Skates97 Posted December 22, 2020 Author Report Posted December 22, 2020 Time to resurrect this old thread, 4+ years later. I finally put a GPS in the panel back in September which I wanted before starting to work on my Instrument Rating. I've been studying some off and on, mostly off with the King IFR course. Back at the beginning of December I gave myself a deadline to pass the written before the end of the year and a plan to start with a CFII in January so the studying began in earnest. I finished up the King course last week and took the three practice tests with an 80% on the first one followed by 90% on the next two. Over the next few days I did six more random practice tests scoring between 83.33-90% so felt pretty good going into the actual written test this morning. My goal was to pass with something better than 90% and I was feeling pretty good about most of the questions. I went back out to the proctor who printed off my results and handed me the sheet with a 92% on it, mission accomplished. Now it is on to the actual flying. More updates to this thread coming in the weeks ahead. 12 Quote
RLCarter Posted December 23, 2020 Report Posted December 23, 2020 3 hours ago, Skates97 said: I went back out to the proctor who printed off my results and handed me the sheet with a 92% on it, mission accomplished. Now it is on to the actual flying. More updates to this thread coming in the weeks ahead. Good job!!! To me the instrument rating was a bigger accomplishment than the private.... 1 1 Quote
spistora Posted December 23, 2020 Report Posted December 23, 2020 I've got to take my test and get started also. Quote
Skates97 Posted December 23, 2020 Author Report Posted December 23, 2020 36 minutes ago, spistora said: I've got to take my test and get started also. I had to give myself a deadline. I had been half-heartedly studying since August. I finally told myself I would finish the written before the end of the year and went online and scheduled it. 1 Quote
carusoam Posted December 23, 2020 Report Posted December 23, 2020 Good to get that out of the way..! The PPL knowledge is written at the high school level... the text book is about the same size as a science book... the depth of any theory is absent... The IR is similar to a college level class... twice as much knowledge, taught in half the time... and the theory is in there too... fortunately the math gets handed out... no calculus derivations involved... So.... getting a 90 is really good... it takes a ton of time, and strong memory skills to go through all the questions to recognize the the tricks and mis-directions written by professional government test writers... I think I spent a year just doing practice test... 10 questions a day... randomly selected... most of what I got wrong were not reading the question “fully”... I had an odd goal... if somebody is going to fly in a small plane with you in IMC... what can you tell them that would put their mind at ease...? (I wanted a big number like Richard’s) Some MSers are CFIs, some flew F15s at work, others flew 737s... I’m only a PP, with an IR... Is the knowledge up to date on the tests? When I was going through the effort around y2k... the ADF was a modern piece of avionics... and GPS barely got a mention.... in real life, GPS was everywhere, including some planes... Best regards, -a- Quote
Hank Posted December 23, 2020 Report Posted December 23, 2020 1 hour ago, Skates97 said: I had to give myself a deadline. I had been half-heartedly studying since August. I finally told myself I would finish the written before the end of the year and went online and scheduled it. Congratulations! You've done the hard part now. There's no way I could have done well on that test without a lot of flying with my CFII first. There wasn't much more than a couple of months' fine-tuning between written and practical tests for me. The hard part of the written was questions involving equipment that I've (still) never flow behind--ADF, HSI, etc. Nothing in my panel needs to be caged . . . . My practice scores were all over the map, depending on the number of questions about unfamiliar instruments. The flying was the easy part for me . . . You have enough time in your plane that much of it should be second nature. Just take a friend flying and have him (or Cathy) copy speeds and power settings as you fill in your IFR Power Table. But now, you need to climb as well as descend at 500 fpm, and know which pattern to fly when. Talking on the radio should be easy for someone used to SoCal airspace! And no, I've never understood the reasoning behind constant airspeed descents. It's not like we're flying airliners . . . . . 1 Quote
