Making Practice Count: IFR Self-Critique

I fly a lot of IFR year round and a fair amount of actual IMC during the winter, but not much in the summer. Like everyone else, Ive heard the wakeup call from Center in that unmistakable tone that says, "Were not amused that you think flex-altitudes are in use today...please get back to 5000 feet. Now." That sort of thing may be a minor mistake, but if you add up enough minor mistakes, youve got a trend and that could lead to something ugly. The 24-month flight review and instrument proficiency checks are supposed to correct the inevitable decline in skill for those of us who dont fly much, but there may be a better way.

Key Takeaways:

• Pilots should proactively and continuously self-assess their IFR skills on every flight, dedicating mental bandwidth to identify and correct subtle faults in real-time.
• This self-review can be segmented by flight phase (climb, cruise, descent, approach, holding) with notes kept to track performance and identify specific areas needing improvement.
• To combat skill degradation and maximize training value, pilots should seek out challenging scenarios (e.g., unusual approaches, holds) and strive for precision in all aspects of instrument flying, making every flight an opportunity for self-improvement.

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