Why did I choose Jersey to get my IMC rating?  Well, much as I believe in keeping my business in the UK, I have stretched the point a little and at least kept it within the English Channel.

The cost was also a factor – though, now I have been, there are other reasons why I would recommend it. All the aids you need are placed in a short distance of each other, it’s a friendly and professional place to be and the aeroplanes are well maintained and equipped.  The course cost £2,061.  That included the written (which I had already done), as well as a Confuser and Thom Book (not required) and all landing fees and approach fees except away from the Island.  It also included the exam fee, so is allinclusive in the real sense of the word.  I reckoned it would have cost me in excess of £3,500 in the southeast of England.  The only extra was the landing fee at Cherbourg (€10) and the landing fee at Alderney (£16.80 – but that does include 72 hours’ free parking and reduces to £8 if you buy the fuel at £0.72 litre). Oh, and the course is 16.5 hours’ flying, including the test.

You also have the added bonus of flying in Class A airspace.  Because a lot of time is spent in that type of airspace the instructors tend to be IR rated so you have the ability to fly in real cloud, which is rather different from flying with screens up or foggles on.  Of course it is also possible to fly SVFR, with the instructor doing the lookout while you work hard behind the screens.  Regardless of what conditions you are flying in, the fact you are on radar all the time is reassuring, especially as the majority of the training is done over water.

Let's say I am very glad I had enough currency and P1 time to not have to worry at all about my handling of the aircraft.  To be fair I had asked the guys to apply IR standards rather than IMC (and they did), and they pushed me further than necessary to pass the test, but all the same, to my mind handling the aeroplane without having to even think about it is the most important pre-requisite.

Your training will also involve general handling on instruments (much as you do on your PPL), recovery from unusual attitudes on both full panel and partial panel and general handling with various instruments failed to simulate, for example, vacuum failure.

A rather amusing moment was when my instructor put the screens up as I lined up on the runway and ordered me to take off, simulating a zero visibility take off.  Somehow I managed to keep on the centreline, teaching me a valuable lesson in the process – always trust your instruments!  We then went onto partial panel at 200' and turned to the south at 800', levelling at 1,000' before being given clearance for further climb to 3,000'.  It makes you think hard on full panel – when you are on partial panel it becomes a challenge.

Another day will be spent being given radar vectors to the ILS.  Intercepting the localiser while keeping an eye on the glideslope can be an interesting game, particularly in a crosswind.  For someone who hasn't spent any time playing with the big boys, it was rather stimulating mixing it with 737s and the like.  One delicious moment came as we were holding for departure and were given the instruction ‘Line up behind the landing Fokker’. How I resisted the temptation I don’t know.  

Another day will consist of a navigation exercise, tracking between NDBs and VORs, usually returning for a radar
vectored approach to the ILS.  The day spent learning about VOR and NDB holds was particularly challenging as it was all new and required a good amount of concentration, particularly at keeping yourself spatially aware.  I spent an extra day doing NDB holds and procedures at Alderney as my home airfield relies on an NDB approach. After returning to Jersey, taking up the VOR hold and then doing a VOR procedural approach finishing with a bad weather low level circuit, it was fair to say I was tired!

Having been put through the mill over the previous few days, I was promised by the examiner that the IMC test would not be overly taxing. I wouldn't want to give too much away about what is involved, but you take off and head to the general handling area and settle into your flying.  

By this time you have already demonstrated that you are proficient at climbing, turning and flying straight and level on full panel.  Partial panel, unusual attitudes and turns follow before proving you can fix your position and then back to the hold (I did the NDB hold).  A few times around the hold at 4,000', then 3,000' and then the procedure to the ILS for a missed approach and low level circuit.  It was a relaxed and pleasant trip, apart from when I overshot the localiser on the ILS, but I got it back on track.  A handshake and a broad smile later, the IMC rating was in the bag.

Apart from the obvious benefit of an IMC rating – being able to fly out of sight of the surface in airspace up to Class D in the UK – I have come away with the ability to fly better and to tighter tolerances and to have the faith in myself to navigate a lot more successfully across country using radio navigation.

The ability to climb up on top of thin stratus layers and rejoice in the sunlight is a personal favourite of mine, while still being able to get to where you are going.  It is one rating that is unique to the UK and we are very fortunate to be able to exercise the right to fly in IMC/under IFR with such an inexpensive rating.  Of course there are still limits – freezing levels are an important one that will still lead to cancelled flights.  The advisory limits are not as high with regard to decision heights as the full IR is, but it still opens up the scope of one’s flying.

I would thoroughly recommend not diving straight into the IMC rating directly on passing your PPL. The experience I had gained from 200 hours P1 meant I could concentrate on the flying without having to worry about the handling.  However, I am not advocating everyone waits until then to do it.  Not everyone is fortunate enough to have done that many hours in the time I have, but I would say that every hour over the 10 hours P1 requirement for issue of the IMC rating would be of benefit.

If you are lucky enough to find excellent hosts like mine, while having a week away from the humdrum of day-today life, it makes the experience even sweeter.

This article is an extract from  Jersey Flyer Summer 2007 (1.77 MB)