IFR training material overload

[Brian H]

Hi All,

I've been snooping the rec.aviation.* groups for a while, and I'm
still lost.

I want to start studying for my IFR rating. I'm from the US, resident
in Japan, and so I reckon on studying on my own then taking the test
on some trip back to the states one day. I've seen a variety of
opinions, and I've looked at some stuff on my own, and it seems ...
without actually holding the materials in my hand ... that I can make
the following subjective (and unsubstantiated :-) claims:

- The Jeppesen materials are pretty good.
- The Gleim materials are great, but only teach you to pass the test.

I thought to myself, 'hey, great, I'll go buy the Jepp stuff', but if
you get on the Jeppesen web site, there are about 47 different
possible combinations of study things to get. I didn't realize it was
so difficult! I think I worked out I don't want Part 141 stuff, but
there's still quite a bit.

So my question is -- what to do? Those of you who swear by the
Jeppesen stuff, what exact Jepp stuff is it of which you speak?

I'm thinking I want a nice book (or set of books), I don't much care
for video tapes, and some giant pool of sample tests would be
wonderful (even better would be a CD/software package that would gin
up sample tests for me to take out of some pool of questions). Seems
like searching for opinions on that would be easy, but I've only
gotten more confused in the searching.

Thanks for any guidance,

Brian

[Ben Jackson]

In article >,
Brian H > wrote:
>
> - The Jeppesen materials are pretty good.
> - The Gleim materials are great, but only teach you to pass the test.

If you don't want test-passing-specific information you may only need
the Jepp _Instrument/Commercial Manual_. Think of it as a better
illustrated AIM with more exposition and examples.

Having just taken the IFR written, though, I can tell you that there is
some merit to the test-passing guides, since the tests are pretty stupid.
One question came down to deciding whether a leftward/counterclockwise
arrow over an illustration of a DG meant it was turning right (card moving
ccw) or left (arrow pointing left).

--
Ben Jackson
>
http://www.ben.com/

[Ross Oliver]

Having passed my IFR checkride last month, here are my opinions
on training materials:

First of all: no one book or set of training materials will provide
everything. I recommend using at least two different sources of
"primary" training materials, augmented with plenty of auxilliary
books and other materials.

The ASA books are every bit as good as Jeppesen's. My primary
study book was ASA's "The Pilot's Manual: Instrument Flying"
At 600 pages, it covers ALL the material very thoroughly, and will
serve as a good reference now that I have my rating.

I was pleasantly suprised by the the good quality and readability
of FAA's "Instrument Flying Handbook." It has IMHO, the best
explanation of the cause of compass turning error that I have
seen. I would put it on the must-have list.

Rod Machado's "Instrument Pilot's Survival Guide" is more valuable
for its "how-to" info than for test prep. But very entertaining,
and also a must-have.

I also used Jeppesen's FlightSchool Multimedia Software. It was
useful for drilling for the written, and had some info tidbits that
I did not find in any of my other reading materials. But it required
substantial patience: it crashed a lot, it was slow, and the charts
used to illustrate some of the questions were difficult to read.
One nice feature is that if you pass enough practice exams, you can
print out a certificate, send it to Jeppesen, and they will sign
you off to take the written exam.


Full disclosure: Jeppesen is owned by Boeing, and I work for Boeing.
If you buy any Jeppesen products, it is remotely possible that I
might somehow indirectly benefit. But probably not.


Happy studying,
Ross Oliver

[tscottme]

Brian H > wrote in message
om...
> Hi All,
>
> I've been snooping the rec.aviation.* groups for a while, and I'm
> still lost.
>
> I want to start studying for my IFR rating. I'm from the US, resident
> in Japan, and so I reckon on studying on my own then taking the test
> on some trip back to the states one day. I've seen a variety of
> opinions, and I've looked at some stuff on my own, and it seems ...
> without actually holding the materials in my hand ... that I can make
> the following subjective (and unsubstantiated :-) claims:
>
> - The Jeppesen materials are pretty good.
> - The Gleim materials are great, but only teach you to pass the test.
>

Do yourself a favor and study for the FAA test apart from a careful
study for real life and don't confuse them. I used to administer
computerized testing for one location of a very large flight school. I
have passed numerous FAA tests. The FAA wants the FAA answer to the FAA
question. The less thinking your do about what is the correct answer to
a 50 year old question and whether the FAA knows we are no longer at war
with the Kaiser, the better.

