Instrument Check

For almost as long as Ive been flying, the general aviation industry has been in upheaval. By the mid-1980s, product liability concerns and tax law changes helped remove what was propping up things, and the bottom fell out. Among other outcomes, Cessna stopped making piston-powered airplanes altogether while other manufacturers discontinued numerous models, preferring to concentrate on one or two.

the existence of a report of observed icing does not assure the presence or intensity of icing conditions at a later time

Catastrophic FailureAugustClassic CFITMayCloak Of InvincibilityDecemberFifteen MilesJuneMinimum EquipmentMarchMissing Flight PlanOctoberMostly MundaneJanuaryRunning The ScudAprilSpin Recovery FailureSeptemberThe Impossible TurnFebruaryToo Much Automation?NovemberUnsecured CargoJuly

the applicant must demonstrate the ability to perform the Tasks listed in the table below. The person giving the check should develop a scenario that incorporates as many required Tasks as practical to assess the pilot’s ADM and risk management skills.””

The good news about this plan was the VOR/DME procedure we wanted to fly into Winter Haven used LAL as an initial approach fix. The middling news was we were doing this at 2700 feet msl, 700 feet above the minimum crossing altitude at LAL, to stay above KLALs Class D, which tops out at 2600. So Id need to carefully pull the plug after crossing LAL to ensure I could get down to the MDA before getting too close to the airport. But the hold at LAL coming off the miss at VDF had us going the opposite direction, and we were trying to do this on our own, using published procedures.

Until the 1990s, when backup options became widely available for personal aircraft, a vacuum system failure in instrument conditions was an extreme emergency. These days it still is, but electric backup instruments are relatively inexpensive and easy to install.

By the time someone is sent for the instrument check ride, he or she is expected to know the emergency procedures in the appropriate POH as well as how to deal with failures affecting the airplanes ability to fly in IMC. A cross-section of the bad news stuff is discussed during the oral portion of the practical test and demonstrated in flight. But whats a little frightening is that the IFR check ride often marks the high point of an instrument pilots ability to deal with an emergency.

I clearly remember my first experience breaking out on final after an instrument approach. It was late Thanksgiving, on the second leg of a seven-hour cross-country. At the time, I was an IFR noob with very little experience flying in the system, much less in actual IMC. I had been flying above a cloud layer, but with an hour remaining in my flight and the sun setting, the deck had finally sealed off my view of the ground. Fortunately, temperatures were warm, the layer was only a few thousand feet thick and the bases were reported at 1800 feet agl. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to experience breaking out without being anywhere near IFR minimums.

Sometimes you just get set up. You got up early, looked out the window at a nearly clear sky and figured youd fly the 80 miles or so to visit a buddy and hang out at his airport instead of yours. You whipped out your tablet for a full briefing and to make sure there were no TFRs. The forecast advertised nothing below 5000 broken and four miles viz all day, so you headed for the airport, did the preflight and motored off over the horizon.

Under basic Part 91 rules for certified aircraft, everything aboard has to be documented and working. The aircraft can remain airworthy if failed equipment isn’t required for the operation, and is placarded and isolated from other systems. But an airplane is like any other mechanical contrivance: it’s subject to wear and tear: A system may function, but not as intended.A good example can be braking systems. Those on typical personal airplanes are hydraulically actuated, as…