Airmen Certification Standards

Notes on the IFR ACSs.

1.A.K

Certificate requirements to get the rating:

Part 61.65.

  • Pilot:
    • PPL (or concurrent applicant)
    • English Proficient
    • Ground training (from instructor or home-study course)
    • Endorsed & Passed
      • Checkride
      • Knowledge Test
    • Appropriate Training
  • Airplane
    • 50 hours cross-country time (to airport >= 50 nm away from starting airport. Must land at that airport.)
      • At least 10 in an airplane
    • 40 hours actual or simulated instrument time
      • What is actual IMC? Really, any flight in less than MVFR conditions.
      • At least 15 hours with an instructor.
    • 3 hours instrument training within the preceding 2 calendar months.
    • Cross-country IFR flight
      • ≥ 250 nm total distance
      • Along airways or GPS direct
      • to at least 3 different airports
      • An instrument approach at each airport
      • Each approach must use different underlying equipment.
        • e.g. I did ILS, RNAV, and VOR approaches.

Privileges & Limitations

  • Allows flight in Instrument Meteorological under Instrument Flight Rules.
    • Must obey IFR rules.
    • Can only fly in IMC in class G airspace, or under an Instrument Flight Plan.
  • Flight in class A airspace.
  • Limitations (91.167 through 91.193)
    • Fuel (enough for destination, to all alternates (in order filed), then an additional 45 minutes)
    • Flight Plan & ATC limitations
    • Takeoff & Landing minimums (part 91: 0/0 takeoff, approach minimums).
    • Altitude, Communication, Equipment requirements
    • Recency/Experience Limitations:
      • To be PIC under IFR:
        • 6-HITS:
          • 6 instrument approaches
          • Holding procedures & tasks
          • Intercepting & Tracking Courses (Using electronic navigation systems)
          • Simulated or Actual IMC. (Also allows full flight simulator).
            • Actual if only within 6 months of being current.
            • Simulated w/ safety pilot for after those 6 months.
              • If not current, but in this grace period, cannot fly IFR as PIC.
              • Safety pilot must have PPL with appropriate category & class.
              • Aircraft must provide safety pilot with forward vision & controls (e.g. long-ez is no-go. Throwover yoke on a bonanza is ok).
          • Note: No instructor necessary.
        • 1 year out-of-currency, must pass an instrument proficiency check (IPC)
          • Can also pass an IPC instead of 6-HITS if you want.
          • IPC must be done by CFII or appropriate examiner.
      • To be PIC while Carrying Passengers:
        • IFR: Everything above.
        • Otherwise, same as for VFR
          • Day: 3 takeoffs & Landings in category & class within past 90 days.
          • Night: ^^ But landing must be to a full stop.

1.A.R

Proficiency Vs. Currency

  • Proficiency: should

  • currency: could.

  • Risk of not understanding this:

    • Flying beyond skill set Assess’
    • Use recency as a guideline
    • it in doubt: Apply mitigation

  • Mitigations:

    • Fly W/ instructor
    • Cancel Flight
    • If in air I conditions change! re-route.

Personal minimums

  • Risks:
    • flight in conditions you do not have skills for
  • Assess:
    • PAVE
      • Pilot
      • Aircraft
      • enVironment
      • exTernal pressures
    • Get-there-itis (Example of external pressure)
    • itchiness to fly. (Strong desire to fly, telling you “maybe this weather is alright” - there’s always another day).
  • Mitigate
    • cancel/take alternate transport
    • Fly with a flight instructor.
    • Personal minimums are hard limits, only expand them with the aid of a flight instructor.
    • reroute if already in air.

Unfamiliar aircraft/systems

  • Risks:
    • Way too easy to get behind the airplane
    • Confusion/being unable to properly operate aircraft
    • plane performs differently them expected /used to, (e.g. too fast for you)
  • Mitigate
    • Fly with an instructor, or someone who knows the airplane/systems
    • Fly a different aircraft you’re more familiar with

1.B.K.

