November 2003

At some point in instrument training the question comes up about getting actual experience in the clouds. I think it’s a good idea, but let’s delve into the idea a little more.

There’s no point flying in actual until you can fly the plane in simulated conditions and maintain heading and altitude to PTS tolerances and you should also have flown the approaches you’ll fly in actual conditions to some level of proficiency in simulated conditions. Otherwise your instructor is going to flying most of the time and you’ll just be a confused passenger. There doesn’t seem much point to that.

Should you get actual instrument experience before your checkride? It doesn’t really matter. The checkride isn’t much about teaching you to fly in the real world of instrument flight anyway. If there is time and the right weather conditions during your training then by all means fly some time both in the system and in actual instrument conditions. But if there isn’t time in your training don’t sweat it.

At some point though you do need to get some experience both in the real world of instrument flying as well actual conditions. My advice is not to take this lightly and to determine some kind of plan for stepping gently into the process and work on that plan with your instructor. Whether you do it before your checkride or after your checkride doesn’t really matter.

I don’t recommend your first actual instrument time without an instructor riding along. It’s different, I don’t care how many people tell you it’s easier (which it probably is), it’s different, and you want a safety net the first couple of times.

One plan you’ll see described is to take instrument flight in stages. Start out of instrument conditions en-route, but good VMC at departure and destination. Then add IMC at your destination, then IMC at your departure and pretty soon you’re flying instrument whenever you need.

An alternative approach is to treat solo instrument flight like your first solo. Wait for a day with reasonably grungy weather and take your instructor up for a short cross-country and a couple of approaches. Then drop your instructor off and repeat the same thing solo. Do this a couple of times and you’ll feel confident launching into IMC without the “pre-ride” with your instructor.

Develop your own set of personal minimums for instrument flight, and stick to them. Remember that you’ll be at your lowest skill level for the first few minutes of the flight as your scan picks up speed and you get used to the ATC communication. But on departure is when you’re copying clearances, taxiing in low visibility, taking off, copying changed clearances, configuring the airplane etc. Be confident you can manage all that workload in the first few minutes of flight and the rest will come easy.

You’ll have your best instrument stick and rudder skills and you’ll know the most about the regulations just after your checkride, don’t let those skills lapse, but don’t over-estimate your skills and the ease of flying in actual conditions until you’ve done it a few times and know what it feels like.