Instrument Flight Simulator - FAA Approves of Flight Simulators As Credit Toward Instrument Rating

Instrument Flight Simulator - FAA Approves of Flight Simulators As Credit Toward Instrument Rating

If you happen to be a private pilot who is looking to add an Instrument Rating to your certificate, then you may already be aware of the fact that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) allows you to apply up to a maximum of 20 instructor-led hours of time in training in an instrument flight simulator to be applied as credit toward your instrument rating.

Of course you can spend more than 20 hours training on a simulator, but only the first 20 hours will apply, and all of those 20 must be spent with an instructor and not solo, using an FAA approved flight simulation program. (You are of course free to spend as much time as you want on a home-based simulator for the PC to maximize the amount of time you get to practice and perfect your techniques.)

There are many reasons why the FAA allows you to use a flight simulator to log instrument training time in lieu of time spent in an actual aircraft.

Among those reasons is because instrument flight simulator software is able to replicate the behavior and performance of an actual aircraft down to the minutest detail. Thus, training for instrument flight in a simulator is virtually the same experience as training for instrument flight in an actual airplane under the hood.

The only difference between the two experiences of simulated versus actual flight (with respect to instrument training) is that you will not be able to experience the sensations of movement that could otherwise deceive you, causing spatial disorientation, during certain maneuvers in flight such as climbs, turns, and descents (which you are taught to ignore anyway, since you must trust the instruments and not what your five senses are telling you).

Among other reasons is the cost. Using an instrument flight simulator is no doubt a lot cheaper than renting an aircraft.