Actually the those were the old regulations. With the rewrite of FAR
61 a few years ago they dropped the hour requirment to stay current.
Now all that is required is 6 Approaches and entering a holding
pattern every 6 months.


As it has had been before if you let this expire you have an
additional 6 months to perform these approaches and holding to become
current again. If however you go for more that 12 months without
becoming current you will have to take an instrument proficency check
with a CFII.

Your are correct that currency in an airplane will transfer to glider.

Brian Case
CFIIG/ASEL



Actually, the regulation imposes no requirement to do any of the 3
hours of instrument flight in a glider unless passengers are to be
carried. It just says 1.5 hours *may* be done in a glider.

The real problem may be keeping up 3 hours of instrument flight for
every six months following an IPC or initial issuance of the
instrument rating. For those not familiar with instrument currency
requirements – the 6-month currency must be maintained, once it
is lost it can only regained by taking an Instrument Proficiency
Check. You cannot *get* current by flying 3 hours in 6 months, you
can only maintain existing currency.

Note that the IPC to qualify for glider IFR may be done in a glider or
an airplane. So one possible scenario is that the airplane instrument
pilot takes an IPC in an airplane then, in addition to the 6
approaches with holding etc required every 6 months to keep airplane
instrument current, the pilot also ensures that he flies 3 hours of
instrument time in the same 6 months. That keeps the pilot legally
current for airplane and glider IFR without flying a glider at all so
long as passengers are not carried.

The other way would be to do an IPC in a 2-place glider. Since the
Instrument PTS does not apply to gliders, the instructor could choose
what tasks had to be performed. All you need then is an instrument
instructor who is glider rated and a suitable glider. Following the
glider IPC you then need to maintain the 3 hours instrument flight
every 6 months, or get the 3 hours in the next 6 months, or to go and
get another IPC.


Andy