vertical descent rate results when you reduce the throttle 500 rpm (or 5 inches)? This activity will save a bunch of time when you begin instrument training.


Bob Gardner
 
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I'm 15 hours into IFR. I started with like 65 TT and 25 XC PIC (50+nm). I got my PPL in 43 hours, so I had a little more then 20 hours of XC/fun flying between then and when I started.

The 1st step is the written. Start studying. I used Gleim/online with their practice tests and made a 98 after a month of study and taking tests.

The hardest thing will be managing the workload while keeping the plane within PTS standards, not the mental aspects of approaches. Or at least that's been my experience.

So while building XC time, start working on your stabilized flying now. Hold an altitude, heading, and speed where you want it and stick to it.
 
bobmrg said:
Combine these suggestions: Start piling up 50nm+ trips and get flight following, but while you are enroute, work on maintaining heading, altitude, and airspeed to tight tolerances. When you can maintain altitude within 50 feet and heading within 5 degrees, make your new target 20 feet and three degrees. Don't expect to meet these goals right away...that's why they are called goals.

Go up with an instructor and begin to collect "the numbers" for your airplane. IOW, what power setting and pitch attitude results in 120 knots straight-and-level (or speed appropriate to your plane)? Trimmed to fly hands-off, of course.
Now, without touching the trim, what vertical descent rate results when you reduce the throttle 500 rpm (or 5 inches)? This activity will save a bunch of time when you begin instrument training.


Bob Gardner
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Read this post, then read it again. It's right on the money. The better you can keep the plane on target the easier it will make all the rest of it. If you can get the plane to fly itself (more or less) for the phase of flight you're in it'll drastically lower your work load.

Doing some trips on Flight Following will help you get used to talking to ATC and give you a good idea of what to expect from them. They wont be giving you as many instructions as when you're actually flying IFR, but even just being on frequency and hearing all the other calls while listening for your next handoff is very helpful.

Another big thing is to really get to know your airplane. Right after my PPL I was doing a lot of fun flying in whatever the club had available. An Archer one day, a 172 the next, then a warrior, a cardinal, etc. It was a lot of fun, but when you're trying to learn all the procedures it's a lot easier if you're already used to the plane. I'd suggest trying to do as much flying in the same plane as you can. Since buying my Mooney I haven't flown anything else, and now I know it so well I can really concentrate more on what's going on around me, rather than the mechanics of the plane.
 
bobmrg said:
Combine these suggestions: Start piling up 50nm+ trips and get flight following, but while you are enroute, work on maintaining heading, altitude, and airspeed to tight tolerances. When you can maintain altitude within 50 feet and heading within 5 degrees, make your new target 20 feet and three degrees. Don't expect to meet these goals right away...that's why they are called goals.

Go up with an instructor and begin to collect "the numbers" for your airplane. IOW, what power setting and pitch attitude results in 120 knots straight-and-level (or speed appropriate to your plane)? Trimmed to fly hands-off, of course.
Now, without touching the trim, what vertical descent rate results when you reduce the throttle 500 rpm (or 5 inches)? This activity will save a bunch of time when you begin instrument training.


Bob Gardner
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Thank you Kind Sir. This is very helpful.
 
Congrats,now start building some cross country time.
 
I don't necessarily agree with jumping into IR training right away. At least as far as I was concerned, I became a better pilot by flying little cross countries every weekend after I got my PPL. I enjoyed my PPL for 6 months before starting IR training. Instrument Flying will do nothing to improve your basic stick and rudder skills.
 
Cross-country with consistent use of flight following services. As music as possible, use electronic navigation. Log a little bit of hood time with a safety pilot and familiarize yourself with IFR charts (they are also very useful for VFR flying as well). Once you're closing in on 50 hrs. Of cross-country PIC time, get the written out of the way and you'll be ready to train.
 
I got my instrument ticket right away. Didn't want the feeling of clouds closing in or canceling a cross country because of a 3000 ft ceiling. I think it is a very personal choice, and very situational for each person, as far as where you live and money. I also think that if you just barely passed your ppl then maybe you should build more skill. Talk to your instructor about what they think and maybe even the DPE, they will know your skill better then anyone on an Internet forum that has never seen you fly. You might be better then 90% of the people that have 1000s of hours. As far as building skill, I think that the instrument is much more mental then physical, always keeping calm, remembering to scan and not focus on a certain correction, knowing and expecting what's going to happen down the road, and how and what is needed to Stay Ahead Of The Plane, as well as telling the controller exactly what you want and saying Unable when you can't.
 
I went a few years b/t PPL and IR. I scrubbed a bunch of weekend flights b/c of cloud cover. Getting my IR has been such a great asset, and I am so glad that I got it.
 
RotorDude said:
Agree with jumping right into instrument training.
Nothing says that can't be interspersed with cross country VFR flying.
I don't think you are a true pilot before you get your IR (but don't intend to get into a dogfight over it).
Click to expand...

You mean, for instance, the pilots in WW2 were not " true pilots" ?! Their instrument training was very limited. Most went into combat with around 200 total hours!
 
Jimmy cooper said:
Weak reply. Many became excellent pilots , flew combat, then flew commercial after the war. They were probably as skilled as many many GA pilots today. To say they were not true pilots is silly.
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I didn't say that. I was implying that given the circumstances of the times they were producing as many pilots as they could in the shortest time possible to do the mission.

No disrespect to them intended.

It was actually a swipe at rotor dude who said you aren't a true pilot before you get your instrument rating. Poorly executed, apparently.
 
newbiepilot said:
Hey Guys,

I passed my PPL checkride last week and I am so excited.

Just want to thank you all in this forum.

Next up, IR training. Any suggestions, tips to get started.

Thanks a lot.
Click to expand...

I would get King's instrument kit, I love the humor, work toward's getting in the 90s on your written test, and also find an instructor to help you with the flying part if you have the bread and the time.
 
I am in the same situation. I have about 75 hours total. I decided to get my hp and complex ratings first in the plane I will be spending the most time in. After I get that done I will be in the 80 to 85 hour range. At that point, I want to fly till I hit about 100, at which point I plan to start IFR.
 
I spent the first year just having fun taking long VFR xc trips. Focus on heading and altitude precision which will be super important for IFR training. Fly as a safety pilot to get a taste for a complete IFR flight. I am starting my rating this summer since I wanted to have fun for the first couple years as a VFR pilot.
 
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