Instrument Flight Rules

Somewhat surprisingly, many of the challenges of learning to be a proficient IFR pilot are the same as those one encounters when just getting started as a student pilot. One of the toughest skills for brand-new pilots to master — talking on the radio — is equally challenging for pilots getting their instrument ticket or […]

Max Trescott was the 2008 National Certified Flight Instructor of the Year. Based in Palo Alto, California, he publishes aviation books and software, including Max Trescott’s GPS and WAAS Instrument Flying Handbook and Max Trescott’s G1000 Glass Cockpit Handbook. He teaches in Cirrus and other glass cockpit aircraft, and in Lake amphibians. He can be […]

Cessna Aircraft and King Schools have developed the Cessna Instrument Pilot Course kit — a web-based instrument pilot course similar to the Cessna Sport/Private Pilot Course already in use at Cessna Pilot Centers. The course is scheduled to launch at the end of the month and will be accessible from any computer or iPad with […]

PilotWorkshops.com has introduced an online proficiency training course for instrument pilots that’s intended not so much to help you pass a check ride as it is to hone your real-world IFR flying skills. The IFR proficiency series provides practical and straightforward training and tips in short Web-based segments augmented by audio and PowerPoint-like presentations. The […]

For pilots making their way through the world of ratings independently, as opposed to through a highly structured training program, the instrument ticket generates more anxiety per flight hour than all the other ratings combined. It should come as no surprise that it does. To go from the world of VFR flight (which is how […]

What are the biggest challenges new instrument students face? (February 2011) — Eric Radtke is an airline transport pilot, Gold Seal flight instructor, advanced ground instructor and NAFI-accredited Master Flight Instructor. Eric has been involved in aviation education since 1998 and currently serves as president and chief instructor of Sporty’s Academy, the educational arm of […]

Air traffic controllers are terrific people dedicated to helping pilots complete their flights smoothly and safely. That is a true statement until the smooth part, or maybe even the safe part, comes into conflict with the only absolute requirement in ATC, which is to separate airplanes under its control from one another by required minimum […]

June 2010 NOT ALL THAT long ago even the best full-motion jet simulators had very basic visual presentations that were restricted to nothing more than a view straight ahead through the windshield. Most simulators had a television-style screen mounted in each pilot’s windshield, and you couldn’t really see anything except the display on your side. […]

For decades pilots of light airplanes have practiced flying instruments using only what we called a “partial panel,” meaning that several crucial instruments were not operating. Being able to control the airplane in instrument meteorological conditions (IMC) without all of the primary instruments functioning is absolutely crucial because a loss of control in the clouds […]

April 2010 LIKE A LOT OF PILOTS who learned instrument flying in the mid ’90s, I got my ticket as new technology was just beginning to show up in the cockpits of small airplanes. Not that it did me much good at the time. My instrument training at FlightSafety Academy, then in Lakeland, Florida, was […]