Flying IFR - Lesson 19 - IMC Approaches

Today the weather was pretty much Marginal VFR at best, which meant lots of real IFR time in the clouds for me.

I was paired up with Reece and I filed an IFR flight plan to Flint and back to Pontiac, with Flint as the alternative.

Then after the preflight I got everything pre-loaded for the VOR 18 circle to 27 approach at Flint and off we went.

We hit IMC at around 2,800 feet and stayed in IMC the whole way with occasional rain hitting the plane for more fun, as well as some neat updrafts.  Then we got in line for the VOR 18 approach as it was rather busy.  Great Lakes Approach had us vectored out and then later called us back in on the procedure turn.

A little bumpy and rainy and I was over-controlling as usual - blech,  Got it straightened out and then after the procedure turn did the approach to minimums and then circled and landed on 27.  I need to keep the circle a little tighter but it was ok and a good landing.

Then we waited to take off again for a bit so I pre-loaded the ILS 27 approach in and got as much done as possible before we took off, including briefing the approach.  We got a clearance to take off and fly runway heading.  Then got another vector and were basically flying in solid IMC.

Then Great Lakes Approach completely forgot about us and we pretty much ended up over Lapeer and then they vectored us back, including one weird turn command that they countermanded once Reece asked them about it as it was a 270 degree turn in the wrong direction that they then fixed to 90 degrees in the proper direction,  and then they vectored us in for the ILS as they couldn't give us the whole procedure.

I then flew that quite well down to minimums and did a missed and headed back to Pontiac again in IMC. Then we did the RNAV 27L circle to 27R and I landed and that was that.

In short Reece said I do all the advanced things very well - my radio work and dealing with clearances is great; I pre-load approaches and activitate them; identify VORs and localizers and all the complicated stuff and I'm ahead in doing all that.  I'm also better now at zipping on down to the proper altitudes for the VOR approach, which is good.

However I need to work on the basics - intercepting a course, level flight and turns to a heading, and getting to the right heading to get the ground track as the heading on the heading indicator really isn't the ground track, especially when it's windy out. So I need to work more on the basics.  I still have a real right turning  tendency, especially when hitting IMC.

That's 2.2 with 1.2 actual, .8 simulated, and 3 approaches and 2 landings.