IFR Currency

[Gregory Kryspin]

Can one do the six approaches and holding in VFR to maintain currency
without a view-limiting device or a safety pilot?

[Gary Drescher]

"Gregory Kryspin" > wrote in message
...
> Can one do the six approaches and holding in VFR to maintain currency
> without a view-limiting device or a safety pilot?

Only if you're IFR in IMC (or using an approved simulator with a CFI).

--Gary

[Robert M. Gary]

For personal currency, yes, that's a great idea. However, it doesn't
meet the FAA currency requirements.

-Robert

[[email protected]]

> Can one do the six approaches and holding in VFR to maintain currency
> without a view-limiting device or a safety pilot?

What does 61.57 say:
http://tinyurl.com/crdgn

I see: "...performed and logged under actual or simulated instrument
conditions..."

I read that as in IMC, "under the hood" with a safety pilot, or
possibly in a simulator with a CFII.
-harry

[BillJ]

Robert M. Gary wrote:
> For personal currency, yes, that's a great idea. However, it doesn't
> meet the FAA currency requirements.
>
> -Robert
>
I say NO for personal currency. Your focus without a safety needs to be
completely outside. No good for building any form of IMC ontrol scan and
awareness.

[BillJ]

Robert M. Gary wrote:

> For personal currency, yes, that's a great idea. However, it doesn't
> meet the FAA currency requirements.
>
> -Robert
>
I say NO for personal currency. Your focus without a safety pilot needs
to be completely outside. No good for building are practicing any form
of IMC control scan and awareness.

[Mark Hansen]

On 01/30/06 17:27, BillJ wrote:
> Robert M. Gary wrote:
>> For personal currency, yes, that's a great idea. However, it doesn't
>> meet the FAA currency requirements.
>>
>> -Robert
>>
> I say NO for personal currency. Your focus without a safety needs to be
> completely outside. No good for building any form of IMC ontrol scan and
> awareness.

Are you saying that you won't even intercept and track a VOR radial?

That seems a bit extreme...

In any event, I had asked the question about flying an ILS (for example)
in visual conditions while single pilot, and how I should deal with the
distractions from the visual search for other airplanes by my instrument
scan, and was told that the instrument scan is really a very small part
of the effort when you can manage the attitude of the airplane by outside
visual reference.

So I think it's fine. As Robert said, though - it doesn't count toward
currency.

--
Mark Hansen, PP-ASEL, Instrument Airplane
Cal Aggie Flying Farmers
Sacramento, CA

[Dave Butler]

BillJ wrote:
> Robert M. Gary wrote:
>
>> For personal currency, yes, that's a great idea. However, it doesn't
>> meet the FAA currency requirements.
>>
>> -Robert
>>
> I say NO for personal currency. Your focus without a safety pilot needs
> to be completely outside. No good for building are practicing any form
> of IMC control scan and awareness.

I still think there's value for learning/practicing procedures. For example,
I've done some of this while learning a new piece of avionics.

Dave

[Robert M. Gary]

>No good for building any form of IMC ontrol scan and awareness.

But good for keeping fresh on procedures. Thinking about hold entry
procedures, identing ratios, etc. Let's face it, how often do most of
us even turn on VORs on during VMC weather nowadays.

-Robert, CFI

[Robert M. Gary]

> I read that as in IMC, "under the hood" with a safety pilot, or
> possibly in a simulator with a CFII.

Or in a simulator with an IGI.

-Robert

[Jack Cunniff]

"Robert M. Gary" > writes:

>>No good for building any form of IMC ontrol scan and awareness.

>But good for keeping fresh on procedures. Thinking about hold entry
>procedures, identing ratios, etc. Let's face it, how often do most of
>us even turn on VORs on during VMC weather nowadays.

I do, very flight that's more than 20 minutes in duration. Whether I'm
IFR or VFR, I try to do a VOR crosscheck. If I can track a radial
conveniently on a cross-country, I do it.

Up here in the (supposedly) frozen north, in the winter, some folks are
hesitant to go into the clouds, but there's no reason why we can't file
IFR and do practice approaches and holds in VMC, single pilot. Sometimes,
I do that instead of the $150 hamburger run. It doesn't count for
meeting currency requirements, but you can't make the needles do the right
thing if you don't understand the procedures, so I'll take the practice.

-Jack