You've been flying a long, long time and I'm sure you've forgotten a lot
about being low hours

I think we're talking about learning here, getting TO the basics; not
getting back to them. How do you learn to fly using only the windshield and
the seat of your pants except by looking at the instruments? How can you
learn the proper feel of 75 knots unless you know it is 75 knots?

Sure, a better way of teaching flying would be to cover up the instruments
and have the CFI go, "A little faster, you're skidding a bit, less
bank....". But, they don't do that. They teach you a little bit and then
send you up there on your own.

Like most pilots, I look at the instruments less and less in the pattern as
I gain experience. I look at airspeed and RPM a lot in pattern work to be
sure I'm remaining consistent. A lot means a quick glance at midfield,
base, and final. If you don't check, what feels like 75 knots could easily
drift up or down. Like you, I hardly look below the glareshield on most
regular landings unless I haven't flown in a while.

It's different when too when you fly a lot. Many pilots can only fly 2 - 3
times a month. It's easy to argue that they should leave the air to pros
like yourself but GA wouldn't exist as we know it if they did. There is
also the issue of flying different aircraft. One 172 will feel and sound
very different at a certain speed than another. The low time pilot who
forgets to adjust his seat may not allow for a different sight picture.
Flying a 152 one day and a 172 a few days later as often happens in some
training situations can get the student who ignores the panel in trouble.

Telling students and low frequency fliers that they should not include the
instruments in their scan is actually dangerous advice.

--
Roger Long


The airplane is perfectly flyable without ANY reference to the
instruments,
or anything inside the airplane. Turning base to final is no time to be
wasting ANY effort looking at instruments, and is certainly no time to be
attempting to use the instruments as feedback for control inputs.

A pilot who cannot judge bank angle and coordination without consulting
the
turn coordinator and attitude indicator is one who needs to get back to
the
basics.