Warbird Information Exchange

My insurance policy requires me to have an instrument rating and be current, not just the time, but actaully signed off by an instructor. It seems a little silly, to need the ifr rating for flying in VMC, but that is what they want. I have come close to changing companies,but these guys are the ones that insure warbirds so I stay with them.

I really almost never fly actual IFR, and if I do, not in the mountains. It would be very rare and would have to be weather that had lot's of margin for safety even if not full VFR.

So today I did my Instrument Competency flight check as my curency expires next month. And wonder of wonders, I passed. The first part was at BJC, Rocky Mt. Metro airport and that is difficult as they use Denver Approach for control and they are busy talking to airliners going into Denver International, as well as Metro as well as practice planes like us. Once the controller mixed up our N number. It is hard to hear him and the instructor pilot at the same time. We did about an hour there, then went up to FNL, Loveland for the rest.

Anyway, I passed. I was no ace, I had not done any IFR practice since last year so it was all cold turkey. It was a grey overcast day so that was good as there was not the cheat factor of having the sun come down on you to tell which way is up. I'd give myself about a B- at best, but the young CFI was a nice guy and said I did well.

There was one thing he said I did wrong, and I was surprised because I though it was my best sector. When I make a procedure turn, I go outbound on the ILS,then Left 45* then Right 180* back to the interecept course to the ILS inbound. When intrecpted, I'd turn right and go down the approach path. He wanted my reversal turn to be to the left 180*, the same direction as the first one. I NEVER learned it that way, NEVER even heard of it that way. I make my first 45* turn to the Left, then back to the Right 180* for the intercept leg. Anyway, I did it his way, though I didn't believe him. When we got back to the FBO school we looked it up. The FAA book says it is optional. I looked in the IFR book by Peter Dogan and it clearly shows a diagram that has the procedure as I remember learning it and as I was doing it all these years. So , at least on that point I seem to be right.

The young CFI has about 350 hours and had never flown a Bonanza before. He does have King Air time, but he liked my old Be 36. He was a nice guy to fly with and it was satisfying to get this taken care of.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

That does sound like fun for a young CFI... Did he know that you have flown Spitfires? I know I would've been asking genuine questions for my "realistic distractions" portion of the flight...

Ryan

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Aerial Photographer with Red Wing Aerial Photography currently based at KRBD and tailwheel CFI.
Websites: Texas Tailwheel Flight Training, DoolittleRaid.com and Lbirds.com.

The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD. - Prov. 21:31 - Train, Practice, Trust.

Ryan, I didn't mention Spitfires and he didn't look back that far in my log book. He did like the SNJ biennial that he saw from before

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

It wasn't you Bill, it was the airplane! Bonanza's make everybody look good!
If you had done it in a rental 172 you would have been all over the place.....
-Robert Starnes proud owner 1949 A35 and 1951 C35.

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All I did was press this red button here...

I have a good friend Roger Halstead. Rog owns and flies the oldest Debonair in the registry, He loves the airplane. I have to admit I liked the Bo's myself. Had a ton of fun one afternoon checking out a new owner in his when he panicked and I needed a yard full of yoke five seconds ago It was a swing over and grabbing the center hub for a push fortunately saved the day )
Dudley Henriques

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Dudley Henriques
International Fighter Pilots Fellowship

Congratulations on a productive day Bill.
Dudley Henriques

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Dudley Henriques
International Fighter Pilots Fellowship

Enemy Ace, you are right as far as Bonanzas making most people look good, as least as far as the smaller ones go. Years ago when I was looking for my first plane to buy, I looked at a well used V tail. I had never been in one, yet the owner let me do the whole flight,including the approach and landing. He convnced me of a couple of things, first that the Be was an easy airplane, and that he was a nice guy who had confidence in his CFI ability.
Mine is a little harder, it is the long wing Be 36 version, not quite as nimble and heavier, with a short final speed of 80 knots. It is good for cross country.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

I worked on a B36 for several years, they are very nice as well. That particular airplane replaced a B55 and B58 baron in the flight department, the 36 had a 0 time engine and low airframe hours while the Barons were starting to get high time engines and airframes. The owners flew it @ 20 hours a week (!) in support of their furniture store franchise. Sadly, it was sold at a give - away price when the economy tanked.
Good folks, nice airplane. shame things worked out the way they did.

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All I did was press this red button here...

Congrats on the ride. I know that here in Canada if you were to do your standard "hockey stick" shaped procedure turn the way the CFI had recommended it would be considered an error on a flight test. If you do both turns to the left (especially with a headwind) you will lose a lot of room needed to re-establish yourself on the inbound track before reaching the fix. The most ideal way would be the method you mentioned and used.

Cheers