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#1
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Instrument rating??
I had always planned on getting my instrument rating- within the next
year, probably. But last weekend I had a chat with someone who really got me thinking about it. This guy is a friend of a friend and is a retired 20,000 hour ATP. Retired in the 80s flying 707s and I forget what else. Instructed in Cubs for years. (Guy has nine count 'em nine engine failures in Cubs! Two inside 20 minutes once!) So, this is what he told me: unless I'm going to be flying 3 times/week at least, getting my instrument ticket is a waste and possibly dangerous as well. He thinks I'll be more likely to end up dead with it than without it. (Logic being, obviously, that the ticket will give me such a sense of security that I won't be afraid of hard IMC even when I'm not current enough to handle it.) Thoughts on this?? |
#2
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I had always planned on getting my instrument rating- within the next
year, probably. But last weekend I had a chat with someone who really got me thinking about it. This guy is a friend of a friend and is a retired 20,000 hour ATP. Retired in the 80s flying 707s and I forget what else. Instructed in Cubs for years. (Guy has nine count 'em nine engine failures in Cubs! Two inside 20 minutes once!) So, this is what he told me: unless I'm going to be flying 3 times/week at least, getting my instrument ticket is a waste and possibly dangerous as well. He thinks I'll be more likely to end up dead with it than without it. (Logic being, obviously, that the ticket will give me such a sense of security that I won't be afraid of hard IMC even when I'm not current enough to handle it.) Thoughts on this?? Tell your ATP friend of a friend to go jump in a lake, or have him join on here and I'll tell him myself. One of the best things you can do for your own safety and satisfaction is to get an instrument rating. You can fly hard, medium, or light IMC depending on your own risk levels, equipment, and conditions. People who are instrument rated can decide what they think they're ready for just like a private pilot can. |
#3
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So, this is what he told me: unless I'm going to be flying 3 times/week
at least, getting my instrument ticket is a waste and possibly dangerous as well. He thinks I'll be more likely to end up dead with it than without it. This kind of BS just plain ****es me off. You do not become more likely to kill yourself with an instrument rating and not flying 3 times a week. This statement is a perfect example of why hours do not necessarily mean competence in aviation. |
#4
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"Paul Folbrecht" wrote in message ink.net... I had always planned on getting my instrument rating- within the next year, probably. But last weekend I had a chat with someone who really got me thinking about it. This guy is a friend of a friend and is a retired 20,000 hour ATP. Retired in the 80s flying 707s and I forget what else. Instructed in Cubs for years. (Guy has nine count 'em nine engine failures in Cubs! Two inside 20 minutes once!) So, this is what he told me: unless I'm going to be flying 3 times/week at least, getting my instrument ticket is a waste and possibly dangerous as well. He thinks I'll be more likely to end up dead with it than without it. (Logic being, obviously, that the ticket will give me such a sense of security that I won't be afraid of hard IMC even when I'm not current enough to handle it.) This is like arguing that you shouldn't wear a parachute, cause if you do you'll take extreme chances and kill yourself. My personal belief is that training and/or education (and travel) is never truly wasted, even if you never use it again. If you're the kind of guy who thinks the rating is a magic key to IFR, and you don't need to be current to use it, you'll probably kill yourself somehow else, even if you don't get the rating. Good airmanship means good sense. If you have a reasonable quota of airmanship/good-sense you'll know when to use it, and when not, and if you don't you're in the wrong avocation anyway. |
#5
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I just got mine, so I don't speak from a whole lot of experience.
But I would say a few things in response to that... Most importantly, personal judgement is just that - personal. You need to have good judgement, and one thing that my CFI hammered into me from very early on in my IFR training was that just cause it's legal doesn't mean it's smart or safe. That said, I do agree that you have to keep flying in order to maintain proficiency. Even a week-long lapse had a noticeable affect on my performance at this stage of my IFR flying. But the more I fly IFR (even in VMC) the less I lose between days. I expect that after I have been flying IFR for a while, it will be to the point where I can go a week or two between flights on not be too rusty. But I don't think I would walk out today and start a flight into minimums - even if I had flown IFR yesterday. It's not much different than when I got my private a couple of years ago. After I got my private, if I took more than a few days off, it showed. It showed in my navigation, in my control, and in my landings. But after a year or so, I was able to maintain control pretty intuitively, and land comfortably without having to try too hard, even after a week or two break. The bottom line is that you have to know yourself - your own limitations. Even if you REALLY WANT to fly somewhere, and it's legal, but beyond your personal capability at the time, you really need to evaluate your situation objectively and avoid "get-there-itis". Without a doubt, that is the killer. If your personality and ego won't let you do that, your friend may be right. But if you're reasonable enough to remember to take a step back and THINK, even in the face of strong desire, I'm guessing you'll be just fine. Of course, if you give up before you even try, what's the point!?!?! Paul Folbrecht wrote in ink.net: I had always planned on getting my instrument rating- within the next year, probably. But last weekend I had a chat with someone who really got me thinking about it. This guy is a friend of a friend and is a retired 20,000 hour ATP. Retired in the 80s flying 707s and I forget what else. Instructed in Cubs for years. (Guy has nine count 'em nine engine failures in Cubs! Two inside 20 minutes once!) So, this is what he told me: unless I'm going to be flying 3 times/week at least, getting my instrument ticket is a waste and possibly dangerous as well. He thinks I'll be more likely to end up dead with it than without it. (Logic being, obviously, that the ticket will give me such a sense of security that I won't be afraid of hard IMC even when I'm not current enough to handle it.) Thoughts on this?? |
#6
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Simple. Your friend of a friend is an idiots' idiot.
