Roy Page wrote:
: I am sure I can count on this newsgroup to give this question their best !

: Would it be legal for a CFI [Not CFII] to act as PIC from the right seat
: with a student in IMC ?

: In my opinion regardless of the legality, it would be less than sensible,
: what say the group ?

Others have expressed my sentiment fairly well, but I would just like to
reiterate that given the information you have provided, it's not only legal, but often
a good idea. I think that even primary student pilots taking their checkride never
having seen the inside of a cloud is reckless and irresponsible IMO.... let alone
people taking instrument checkrides with only hoodwork. The hood is *NOT* adequate
training for the disorientation that can arise from being in IMC.

As long as the CFI is IFR current, has received a clearance, and is ensuring
they fly the clearance, it's perfectly legal. The regs do not say which seat one must
fly from. Whether or not it can be logged as dual is another question that I'm not
equipped to answer, but acting as PIC is fine.

WRT your comment about circling approaches, as long as he didn't decend below
minimums it's again not only safe and legal, but a GOOD IDEA to get practice in. The
PTSs (or IPCs?) have recently been updated to require some circling training.

Non-precision vs. ILS is another one. My home field (KBCB) has a LOC/DME
that'll get you down to 400'. The closest ILS (KPSK 16 miles west) only gets you to
300'. IMO, the LOC/DME is easier to fly, and in many ways with the mountains around
here, safer. Not irresponsible at all.

-Cory


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* Cory Papenfuss *
* Electrical Engineering candidate Ph.D. graduate student *
* Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University *
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