Mooney in Oz Posted December 24, 2020 Report Posted December 24, 2020 On 12/23/2020 at 9:11 AM, Skates97 said: I went back out to the proctor who printed off my results and handed me the sheet with a 92% on it, mission accomplished. Congratulations Richard. Its always a good feeling to have those exams behind you. Enjoy your training. The hardest choice will be choosing training days to fly in actual IF conditions. Quote
kortopates Posted December 24, 2020 Report Posted December 24, 2020 (edited) 2 hours ago, Mooney in Oz said: Congratulations Richard. Its always a good feeling to have those exams behind you. Enjoy your training. The hardest choice will be choosing training days to fly in actual IF conditions. Not in SOCAL! We're blessed with the perfect IMC training weather with benign marine layers which very often allow flying on top of the clouds for a break till dipping below for multiple approaches in the soup with calm air. A "tough" day for us when its high enough we never get on top. That's how spoiled we are! Of course we get some frontal systems moving through like everywhere else, and that's pretty much about the only way we can get any exposure to really demanding turbulent and windy conditions. But our seasonal marine layer daily allows many students to get a number of hours of actual experience in by their checkride day. In contrast, just to the east our AZ brethren in the desert rarely see a "friendly cloud", they're much more likely to be convective or have icing, so they often need to travel over to our neighborhood for some IMC practice. Good job on the exam Richard! That will serve you well on the oral exam, since the DPE will have to ask you question on every knowledge code you did miss. I sure helps when there aren't but a couple! Edited December 24, 2020 by kortopates 3 Quote
Hank Posted December 24, 2020 Report Posted December 24, 2020 Most places, IMC is accompanied by winds and some degree of bumpiness. Training in actual conditions is good, but better be prepared for it to not always be calm and smooth--when it is, that's a bonus! That said, the strongest winds aloft I've experienced have been in VFR conditions. 20" / 250p, 50 rich, 10,000 mzl, 68 knot groundspeed. But there've been times logging actual when it was hard to read the numbers on the GPS, too. Quote
Danb Posted December 24, 2020 Report Posted December 24, 2020 Hey Paul does that mean if you get 100 on the exam no questions asked, great incentive to crank up the studying Quote
kortopates Posted December 24, 2020 Report Posted December 24, 2020 16 minutes ago, Danb said: Hey Paul does that mean if you get 100 on the exam no questions asked, great incentive to crank up the studying No, I got a 100% The examiner is still required to ask a minimal # of questions (2?) on topics from the ACS, and if you answer those satisfactorily they'll move onto the next topic without further questions. He just won't have to to ask additional questions on the areas you got wrong. Still though, orals really vary all over the place in length regardless of minimum # of questions the examiner must ask. One of my students did a very quick instrument oral and the examiner was very complimentary about him being well prepared, but he wasn't able to complete the checkride in the 60 day window and had to start over with a fresh oral. Second time it was a different examiner and my student was no less prepared than first time and the examiner kept going in the oral for 6 hrs! That was unheard of, and I personally think it was because the examiner had a cold and didn't want to fly that day - which was no problem, but he still insisted on giving the students his money's worth that day! I felt bad for the student, but the examiner once again said he did quite well. 2 Quote
Skates97 Posted February 22, 2021 Author Report Posted February 22, 2021 I took my first IFR training flight yesterday. I loved it even though I was chasing the plane, felt like I was behind it almost the whole time, and ended up so task saturated that on our return while flying the RNAV into KFUL I was looking at the vertical deviation which showed us above glideslope but I was holding us level thinking we were below glideslope. I have used it enough just for fun in VFR conditions that I know how to read the instrument, but my brain was not helping me out... Some great experience and looking forward to the next flight Wednesday night. If you want to read about the flight I wrote it up on my blog. https://intothesky.com/2021/02/21/ifr-training-chasing-the-plane/ 6 Quote