You and an instructor should decide whether in your situation it's
better to pass the FAA test before you know anything about real IFR or
pass it later. I recommend an inexpensive ASA test guide. Get the one
with just the questions and the answers, not the one with several
paragraphs discussing each type of question. Read the question,
highlight the correct answer. Take your time and read only the question
and the highlighted answer. On test day you will recognize the FAA
answer, mark it, and move on. Don't try to reason the FAA way, don't
try to pretend the FAA test is a real life situation. Once you pass the
FAA test, promptly forget all of it and don't let it interfere with real
life.

Study the real life information like your life depends on it.


--
Scott
--------

[cjbgroups]

As far as practice tests, you can find those online at many sites, including
the following:

http://www.myairplane.com/faa_test/
http://www.aa9pw.com/faa/
http://www.mywrittenexam.com/mwe/
http://www.faatest.com/
http://aeromedia.com/quiz/index.html
http://www.ilsapproach.com/practicetests.shtml
http://www.sportys.com/faatest/
http://www.studentpilot.com/training_aids/pilotpal/
http://www.webexams.com/

[Paul Tomblin]

In a previous article, (Brian H) said:
>So my question is -- what to do? Those of you who swear by the

Buy the Gliem book and study for the test. Then buy Trevor Thom's
Instrument Pilot Manual and learn how to fly IFR.


--
Paul Tomblin > http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
They thought that faxing one's butt was bad - just wait till they hear
about blurry, pixilated, mpeg artifacted live porn by phone!
-- Geoff Lane contemplates the 3G future

[ajohnson]

....
> I'm thinking I want a nice book (or set of books), I don't much care
> for video tapes, and some giant pool of sample tests would be
> wonderful (even better would be a CD/software package that would gin
> up sample tests for me to take out of some pool of questions). Seems
> like searching for opinions on that would be easy, but I've only
> gotten more confused in the searching.
>
> Thanks for any guidance,
>
> Brian

Since I'm a book person myself, here's my opinion on the books I used
for my instrument knowledge:

Gleim - great for passing the test - get it, use it, never look at it again.

The Art of Instrument Flying - a very readable book that's very good at
conveying knowledge even if you haven't studied any other instrument
stuff yet. It has some good practice maneuvers also. I sat
down and read this book cover to cover before starting my instrument
lessons, practiced the maneuvers some, and feel it really helped a lot.
My favorite for a 'first' instrument rating book.

The Completed Advanced Pilot - by our newsgroups own Bob Gardner, I consider
this my 'post-graduate' book - a great source of knowledge and reference
even after obtaining your license. Covers commercial rating as well.

Instrument Flying Handbook by Rod Machado - entertaining, and with some
good stories and alternate ways of learning things. Worth reading, but
for me at least it didn't convey knowledge or serve as reference material
as well as the previous two.

Good luck!

--
Allen Johnson
PP-ASEL-IA

[Jeremy Lew]

I took the written last week, and used the both the Gleim DVD and book for
it, and was very happy with the results. Studying the Jeppesen materials
won't reinforce ridiculous trivia like whether the TAF radius is measured in
statute or nautical miles, Gleim will. You probably won't need
test-specific study aid's to PASS, but you might to get a top score, if
that's important to you..

Jeremy

"Brian H" > wrote in message
om...
> Hi All,
>
> I've been snooping the rec.aviation.* groups for a while, and I'm
> still lost.
>
> I want to start studying for my IFR rating. I'm from the US, resident
> in Japan, and so I reckon on studying on my own then taking the test
> on some trip back to the states one day. I've seen a variety of
> opinions, and I've looked at some stuff on my own, and it seems ...
> without actually holding the materials in my hand ... that I can make
> the following subjective (and unsubstantiated :-) claims:
>
> - The Jeppesen materials are pretty good.
> - The Gleim materials are great, but only teach you to pass the test.
>
> I thought to myself, 'hey, great, I'll go buy the Jepp stuff', but if
> you get on the Jeppesen web site, there are about 47 different
> possible combinations of study things to get. I didn't realize it was
> so difficult! I think I worked out I don't want Part 141 stuff, but
> there's still quite a bit.
>
> So my question is -- what to do? Those of you who swear by the
> Jeppesen stuff, what exact Jepp stuff is it of which you speak?
>
> I'm thinking I want a nice book (or set of books), I don't much care
> for video tapes, and some giant pool of sample tests would be
> wonderful (even better would be a CD/software package that would gin
> up sample tests for me to take out of some pool of questions). Seems
> like searching for opinions on that would be easy, but I've only
> gotten more confused in the searching.
>
> Thanks for any guidance,
>
> Brian