"Paul Folbrecht" wrote in message ink.net... I had always planned on getting my instrument rating- within the next year, probably. But last weekend I had a chat with someone who really got me thinking about it. This guy is a friend of a friend and is a retired 20,000 hour ATP. Retired in the 80s flying 707s and I forget what else. Instructed in Cubs for years. (Guy has nine count 'em nine engine failures in Cubs! Two inside 20 minutes once!) So, this is what he told me: unless I'm going to be flying 3 times/week at least, getting my instrument ticket is a waste and possibly dangerous as well. He thinks I'll be more likely to end up dead with it than without it. (Logic being, obviously, that the ticket will give me such a sense of security that I won't be afraid of hard IMC even when I'm not current enough to handle it.) Thoughts on this?? |
#7
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You have a PPL. Would you now attempt to fly in conditions that you can't
handle, or attempt maneuvers that you or the plane are not qualified for? Get the IR, respect the weather, and enjoy a marginal amount more freedom than you do now. If you are silly enough to take off into freezing rain just because you have an IR, it is not the IR that is killing you. By the way, this guy must have had a terrible mechanic - nine engine failures! Michael "Paul Folbrecht" wrote in message ink.net... I had always planned on getting my instrument rating- within the next year, probably. But last weekend I had a chat with someone who really got me thinking about it. This guy is a friend of a friend and is a retired 20,000 hour ATP. Retired in the 80s flying 707s and I forget what else. Instructed in Cubs for years. (Guy has nine count 'em nine engine failures in Cubs! Two inside 20 minutes once!) So, this is what he told me: unless I'm going to be flying 3 times/week at least, getting my instrument ticket is a waste and possibly dangerous as well. He thinks I'll be more likely to end up dead with it than without it. (Logic being, obviously, that the ticket will give me such a sense of security that I won't be afraid of hard IMC even when I'm not current enough to handle it.) Thoughts on this?? |
#8
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No need for me to "pile on", but advancing your aviation education is no waste
of time. I have always believed the Instrument Rating is the most important rating you will ever get. You will be a better pilot and more skilled in working in the system (VFR, too). www.Rosspilot.com |
#9
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Paul Folbrecht wrote: Thoughts on this?? I heard the same from a retired 737 pilot. The way he put it was "If you aren't going to use it all the time, don't get an instrument rating". George Patterson A diplomat is a person who can tell you to go to hell in such a way that you look forward to the trip. |
#10
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I think the guy is feeding you alot of crap.
there are alot of benefits of instrument training and getting the instrument rating. one is lower insurance if you own your own plane the other is you can legally fly when its below VFR minimums nor do you have to dodge around clouds when you are going somewhere. thinking your invincible is not something only instrument pilots do, VFR pilots do it also. But just because you have an instrument rating does not mean you can fly in anything. your skills and the plane your flying dictate the weather you fly in. Paul Folbrecht wrote: I had always planned on getting my instrument rating- within the next year, probably. But last weekend I had a chat with someone who really got me thinking about it. This guy is a friend of a friend and is a retired 20,000 hour ATP. Retired in the 80s flying 707s and I forget what else. Instructed in Cubs for years. (Guy has nine count 'em nine engine failures in Cubs! Two inside 20 minutes once!) So, this is what he told me: unless I'm going to be flying 3 times/week at least, getting my instrument ticket is a waste and possibly dangerous as well. He thinks I'll be more likely to end up dead with it than without it. (Logic being, obviously, that the ticket will give me such a sense of security that I won't be afraid of hard IMC even when I'm not current enough to handle it.) Thoughts on this?? |
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