Question about instrument checkride..

[nosehair]

? My instructor insists that I need to practice these some more before my checkride and I am just wondering if I need them for the ride?

They are not needed for the checkride. If that is the sole intent and purpose your instructor is requiring it, then you should ask him to get a new PTS. And, by the way, YOU should have one. Every pilot applicant should have, and use, a PTS to prepare for any Practical Test.

However, passing a checkride is not the name of the game. It isn't. Learning to save your bacon, and your passengers, and those random victims on the ground, is the name of the game. Proficiency. That is all that matters.

Don't think for one second that you can always avoid steep turns or close-to-stalling in instruments. If you fly long enough, on instruments, you WILL have gyro failure, radio failure, and unusual attitudes in thunderstorms. Steep turns and stalls help you maintain control in those unusual situations.

This is not to say that you are in need of that training - I don't know you - but just a consideration that maybe this instructor actually cares about you and wants you to be proficient - beyoud the PTS.

What about you? do you feel proficient in these "unusual" conditions?

 

[mattpilot]

I just can't believe the out right Arrogance of some of the instructors out there especially the ones at MTSU. Mattpilot just tried to tell a guy with +1500hrs that he has a better understanding of IMC flying. How many hours do you have actual you dumba$$... I have known so many instructors to come out of MTSU thinking b/c they made it in the Garcia/MTSU buble that they are excellent pilots. Go get a real job and see how many real pilots laugh at you.

Having a bad day?

I'm not telling User997 what to do or how to do it. All i've done is give a plausible reason as to why the FAA required slowflight, stalls, and steep turns at one point. User997 commented on it and i asked him a question. Since User997 and I fly in the same airspace, he knows that our airport gets quite busy and its not uncommen, at least not for singles, to be asked to vary speed. Thats why the question was directed at him, and not at you. The difference in our procedure lies, in part, in the fact that he gets paid to fly and i mostly have to pay my own time. So i politely redirect the "dumba$$" comment to you, and hope you will mind your own business in the future.


Oh, and what the hell is MTSU? If its as bad as you say, you must be a graduate of it.

 

[NYCPilot]

I've had instrument students practice power-on/off stalls under the hood, just to see what it's like. Steep turns and slow flight should be practiced as well as the stall series under the hood, even though they're not specifically required on the PTS. Leaving them out would be kind of like disservice, and merely "teaching the PTS" to pass the checkride. Teaching only what is covered on the PTS and leaving everything else out.

I feel it is important to be able to proficiently fly on instruments under varying flight conditions you might not normally encounter during instrument flight. Steep turns are more challenging under the hood than they are visually, and will improve your ability to control the aircraft more precisely on instruments. You will gain a better feel of the varying control forces experienced during a steep turn. They feel much different under the hood than they do when performed visually. You will be more cognizant of the greater control forces required and the G-forces which will cause some disorientation. In the slow flight regime, once again, the control forces will feel much different. Being able to perform stalls and steep turns accurately, will improve your handling and feel of the aircraft on instruments. It will also increase your confidence level. Stall/spin accidents are usually precipitated by inattention during the takeoff and approach phases. During IFR flight, a LOT is going on, and it is quite easy to lose control of the airplane and find yourself in a slow flight/stall situation. Having practiced slow flight and stalls under the hood will certainly leave you more prepared to deal with this should you encounter such a situation. Whether it is a “required” task or not, go and practice them.

This may be extreme, but I’ve heard of guys spinning through clouds (intentionally) and recovering in IMC. Not suggesting or advocating it, but you’ve got to have some pretty good skills and be confident if you’re gonna pull these off.

 

[User546]

I'm not telling User997 what to do or how to do it. All i've done is give a plausible reason as to why the FAA required slowflight, stalls, and steep turns at one point. User997 commented on it and i asked him a question. Since User997 and I fly in the same airspace, he knows that our airport gets quite busy and its not uncommen, at least not for singles, to be asked to vary speed.

Matt wasn't trying to start anything or say that I was wrong. He just merely asked an opinion regarding a certain scenario since we both fly out of the same airport. He didn't refute my response to his question did he?

