Unless you have an Instrument Rating, there are limitations placed on you as a pilot: You can only fly in VMC (Visual Meteorological Conditions -- prescribed parameters for minimum weather conditions for flight). This means no flying into the clouds! You have to maintain a minimum visibility distance, and maintain a certain distance away from any clouds.
For many pilots, this means there are severe limitations on when and where you can fly. You don't always have perfect weather all the way to your destination!
In addition to the requirement to remain in VMC, commercial pilots who don't have their Instrument Rating have some additional limitations - they aren't allowed to fly for hire with passengers at night, or in excess of 50 nautical miles away from their airport. This puts some pretty serious limitations in play, and makes it hard to work as a pilot without your instrument rating.
The simple solution to these problems is to get your Instrument Rating! The extra training and experience help you as a pilot to build the habits and skills needed to fly an airplane solely by reference to your flight instruments... and this means you can fly through weather conditions that wouldn't be considered VMC. Flying without outside visual references can be very dangerous, especially for pilots who haven't received the needed training. That's why the FAA requires that pilots demonstrate through training, a written test, and a practical test, that they are safe and competent in their abilities before given the rating.
If you're wanting to work on your skills and earn your Instrument Rating, contact us today to see how we can help!
Happy flying!
