If you’re planning on becoming a professional pilot, you’ve already thought completing an instrument rating. What is the IFR, or instrument rating, and what are the different categories of it?
What is IFR?
An instrument rating allows you to fly without reference to the ground, in the clouds, weather and the resultant poor visibility, using your onboard resources to navigate and keep the aircraft level.
Once beyond visual flight rules, or VFR, we have marginal VFR and then IFR, or instrument meteorological conditions. Below shows what classifies as IFR at an aerodrome. Remember, these only cover an area within 5 NM of the aerodrome
VFR: Visibility more than 5 SM and ceilings greater than 3000′ AGL (including clear sky)
Marginal VFR: Visibility between 3-5 SM and ceilings between 1000-3000′ AGL
IFR: Visibility between 1 – 3 SM (but less than 3 SM) and ceiling 500′ to less than 1000′ AGL.
There is also one more category, limited instrument flight rules, or LIFR. This means when either the ceiling is below 500′ AGL, visibility is less than 1 SM, or both.
The instrument rating teaches you to use the very sophisticated world wide IFR system and teaches you how to handle emergencies when without any outside visual reference. The main emergency tested is an engine failure, which is tested initially on your flight test, and regularly throughout your working career.
Group 1 – this one allows you to fly a multi engine aircraft on instruments, not including centre line thrust airplanes.
Group 2 – All centre line thrust single and multi engine airplanes, the flight test is conducted in a multi engine centre line thrust airplane.
Group 3 – this one is to fly a single engine airplane on instruments.
Group 4 – helicopter. Typically, helicopter pilots go for this rating and complete much of the hours it on a single engine fixed wing rather than a helicopter, which is much cheaper. A group 4 instrument rating applies to both single and multi engine helicopters.
The differences for fixed wing ratings, the group 1, 2 and 3 have to do with learning how to manage adverse thrust that is produced with a multi engine aircraft. Typically engines are mounted on either side of the wing and when one stops producing thrust, there is the added problem of adverse yaw and roll created as one engine overpowers the other. The group 1 rating deals with how to manage and engine failure with adverse yaw.
What makes IFR flight legal?
In order to fly IFR, you have to file an IFR flight plan. To do this, both the airplane and the pilot have certain requirements. The airplane has to be equipped for IFR flight, requiring certain instruments and features on board. The pilot has to be certified in the type of IFR flight and have currency in the IFR rating. This comes with certain requirements to maintain currency. Let’s take a look at what is required.
Airplane requirements
There are a lot of these and they can be broken down into several different categories: airplane and engine systems, gyroscopic instruments, direction (heading) indication, pitot-static instruments and communication and navigation equipment. Day IFR are given first, and then for Night IFR a few extra items are required.
Day IFR Flight
Airplane system and engine instruments
- Tachometer – indicates rpm for each engine
- Oil pressure indicator
- Coolant temperature indicator: for liquid cooled engines, such as the diesel on the Diamond Twin Star, DA42
- Oil temperature indicator for each air cooled engine
- Manifold Pressure (MP) gauge: for piston engines or variable pitch propellers or those that are supercharged or turbocharged
- Fuel gauges for each main fuel tank
- Landing gear position indicator
- Spare fuses, at least 50% of the set of a particular rating that are installed on the airplane and can be accessed by the pilot in flight
- Outside air temperature gauge (OAT)
Gyroscopic instruments
- A stabilized magnetic direction indicator or gyroscopic direction indicator
- Turn and slip indicator or turn coordinator
- Attitude indicator
- Status indicator for each power source to a gyroscopic instrument, for example a vacuum (suction) gauge that we would see in older steam gauge instruments on the Cessna 172
Direction Indication
- Magnetic compass
- Within operations in Northern Domestic Airspace, a means of establishing direction not dependent on a magnetic source
Pilot static instruments
- Sensitive altimeter adjustable for barometric pressure
- Airspeed indicator
- Pitot heat for each airspeed indicating system
- Vertical speed indicator (VSI)
- Alternate source for the altimeter, airspeed indicator and VSI
Communication and navigation instruments
- Radio communication sufficient for two way communication on required frequencies
- Sufficient radio navigation that will allow you to:
(1) proceed to the destination aerodrome or other aerodrome suitable for landing, and
(2) in IMC, be able to conduct the necessary instrument approaches and missed approaches
Night IFR Flight
In addition to instruments required for day VFR flight, the airplane will also require additional equipment:
- Means of illuminationg all of the instruments used to operate the aircraft
- Landing light when carrying passengers
- Position and anti-collision lights
Pilot proficiency
Earlier I mentioned that in order fly IFR we must to file an IFR flight plan. This means that both the airplane and pilot have to be IFR certified. What requirements does the pilot need to have to remain current on IFR?
First, after obtaining an IFR rating, to stay current the pilot must satisfy two rules.
(1) Within the previous 24 months complete:
- an instrument flight test,
- an instrument proficiency check,
- a pilot proficiency check (PPC) on instruments or
- a pilot competency check (PCC) on instruments
and
(2) The 6-6-6 rule applies, and is the most common way of maintaining currency
- Within the previous 6 months complete 6 hours of instrument time and 6 approaches to minimums – these can be done in an aircraft or simulator.
Also, you can complete an instrument rating flight test within the previous 12 months, which can also be completed in a simulator.
