What is IFR training?

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radioguy01

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radioguy01
Hi all,

Still a newb here. Working in my PP. I want to be a safe and good pilot. I've read numerous times that getting an instrument eating will give me additional skills to help me be safer and more competent. But what is it exactly that you learn as an IFR pilot? And what exactly is an IFR flight?

I mean, I understand in my PP I learn the basics of flying the plane, getting into and out if emergency procedures, the basics of aviation, flight, maps, weather, and getting safely around an airport.

But what does IFR teach? Is it just to learn to trust fly with instruments? I have seen IFR charts, with all of the vectors connecting airports, are these predetermined flights that you can for in an IFR flight plan? Are you limited to just these pathways? (I doubt it, with GPS and all.) What advanced flight and navigation and knowledge do you learn when getting the instrument rating?
 
Maybe you can find a study on it at the NIH to see if IFR training is acceptable?

Okay, so much for bad humor.

Instrument training is learning to fly by reference to instruments and "in the system" which means that ATC participates and provides clearances which ensure that aircraft don't bump into each other when no one is looking out the port holes (or it just looks foggy out the window).

Lots more rules to follow (many of them written in blood) and one learns to precisely control and navigate the aircraft just by looking at some gauges and needles. It's a lot of fun and it increases the utility of the pilot's certificate since one may be able to fly when conditions don't allow VFR flight.
 
Fun,a lot of hard work and a great deal of satisfaction when you get the ticket.
 
Being a private pilot is the equivalent of sanding with 80 grit sandpaper. It gets the job done. IFR training is like sanding with 200 grit sandpaper.
 
EdFred said:
Being a private pilot is the equivalent of sanding with 80 grit sandpaper. It gets the job done. IFR training is like sanding with 200 grit sandpaper.
Click to expand...

I sand with 0000 steel wool, sir!

Jk
 
It is basically learning all the procedures and skills needed to fly and land planes if after takeoff you can't see anything until you are on final approach. Part of that is learning to fly the plane more precisely than you do in your PP training. Part of that is knowing the ATC system and procedures. You can look at youtube and get a feel for what is involved. I don't have my IR yet, but I am hoping to do it in the near future.
 
To say that it teaches to fly by reference to the instruments or to fly more precisely doesn't really do justice to the training involved. It's about that, sure. But what that doesn't tell you is the multitasking required. When you fly an approach, you have to know where you are, where you are going next, in what flight mode (climb, descend, level), at what speed, at what altitude, and what you will do when you get to the next of several points on the approach. You have to know how to make the plane do what you want while you keep all of that in mind. You have to be able to manipulate the avionics at the same time to get the data you need to locate yourself. That means changing nav frequencies while you go, and knowing which frequencies you need, and how to interpret the indicators. You have to be able to see your flight instruments, avionics indicators, and the approach chart, and learn to move your eyes as necessay around to each as necessary without fixating too long on one, or neglecting the others. When you have something that is off, say you are too high, you can't fixate on the altimeter to the exclusion of the CDI that is now starting to swing, indicating it's now time to turn.

Each task is simple enough on its own, but combining all tasks at once becomes very complicated. Throw in the time pressure to complete a task, and the ease of losing situational awareness, and you have a challenge. This is just the task of flying the approach. We haven't talked about all of the other parts of the flight, or what to do if you can't find the runway.
 
IFR is a way to make flying as boring as writing code or doing taxes.
 
radioguy01 said:
But what does IFR teach?
Click to expand...

How to be a more precise pilot.

radioguy01 said:
Is it just to learn to trust fly with instruments? I have seen IFR charts, with all of the vectors connecting airports, are these predetermined flights that you can for in an IFR flight plan?
Click to expand...

That and a whole lot more.

radioguy01 said:
Are you limited to just these pathways? (I doubt it, with GPS and all.)
Click to expand...

Yes and no. Yes, you can go where you want but you must be capable of navigating to and from those locations. GPS definitely helps open this up. The big downside to this is the work involved, it's much easier for all involved to just stick to the beaten path.

radioguy01 said:
What advanced flight and navigation and knowledge do you learn when getting the instrument rating?
Click to expand...

Weather and icing are big items that are emphasized more that the private training. Precision flying is another. Instruments obviously but also instrument failures and how to cope with them. Multitasking, planning, and preparation skills as well.
 
tehmightypirate said:
How to be a more precise pilot.



That and a whole lot more.



Yes and no. Yes, you can go where you want but you must be capable of navigating to and from those locations. GPS definitely helps open this up. The big downside to this is the work involved, it's much easier for all involved to just stick to the beaten path.



Weather and icing are big items that are emphasized more that the private training. Precision flying is another. Instruments obviously but also instrument failures and how to cope with them. Multitasking, planning, and preparation skills as well.
Click to expand...

:yeahthat:

I am taking the IR to learn how to fly more precisely, keep me out of trouble, and be able to utilize my PPL better. I think the PPL is like a bachelor degree, the IR like a master's degree to use a school analogy.
 
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"Instrument flying is when your mind gets a grip on the fact that there is vision beyond sight." — U.S. Navy Approach magazine c. W.W.II.​

"Instrument flying, I had concluded, is an unnatural act, probably punishable by God.” - Gordon Baxter
 
asgcpa said:
:yeahthat:

I am taking the IR to learn how to fly more precisely, keep me out of trouble, and be able to utilize my PPL better. I think the PPL is like a bachelor degree, the IR like a master's degree to use a school analogy.
Click to expand...
Personally, I'd make the following educational analogies:
PP = HS diploma -- you're going nowhere without it.
IR = baccalaureate -- necessary for any serious work
CP = MBA -- necessary for the money jobs
ATP = PhD -- mastery of the profession
 
It just takes a bit of time to learn. Once you learn, and practice it consistently, it becomes habit. The people that have the most issues with loss of awareness and what some call time compression, are those that don't adequately prepare. When you were learning to fly initially, the CFI said, "stay ahead of the airplane." In IFR, it's about staying ahead of the approach. It's always being aware of were you are, where you are headed, and what to do when your get there. It you plan and execute properly, your control will be fine, there will be no issues with time compression, and you will be a safer, more precise pilot who will enjoy a great deal more utility from your flying.
 
I disagree. IFR flying is not only safer, but fun. It also allows you to see things the non-IR guys won't. Like flying through clouds and coming out into a "cavern" of clear air inside the clouds. It is hardly boring. I find it very zen-like.
 
I have a little over 130 TT and I got my PP when I had 43 hours. I have all my requirements done for the IR and have passed the written, but I haven't flown in about 6 weeks due to being really busy with work and a lack of funds at the moment as i'm moving (only a few miles away...but still comes with a price).

What I can tell you is that just spending all that time staring at the instruments, and having the opportunity to actually get a little over 2 hours of IMC including shooting a GPS approach to minimums (not planned...trust me) had made me a much better pilot.

I can control the airplane much better than I used to, I know a lot more about the airplane and the instruments, i'm able to navigate the ATC system much better, and I have much better situational awareness.

Make sense?
 
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