Which airplane for the checkride?

[mxalix258]

I'm about 75% through my instrument training, and have been using a combination of the flight simulator and a piper warrior that I rent from the club I am in.

I've been going back on forth on which airplane I should use for the actual checkride, since the club plane only has dual vor's and an ADF. No DME or GPS. First, will this cause complications for the checkride when the DP from my airport (HEF) requires DME? Second, am I making it harder on myself by trying to do a checkride with no GPS or DME?

It really comes down to saving quite a bit of money, and it's the plane I'm going to be flying regularly after getting my rating. The difference between the club plane ($110 /tach hr) or a school plane ($150 / hobbs hour) adds up pretty quickly.

My instructor said we could fly the club plane up until the last few lessons, then switch to another plane with GPS for the checkride...but i'm not sure. Thoughts?

 

[Henning]

You can't get tested on equipment that doesn't exist. I'm not sure how lack of a GPS or DME will effect your PP check ride, heck, I did my IR ride with a single KX-170B and an ADF.

 

[LDJones]

You can't get tested on equipment that doesn't exist. I'm not sure how lack of a GPS or DME will effect your PP check ride, heck, I did my IR ride with a single KX-170B and an ADF.

I never even saw a DME for the first year of instrument flying. When I did, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven knowing EXACTLY how far I was from the station (well, slant range) AND my actual ground speed. Amazing.

Fly what you've learned in. ADF approaches while obsolete, aren't that bad despite what pilots say!

 

[poadeleted20]

I'm about 75% through my instrument training, and have been using a combination of the flight simulator and a piper warrior that I rent from the club I am in.

If that's what you're training in, that's what you want to check in.

I've been going back on forth on which airplane I should use for the actual checkride, since the club plane only has dual vor's and an ADF. No DME or GPS. First, will this cause complications for the checkride when the DP from my airport (HEF) requires DME?

Not unless you accept a clearance for that Arsenal SID without the required equipment. By the book, all you need is one VOR/LOC nav with GS, although a second VOR is a real good idea. Beyond that, it's entirely up to you how much equipment you want, but remember that whatever you have is fair game on the practical test.

Second, am I making it harder on myself by trying to do a checkride with no GPS or DME?

If anything, you're making it easier on yourself, because there's less you have to be able to do on the ride. In fact, I had one client delay a complete upgrade of his panel from a 2xKX-155 and nothing else to a full Garmin 750/650 package with all the bells and whistles until he completed his IR training and practical test just to keep it simple. After he got the rating, he got the upgrade and got trained on the new equipment.

It really comes down to saving quite a bit of money, and it's the plane I'm going to be flying regularly after getting my rating. The difference between the club plane ($110 /tach hr) or a school plane ($150 / hobbs hour) adds up pretty quickly.

I agree, and since you've been training on the no-GPS club plane and will be flying it after you get the rating, it makes sense to do it all on that plane.

My instructor said we could fly the club plane up until the last few lessons, then switch to another plane with GPS for the checkride...but i'm not sure.

What reason did your instructor give for making this change?

Thoughts?

I think your instructor is misguided. I do a lot of instrument instructing for PIC, and I've learned that you don't change horses in the middle of the stream or try to learn new equipment on "the last few lessons."

 

[AggieMike88]

I think your instructor is misguided. I do a lot of instrument instructing for PIC, and I've learned that you don't change horses in the middle of the stream or try to learn new equipment on "the last few lessons."

Now that I'm starting my IFR training, I would think the highlight makes total sense.

Being a bit nervy for the checkride already puts you at risk at getting behind the aircraft. Tossing in unfamiliar buttons, knobs, indicators, and more is just gonna increase that pressure.

Oh, and you have just now figured out how the club warrior needs to be configured for the 6-different phases of the flight and have developed some muscle memory for that. Switching to a new airplane might require starting that exercise all over. Then trying to do well with it in a checkride situation.

Like the others say, I'd stick with the warrior and it's simpler setup.

 

[poadeleted20]

Now that I'm starting my IFR training, I would think the highlight makes total sense.

Being a bit nervy for the checkride already puts you at risk at getting behind the aircraft. Tossing in unfamiliar buttons, knobs, indicators, and more is just gonna increase that pressure.

Oh, and you have just now figured out how the club warrior needs to be configured for the 6-different phases of the flight and have developed some muscle memory for that. Switching to a new airplane might require starting that exercise all over. Then trying to do well with it in a checkride situation.

Like the others say, I'd stick with the warrior and it's simpler setup.

Even if the other plane is also a Warrior, I'd still stick with the avionics you know. You can learn GPS later if/when the club puts a GPS in their Warrior.

 

[mxalix258]

Makes sense to me, that was the way I was leaning anyways. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't making the check ride way harder than it needed to be by not using a plane with more advanced equipment.

 

[SbestCFII]

It would be a plus to have the GPS/DME. Lots of approaches require an ADF (or GPS) and/or DME (or GPS), so the GPS capability is good to have and allows many more approach options. An IFR GPS makes both an ADF and DME redundant (as well as being less accurate).

In your club plane, you would have options of only ILS/Localizer/VOR and ADF approaches with a timer. This is old school, but preparation is simplified. If you wanted to make it really easy, pull the ADF from the panel and placard the ADF as "INOP" and limit your checkride further to ILS/Localizer and VOR with a timer.