carusoam Posted February 22, 2021 Report Posted February 22, 2021 Way to go Richard! There are a few cool things about learning and the IR... It gives soooo many opportunities to define what your level of task saturation actually is.... Kind of like recognizing your O2 levels as they drop... The faster you learn all the details... the better off you will be... But there is always going to be a day when the saturation level is hard to deal with... That’s probably when you ask ATC for some help... PP thoughts only, not IFR current... Best regards, -a- 1 Quote
Skates97 Posted February 28, 2021 Author Report Posted February 28, 2021 Flights 2 and 3 were last Wednesday evening and Saturday morning. Flying at night with foggles is great, there are no shadows from the sun to give you any outside reference. We just did more basic maneuvers (turns/climbs/descents/straight and level) along with some more unusual attitude recoveries. The first couple were easy, the third one after a couple turns I lost track of what he was doing and had no idea what I was going to see on the AI when he said "recover." That was a great experience. Saturday we flew a practice approach into Long Beach and did some partial panel work before going back to the practice approach into KFUL. For the partial panel he just reached over and turned off both G5's which left me with the backup AI that replaced my turn coordinator and I used that along with the ASI/Altimeter/VSI/Compass Card for some climbs/descents and compass turns before he gave me the G5's back. I used lower RPM and MP (2,350 and 18") which made things much easier. I wasn't behind the plane but adding in the communications with ATC and phraseology I'm not familiar with in flying approaches had me behind the radios. I'm otherwise great on the radios flying around the busy SoCal area and on flight following often so I'm confident that with a little more repetition that will come along nicely. https://intothesky.com/2021/02/28/ifr-training-flights-2-3/ 3 Quote
hammdo Posted March 1, 2021 Report Posted March 1, 2021 I know how you feel and I also use 2350/18 while training so I could get used to the coms... after my G5 gets installed- back to ifr training for me! love the blogs ;o) -Don 2 Quote
Skates97 Posted March 6, 2021 Author Report Posted March 6, 2021 Another flight Wednesday night. We flew the RNAV GPS approach to 29R at KTOA down to LPV minimums. My accuracy and scan continues to improve but still a long way to go. Still trying to get used to the radios for IFR work even though I'm more than comfortable even in the busy LA Airspace on the radios when on flight following, it's just the extra brainpower required to fly instruments doesn't leave a whole lot leftover for the radios. It is reminiscent of when I first started flying and it took most of my brainpower to just fly straight and level or make turns while VFR leaving little left to work the radios. It sure is fun to be training again, and I was excited to see when I got home and pulled up Cloud Ahoy to see that I scored a 96 out of 100 on the approach to KTOA. https://intothesky.com/2021/03/05/ifr-training-approach-to-lpv-minimums/ 6 Quote
Skates97 Posted March 8, 2021 Author Report Posted March 8, 2021 Flight #5 yesterday. We flew the RNAV GPS approach into KTOA again and then the missed approach with the hold. The radio work was a little better although I lost track of where I was on the approach into KTOA and into KFUL and didn't get my gear down and configured before crossing the FAF resulting in being behind the plane the rest of the approach. Still, small steps forward, next flight is Wednesday evening. Complete writeup on my blog along with the audio of the tower telling me to "keep in your own lane sir" when I drifted over the parallel runway at KTOA flying the missed approach. https://intothesky.com/2021/03/07/ifr-training-great-kid-dont-get-cocky/ 4 Quote
