Training and Proficiency What A CFI Wants You To Know

7 Things to Expect During IFR Training

Instrument rating is known for being the most intense and useful.

Tuesday, November 19, 2024 at 11:07 AM ET

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Of all the training a private pilot can take, the instrument rating is known for being the most intense and useful. [Credit: Adobe Stock]

Key Takeaways:

The instrument rating is a challenging but vital pilot training that teaches reliance on instruments over physical sensations to avoid spatial disorientation.
Effective instrument training involves mastering constant instrument scanning, gentle aircraft control, and preparing for initial queasiness, which subsides with practice.
Pilots should actively engage in real-world scenarios during training, such as listening to flight following, experiencing cloud conditions, and practicing in simulators, while always being mindful of hazards like icing.
Successful completion and maintenance of the instrument rating require strategic planning for flight hours (e.g., cross-country PIC) and regular practice of instrument approaches.

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As we head into winter so many pilots begin the training for their instrument rating. Of all the training a private pilot can take, the instrument rating is known for being the most intense and useful.

According to federal regulation, a private pilot needs to receive “three hours of flight training in a single-engine airplane on the control and maneuvering of an airplane solely by reference to instruments, including straight and level flight, constant airspeed climbs and descents, turns to a heading, recovery from unusual flight attitudes, radio communications, and the use of navigation systems/facilities and radar services appropriate to instrument flight.”

Meg Godlewski

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.