Quick Instrument Course

SkyHog

SkyHog

Touchdown! Greaser!
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Everything Offends Me
Ok - so I realized that I have not been working on my IR much lately. I need to do it, but if I'm going to do it, I want to just do it. Dedicate a chunk of time where I fly for many hours every day and just get it done. I have heard of the 2 week programs and stuff, but am having a hard time sifting through information about them.

Can anyone here recommend a 2 week Instrument program? If no suggestions, any CFIIs here feel like making some money off me? I'm thinking of doing this sometime next month.
 
Here's a list of links that I researched when I was looking at my IR. They are all "intensive" or "accelerated" courses. I can't necessarily recommend most of them (because I didn't use them):

http://www.fly-hawaii.com/index.htm
http://www.mnaviation.info/tenday.htm
http://www.prairieairservice.com/instrument_training.htm
http://www.onhiswingsflightacademy.com/Index.html
http://www.skyventureinc.com/instrument.html
http://www.shebleaviation.com/

Sheble's is by far the cheapest. Go into their program with eyes wide open.

Prairie Air has a somewhat unique program in that they do your multi, instrument and multi-instrument all at once. They will do a single engine instrument on request. A professional pilot recommended them to me but I decided I didn't need a multi for what I wanted to do in life.
 
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SkyHog said:
Ok - so I realized that I have not been working on my IR much lately. I need to do it, but if I'm going to do it, I want to just do it. Dedicate a chunk of time where I fly for many hours every day and just get it done. I have heard of the 2 week programs and stuff, but am having a hard time sifting through information about them.

Can anyone here recommend a 2 week Instrument program? If no suggestions, any CFIIs here feel like making some money off me? I'm thinking of doing this sometime next month.
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See if you can call Foley's Aircraft Maint at LGB. If so, ask Ward for Steve Saiz's phone #, hopefully you can get hold of him. Excellent.
 
alaskaflyer said:
Here's a list of links that I researched when I was looking at my IR. They are all "intensive" or "accelerated" courses. I can't necessarily recommend most of them (because I didn't use them):

http://www.fly-hawaii.com/index.htm
http://www.mnaviation.info/tenday.htm
http://www.prairieairservice.com/instrument_training.htm
http://www.onhiswingsflightacademy.com/Index.html
http://www.skyventureinc.com/instrument.html
http://www.shebleaviation.com/

Sheble's is by far the cheapest. Go into their program with eyes wide open.

Prairie Air has a somewhat unique program in that they do your multi, instrument and multi-instrument all at once. They will do a single engine instrument on request. A professional pilot recommended them to me but I decided I didn't need a multi for what I wanted to do in life.
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As to Sheble's, I did my single and multi comm rides and added my multi instrument there on the multi comm ride, and did the single comm in a Lake Amphib so I got my seaplane rating there as well. Both Joe and JoJo I found to be good people. I was happy with them for what I did with them. I did not do my origional IA there.
 
Glad you are going to finish it up Nick.
If you want to come my way, there is a CFII at FTT (Fulton, MO) that does an accelerated course at a fair price. He has a place you can stay at also, or of course you can stay here. I think if you come with the written done (which I know you have) it is 5 or 7 days. If you call them ask for Travis, he is the one doing it and owns the FBO also.
He had a guy come in for 2 weeks last year, got his IR, COMM and Multi in those 14 days. Was a LONG day for that guy, he took all the checkrides in one day.
Give me a call if you want more info.

Mark B.
 
Henning said:
As to Sheble's, I did my single and multi comm rides and added my multi instrument there on the multi comm ride, and did the single comm in a Lake Amphib so I got my seaplane rating there as well. Both Joe and JoJo I found to be good people. I was happy with them for what I did with them. I did not do my origional IA there.
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As you say the DE's are excellent at Sheble's.

The children they have instructing under them are less so, with a few occasional exceptions. You get what you pay for in this respect. If you are a self-starting, disciplined, self-studying, fast learner who is willing to get what you need to pass your ride with the minimum amount of time and expense invested (sorry Dr. Bruce!! :redface: ) so that you can get back home with your ticket and practice practice practice on your own, they are the way to go. That's what I did. Sometimes I wish I had invested in a better CFII or school, but then again I have been occasionally flying with a neighbor down the street (who is a CFII) for free who has continued where Sheble's left off. "Ticket to learn" and so forth...

