In England, the hood type devices are not allowed for serious instrument
training or checkrides.

The aircraft have to be fitted with a sort of venetian blind which
completely blocks out the outside world to the trainee/applicant but al lows
the instructor/examiner a full view.

In practice they are really good as the head is not restricted, there is no
scope to peak either. A bit expensive as they tend to be fitted to
Instrument training aircraft although I have seen some removable versions.

wrote in message
...

I've been working on that elusive instrument rating for awhile now,
but I still haven't come up with a very good solution for my view
limiting device.

I need to wear glasses for reading (charts), but otherwise I see just
fine. I wear progressive lenses (for presbyopia) that vary from a
diopter of 2.5 on the bottom to almost no correction on the top. Most
"devices" only let you see out of the bottom of your glasses, which
works for reading but then the panel is blurry. I have to remove the
entire contraption if I want to see the "runway environment".

I've tried foggles, and a "real" wraparound hood. The hood seems to
work the best, but I get a "crushing" headache from wearing the
headset, hood, and glasses. Maybe it's because it's an old style that
clamps around you head!

I've noticed some alternatives on the market including; Overcasters,
Hoodwinks, and one called Viban.

Have any of you had success with a particular type of hood? I would
be very interested to hear your opinions, especially if you also wear
progressive or bifocal lens glasses.

Thanks!

Steve Job