Comments on: Lesson 63: IFR Rhymes with Don’t Fly Far!

By: VFR into IMC, always a bad choice! « Passion for Learning

VFR into IMC, always a bad choice! « Passion for Learning — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:49:16 +0000

[...] while flying up a valley under a solid overcast happens to enter IMC. What would you do? (Here is what I did). The rules say 180 degree turn and climb. He has the newest and greatest Garmin 696 with [...]

By: Passion for Learning » Blog Archive » Lesson 72: The Elevator Ride

Passion for Learning » Blog Archive » Lesson 72: The Elevator Ride — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 14:37:31 +0000

[...] see earth in places but looking forward all I could see was cloud! This seemed like a repeat of my solo all over again. I realized to myself that this was not the place I wanted to be. I professed to [...]

By: chephy

chephy — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 04:33:37 +0000

Yikes! I get shivers down my spine just think about the possibility of this happening to me on a solo x-country. And I’m impressed. You flew into IMC and you flew out of it. You survived, you didn’t get lost, you didn’t damage the plane or yourself, you didn’t panic… This kind of thing is called experience, and what makes a great pilot is lots and lots of experience. You have just acquired some, bringing yourself one step closer to being a great pilot. You may not feel jubilant about the whole thing, but I offer you my sincere congratulations. Consider me crazy if you like, but I even envy you a little bit.

By: Martin

Martin — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:53:49 +0000

Don’t worry too much. You wouldn’t be a good pilot if the weather was always ‘perfect’. It is those days we learn the most. I probably would have been tempted to clear that cloud too…on the other hand, my instructor gave me some hood and cloud time so 30 seconds can seem like eternity.

I suspect you will stay away from clouds for awhile now or at least when you are solo:)

All the best! Martin

By: Tony Hunt

Tony Hunt — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:47:14 +0000

Like David said, you did the right things – not exactly the way we were taught but the outcome was safe and you remained in control, bringing the flight to a successful conclusion.

Don’t worry about the original “mission” to get to Kingston, you actually learned more about yourself and flying from this episode than if the trip had gone perfectly. If all our flights and landings were textbook perfect, we would not be as able to respond appropriately when external factors such as weather or airplane systems go sour.

I have had days like this when the clouds seemed to gang up on me, with bases lower than I wanted to fly and tops above 12,000. Once I was between Sudbury and Wawa with almost nowhere else to divert to. Just focused on flying the plane and remaining calm. I must have flown triple the distance going around clouds looking for clear air. After 30 minutes I suddenly popped out into clear air and 40nm vis. The rest of the flight was clear and calm – I was amazed that I had such extremes during one flight.

By: Mikel

Mikel — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:15:07 +0000

Thank you David. Every time I seem to have found “the bottom” you sure have a knack for putting me back on course! Let’s see if I can’t get this thing finished!! I am booking my TC written exam for this weekend….. Almost there.

By: David Megginson

David Megginson — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:47:57 +0000

Sure, you messed up, but don’t waste time trying to prepare for what you can’t prepare for: digest your lessons learned quickly and get right back to your cross-country solo and finishing the PPL. You’re leaving the training phase where you try to fly using simplistic rules learned in ground school or dual, and moving on to the phase where you have to develop and rely on your own judgement in complex situations. This was one of those.

You misjudged the size and height of the clouds. That happens all the time, sometimes even to experienced pilots, and it’s not something you can learn in advance — you have to experience it. Next time, you’ll know that the clouds are bigger than they seem and give them a wider berth. You’ll also be more flexible with your plans (maybe a different route or a lower altitude).

BTW, even though you violated one of the main rules they teach you in flight training — making the 180-degree standard-rate turn out as soon as you blunder into IMC — I think you did the right thing. You knew you were in broken clouds, and that you’d get out faster by continuing straight ahead (you also avoided any disorientation from maneuvering). You kept the plane under control, evaluated the situation, formed a plan (cancel the trip and return to Rockcliffe), and executed it. You’re a pilot, and that’s what pilots do.

It’s OK to kick yourself for a day or two, but don’t use it as an excuse to delay your training any further. Anyone who hasn’t experienced what you experienced at least once hasn’t done much serious cross-country flying.