Like I said, go there with eyes wide open. Other pilots recommended Prairie Air to me as good one-on-one instrument instruction, and one of the regulars on the red board recommended MN Aviation, can't remember who.
 
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GATTS - one week course, guaranteed, flat rate includes accomodation and vehicle.

Did my IR and my Comm there. Highly recommended professional instructors - not young guys building time.

http://www.gatts.org
 
I got my IR here. www.ifrsolutions.com

Watsonville, CA. You work your butt off to get the rating. Between flight, ground, and sim training, you can count on 10 hrs./day or more plus homework preping for the oral. Instrument training is their only biz and you are the instructors only student until you pass the check ride.
I've seen posts where people want to take a vacation and get the IR on an accelerated basis. It's no vacation, it's hard work to get the rating in such a short time.
 
SkyHog said:
Ok - so I realized that I have not been working on my IR much lately. I need to do it, but if I'm going to do it, I want to just do it. Dedicate a chunk of time where I fly for many hours every day and just get it done. I have heard of the 2 week programs and stuff, but am having a hard time sifting through information about them.

Can anyone here recommend a 2 week Instrument program? If no suggestions, any CFIIs here feel like making some money off me? I'm thinking of doing this sometime next month.
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Nick,

The best one I've ever heard of (especially if you're a bit adventurous like me and want to see LOTS of different situations rather than flying approaches in the local area) is Morey's West Coast Adventures.

http://www.ifrwest.com/

You show up at C29 with at least 20 hours XC PIC and the written done. It's a 10-day course. On days one through three you do some ground, some approaches in the simulator, and some work in the airplane if the weather is crappy (no extra charge for that, either).

The airplane is a Turbo C182 RG, so you get your complex and high-performance endorsements as part of the package if you don't already have them. It is superbly equipped, with IFR Approach-certified GPS (G430 I think) all the way down to an NDB so you can basically fly any approach in the book except the few remaining VOR/DME RNAV ones.

On day four, you leave on the real adventure, flying west and getting great experience with both enroute (incl. real no-radar environment stuff) and lots of approaches. The basic route goes from C29 (Middleton, WI) through MN, the Dakotas, Montana, Idaho, to Washington, down the west coast to the LA basin, east to Sedona, up to Telluride, and generally straight back to WI from there.

The best part is, if you do this one and let me know you're coming, I'll buy ya dinner. :yes:

Just remember Ron's famous quote: That which is quickly learned and not quickly exercised will be quickly forgotten.

Oh, and once you're hooked on these aviation adventures, they have Morey's Alaska Adventure departing from Medford, OR. You have to have the IR already for this trip.
 
alaskaflyer said:
As you say the DE's are excellent at Sheble's.

The children they have instructing under them are less so, with a few occasional exceptions. You get what you pay for in this respect. If you are a self-starting, disciplined, self-studying, fast learner who is willing to get what you need to pass your ride with the minimum amount of time and expense invested (sorry Dr. Bruce!! :redface: ) so that you can get back home with your ticket and practice practice practice on your own, they are the way to go. That's what I did. Sometimes I wish I had invested in a better CFII or school, but then again I have been occasionally flying with a neighbor down the street (who is a CFII) for free who has continued where Sheble's left off. "Ticket to learn" and so forth...

Like I said, go there with eyes wide open. Other pilots recommended Prairie Air to me as good one-on-one instrument instruction, and one of the regulars on the red board recommended MN Aviation, can't remember who.
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Ahhh, I see. When I used them the old man did my training and JoJo my checkride, so I never really met the staff except for one dude who was a bud.
 
Captain Ron does just this sort of thing, I think.
It would be interesting for you to do it with him. the two of you could keep us posted on your progress.
 
Check out Professional Instrument Courses (PIC). I did a one week finish up with them and it worked out perfectly. They wrote the book on short term immersive training - literally.
 
I think its great that you want to work on an IR, but what is preventing you from getting it done now?

Suppose you got the IR in 2 weeks, and then flew as often as you do now, would you really feel proficient to fly in the soup? Would you even fly enough to keep instrument currency?

I guess I'm saying that, I would try to plan a way to keep that instrument proficiency and not just get the rating and let it go
 
alaskaflyer said:
As you say the DE's are excellent at Sheble's.

The children they have instructing under them are less so, with a few occasional exceptions. You get what you pay for in this respect. If you are a self-starting, disciplined, self-studying, fast learner who is willing to get what you need to pass your ride with the minimum amount of time and expense invested (sorry Dr. Bruce!! :redface: ) so that you can get back home with your ticket and practice practice practice on your own, they are the way to go. That's what I did.