And now that I fully understand your original question, I think your comparing apples to oranges. When we're coming into our airport we don't take our airplane below 115 kts (we'll typically setup around 125-135), and we've always received priority over all the single-engine traffic. Since our approach speed is faster then most of the single's cruise at, It's much easier for the singles to do a 360 then a jet that's not flying anything more then a makeshift traffic pattern. We always end up entering on a base leg or straight-in. Now if I was flying a single or a light-twin, I wouldn't mind slowing it up for a little slow flight as long as it was VMC conditions, and he didnt want me to slow up any slower then what was safe.

The way I took your original question was if ATC would tell us to do slow flight while in IMC conditions. It wouldn't happen to begin with since the field would be handling only IFR traffic, and separation would have to be provided anyways. At most, ATC would give you an airspeed restriction - and they know what airplane you're in, so they wouldn't tell you to slow down to an unsafe speed based on your aircraft.

MDAutrey, Give the guy a break and relax a little before you go accusing! He doesn't have much instrument experience, and he's merely asking the opinion of other people who have had more experience then him. What's wrong with that?
.
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[RichardRambone]

I had a vaccum failure just yesterday but thankfully we were VMC. Ill tell ya it makes me think that if it had happened during IMC (which I was in the previous flight) Id thank my lucky stars that I had a very good instrument instructor. It didnt have a turn coordinator either. Just compass, airspeed, VSI and altimeter. And if I had to shoot an approach I coulda done it but damn.

 

[minitour]

I had a vaccum failure just yesterday but thankfully we were VMC. Ill tell ya it makes me think that if it had happened during IMC (which I was in the previous flight) Id thank my lucky stars that I had a very good instrument instructor. It didnt have a turn coordinator either. Just compass, airspeed, VSI and altimeter. And if I had to shoot an approach I coulda done it but dang.

You took a plane w/o a turn coordinator into IMC?

Did it have another (backup) attitude indicator?

-mini

 

[RichardRambone]

I didnt take the nonexistent turn coordinator into IMC but it was taken out for my next flight VMC. No backup vaccum source or attitude indicator. The airplane currently is the best partial panel IFR plane you can get.

 

[minitour]

I didnt take the nonexistent turn coordinator into IMC but it was taken out for my next flight VMC.

ah...okay I understand now.

-mini

 

[cforst513]

i did an approach into Jax yesterday at 120+kts b/c they told us to keep up our speed. kinda the opposite of slowflight. the low approach and being in ground effect was a lot of fun

 

[User546]

i did an approach into Jax yesterday at 120+kts b/c they told us to keep up our speed. kinda the opposite of slowflight. the low approach and being in ground effect was a lot of fun

I did that in a Piper Archer one time into Sky Harbor in Phoenix. We were instructed to keep the throttle at the firewall until crossing the threshold to keep ahead of a 737 behind us. When we crossed the threshold and pulled the power back, we must've floated halfway down the 12,000 foot runway! First and only time I had to use a high speed turnoff in a single-engine!

 

[cforst513]

how do you do a high-speed turn-off w/out tipping the thing? how stable are cessnas and pipers? about what speeds will they tolerate before you have a wing strike b/c you turned too fast?

 

[minitour]

how do you do a high-speed turn-off w/out tipping the thing? how stable are cessnas and pipers?

Well....the 172 isn't too bad...lots of back pressure while applying the brakes and turning off....ya should be fine.

-mini

 

[mattpilot]

Well....the 172 isn't too bad...lots of back pressure while applying the brakes and turning off....ya should be fine.

-mini

Its easier to keep the nose off the ground and just try to turn it using the rudder - it won't tip

Hell.. why not just land on the highspeed turn off in a 152/172? The length is usually adequate.

 

[minitour]

Hell.. why not just land on the highspeed turn off in a 152/172? The length is usually adequate.

LMFAO!

"Tower, Cessna 123...instead of keeping up the speed howzabout we just land on F2?"

"uh...say type"

"152"

"hahah okay"

LMMFAO

I so needed that...thanks!

-mini