Seth Posted March 8, 2021 Report Posted March 8, 2021 On 10/15/2016 at 11:14 AM, BradB said: Don, My experience was like yours. I got my ppl in 1992. No phase checks or flying with another instructor. The check ride was given by the head of the flight school. Once my CFI was confident that I would not make him look bad to his boss, he sent me for the check ride. At the end of my check ride, the examiner told me that he knew I would pass based on how I handled the plane and the controls on the first take off. I was thinking about adding my commercial for fun, but I'm not sure that I want to torture myself after reading all these stories. Brad. Brad- Do it! The Commercial is the most fun of the checkrides. During my oral for the commercial I stated that I look at every checkride as a learning experience and hope that I'm able to communicate a proficiency level on the required material so that we can continue with the practical test. Most examiners do not have a lot of Mooney time. So do tell they if they want to demonstrate a lazy 8 or other maneuver they can. My examiner asked if he could show me what he was looking for in a lazy 8 and I asked him to demonstrate. It was THE WORST lazy 8 I'd ever seen in the Mooney Missile (heavy nose). He looked at me afterward and said "you really know your airplane" and then "let's go back to the field for some landings). -Seth 4 Quote
Seth Posted March 8, 2021 Report Posted March 8, 2021 Richard- I'm glad you are doing this training - it's already making you a better pilot. -Seth 1 Quote
Skates97 Posted March 15, 2021 Author Report Posted March 15, 2021 After postponing flights on Wednesday and Friday due to an Airmet Zulu, Convective Outlooks, and storms in the area we got to take another training flight yesterday. We flee the approach into Hawthorne and the missed approach with the hold. Some mistakes made, the radio work was better although I still hit the task saturation point a couple of times. Small steps forward, a long way to go still, but still enjoying the journey. https://intothesky.com/2021/03/14/ifr-training-small-improvements/ Quote
BradB Posted March 16, 2021 Report Posted March 16, 2021 On 3/8/2021 at 12:06 AM, Seth said: Brad- Do it! The Commercial is the most fun of the checkrides. During my oral for the commercial I stated that I look at every checkride as a learning experience and hope that I'm able to communicate a proficiency level on the required material so that we can continue with the practical test. Most examiners do not have a lot of Mooney time. So do tell they if they want to demonstrate a lazy 8 or other maneuver they can. My examiner asked if he could show me what he was looking for in a lazy 8 and I asked him to demonstrate. It was THE WORST lazy 8 I'd ever seen in the Mooney Missile (heavy nose). He looked at me afterward and said "you really know your airplane" and then "let's go back to the field for some landings). -Seth @Seth I haven’t forgotten about the commercial. I actually ordered an updated copy of the book recently. But now I’m going to have to do the training and check ride in a Meridian. It has been done. And my friend just did his in his TBM - pressure is on. brad 1 Quote
Seth Posted March 16, 2021 Report Posted March 16, 2021 2 hours ago, BradB said: @Seth I haven’t forgotten about the commercial. I actually ordered an updated copy of the book recently. But now I’m going to have to do the training and check ride in a Meridian. It has been done. And my friend just did his in his TBM - pressure is on. brad WOW! For the dollar cost of doing so per hour, it may make more sense to rent a retract or TAA for the commercial. You'll have to make sure there's a DPE that can give you the checkride in your aircraft prior to committing - then again, with the Meridian, you can cover a lot of ground to a DPE that can do it! -Seth Quote
carusoam Posted March 16, 2021 Report Posted March 16, 2021 I’m torn... Do I cheer for the guy who used to fly the coolest Mooney... -or- Do I cheer for the guy who now flys the coolest Mooney... TBM That’s a tough one... Go Brad! Best regards, -a- 1 Quote
Skates97 Posted March 24, 2021 Author Report Posted March 24, 2021 I flew last Wednesday and Friday evenings and thought I should get this posted before my planned flight this evening. We filed IFR, got clearance, and flew to San Bernardino KSBD on Wednesday and Palomar KCRQ Friday. On Friday's flight everything felt like it was starting to come together. There is still a long way to go but it felt more comfortable flying on the instruments. I put the camera under the wing as the forecast was for 1,000' overcast at Palomar and I was hoping to get a little actual time, but even though the marine layer was over the west end of the airport during our pre-flight briefing it had moved away before we got there. However, coming back I did end up with some of the best views that I never saw in flight. On reviewing the video at home I saw that when we were routed back out offshore the sun had just set, there was a thin marine layer with the lights of the many container ships glowing up through, and the clouds looked like waves. https://intothesky.com/2021/03/24/ifr-training-filing-and-flying-ifr/ 4 Quote
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