Like I said, go there with eyes wide open.
Click to expand...

I got my IR at Sheble's and I really enjoyed it. I agree with what you say, for the most part, the CFII's are green but the training is still there. Like you said eyes open and practice on your own.
 
It's always nice when a legacy thread gets new legs (grin).
 
Keith Lane said:
Captain Ron does just this sort of thing, I think.
It would be interesting for you to do it with him. the two of you could keep us posted on your progress.
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Last I heard Ron was working for PIC and doing exactly this type of training. Ron, checked me out in my Tiger ten years ago, so I know he is thorough.
 
IIRC, it was some time ago that Ron announced he retired from PIC.

As for Nick, if a IR came in 20 pack of Class A cigs, he would be tearing up the clouds by now.
 
Anthony said:
Last I heard Ron was working for PIC and doing exactly this type of training.
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I still am. It was the university I left five years ago, and that's when I went to work for PIC.
Ron, checked me out in my Tiger ten years ago, so I know he is thorough.
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I try to be so, although you'd have to ask my trainees to be sure. FWIW, the most negative comment I've received over the last four years was being rated 4 on a scale of 10 because I refused to sign an IPC on a glass-panel Cirrus pilot until he hand-flew an ILS and flew a nonprecision approach with the PFD darkened, and to hand-fly at least one departure all the way to the MEA before turning on the autopilot because that was contrary to the way the factory instructor had told him during initial checkout the plane should be flown.
 
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Ron Levy said:
I still am. It was the university I left five years ago, and that's when I went to work for PIC.
I try to be so, although you'd have to ask my trainees to be sure. FWIW, the most negative comment I've received over the last four years was being rated 4 on a scale of 10 because I refused to sign an IPC on a glass-panel Cirrus pilot until he hand-flew an ILS and flew a nonprecision approach with the PFD darkened, and to hand-fly at least one departure all the way to the MEA before turning on the autopilot because that was contrary to the way the factory instructor had told him during initial checkout the plane should be flown.
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You BEAST!:wink2:

My primary flight instructor wouldn't let me use the GPS, or even the VOR's until I proved I could navigate via pilotage first. He also sought out crosswinds for me to practice in. And tried his very best to get me lost at night, to see how I'd handle it. He was pretty tough. And I'm a better pilot for it. I suspect you and he are cut from the same cloth.

John
 
Ron Levy said:
I try to be so, although you'd have to ask my trainees to be sure. FWIW, the most negative comment I've received over the last four years was being rated 4 on a scale of 10 because I refused to sign an IPC on a glass-panel Cirrus pilot until he hand-flew an ILS and flew a nonprecision approach with the PFD darkened, and to hand-fly at least one departure all the way to the MEA before turning on the autopilot because that was contrary to the way the factory instructor had told him during initial checkout the plane should be flown.
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Cruel and unusual punishment! ;)
 
Some people just don't get the difference between training/proficiency and normal operations. Yes, you should use the autopilot and all the other magic when you are flying normally because IF you use it right it increases your safety. And you'd better be able to operate properly without it, and when you're doing training you should be focusing on your personal proficiency.
 
I've trained with Marc Coan who offers a course called Mountain Flying IFR Boot Camp. I wish I had done my accelerated IFR training with him.
He's squared away. He's located in Sante Fe, which seems close to you.
This forum software will not allow me to post the URL because I have made only 4 posts....that's a bit extreme....so copy and past their website address

mountainflying.org

Howard Benz
Memphis, TN
 
alaskaflyer said:
If you are a self-starting, disciplined, self-studying, fast learner who is willing to get what you need to pass your ride with the minimum amount of time and expense invested (sorry Dr. Bruce!! :redface: ) so that you can get back home with your ticket and practice practice practice on your own, they are the way to go....
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...inhales at end of sentence.....:goofy:
 
bbchien said:
...inhales at end of sentence.....:goofy:
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:wink2:

If it is any consolation...even though I resemble the hypothetical pilot I described above, I would still do it much differently, somewhere else with someone else if I had it to do over again. Matter of fact I plan to have it to do all over again if and when I ever need to get current and once again exercise the rating.

Preparing to fly IFR in IMC is nothing to do on a cheapskate budget.

CSEL, however...:wink2:
 
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