Aviation Weather Sources

Products And Resources:

  • Winds Aloft
  • METAR, TAFs, MOSs
  • AIRMETs, SIGMETs, Convective SIGMETs -Charts:
    • surface
    • Wind charts
  • PIREPS (UO: Regular, UUO: Urgent)
  • ATC & Flight Services

Weather conditions

Atmospheric conditions:

  • stable: no turbulence, hazy, stable temperature, showery.

  • unstable: turbulence, clear, rain

  • Wind

    • crosswind: crabbing
    • tailwind.

  • Temperature:

    • Too cold -> ice (beware, induction icing can occur up to 70 ℉ if the humidity is high enough.)
    • Even Colder -> no ice (Usually below -15 ℃)
    • Colder air is denser.

  • Moisture/Rain:

    • ice requires visible moisture
    • rain reduces visibility
    • slick runways increase landing length - beware hydroplaning

  • Clouds:

    • Nimbus clouds are storm/rain clouds.
      • Cumulonimbus: stay away (these are large, towering clouds)
    • Cumulus clouds: Heaped/piled
    • Stratus: layered
    • Cirrus; ringlets/ fibrous, are at a high level
    • Castellanus: “castle-like”
    • Lenticular: Lens-shaped, around mountains (they are what happens when a stable air mass is push by the wind up a mountain slope)
    • Fracto-: fractal
    • Alto-: Middle clouds, 5k to 20k feet.

  • Turbulence:

    • Caused by unstable air
    • look for large change in wind speed & direction between altitudes & areas.
    • also mountainous
    • Also urban areas - heat rising causing turbulence.

  • Thunderstorms & microbursts

    • Microbursts are generally found on the edges of thunderstorms. They are incredibly strong, HIGHLY localized (hence, micro), areas of intense up and down drafts and rain. You do not want to get caught in one.
    • Stages
      • Cumulus - beginnings with a lifting action
      • Mature - When rain hits the ground. Downdrafts.
      • Dissipating - expect strong downdrafts
    • Dangers
      • limited visibility
      • Wild shear & turbulence
      • strong up/down drafty
      • Icing
      • hail
      • rain
      • lightning
      • tornadoes

  • Icing

    • Oh shit
    • Unpredictable performance loss
    • Accumulates an smaller surfaces first (pitot tube, elevator)
    • Standard lapse rate: -2 °C per 1,000 foot altitude gain.
    • Structural Icing:
      • Rime - instant freeze, easier to see. Will accumulate on the edges directly facing the wind in flight.
        • Has lots of pockets of air. Looks like “pebble ice” (preferred ice in drinks, apparently).
      • Clear - runs, then freezes. Hard to see.
      • Mixed - Started off as rime ice, started to accumulate clear ice. Very bad.
      • requires visible moisture. & correct temp. (approaching freezing, but also above -15°C)
      • instrument ice over sensors
    • Induction: ice reducing air for engine
      • Intake: blocking any air intake
      • Carb ice: in carb venturi. In ~ -7 through +21 °C
      • Generally occurs in high humidity.
      • Apply carb heat, open the alt air door (if available) at the first indication of engine roughness.
        • Expect the engine to get even more rough as the ice melts off.

  • fog/mist

    • No ground ops for me
    • yes, legal, but dumb
    • Basically, clouds at ground level (within 50 feet of ground)
    • Super cool from a pedestrian perspective, scary otherwise
      • types:
        • Radiation: ground cools on calm dear night
        • Advection: Karla/Marine Layer (Warm, moist air blown over land & cooled)
        • Ice - very cold, vapor is ice
        • Upslope - moist stable air blown up a mountain
        • Steam- cool, dry air over warm water

  • Frost

    • ice crystals when temperature & dewpoint are below freezing
    • scrape off before flight.

  • Obstructions to visibility

    • Not fun to fly in.
    • stable air
    • Volcanic ash -> SIGMET
    • sufficiently smoky -> affects (reduces) engine performance.
    • haze makes runways look further away.

  • Flight deck displays

    • FIS-B/ADS-B weather on ipad
    • show precipitation on MFD

1.B.K. (Risk Management)

  • go/no-go decisions:
    • SIGMETs in area: instant no-go.
    • approaching cumulonimbus clouds
    • Microburst in area
    • Thunder/lightning
    • fog

Last updated: 2021-12-29 18:43:28 -0800