IR-H Enablement

As already mentioned, for helicopter pilots the instrument rating is not as essential as for airplane pilots, because most helicopter work is carried out in “visual flight”.

For helicopter pilots, it is therefore worth obtaining the IR (instrumental rating), after having obtained the commercial pilot license, in order to have time to evaluate the professional usefulness of this qualification.

If you are still intent on obtaining the IR, within the modular path (in the hour-building), you can still begin a part of the training, completing it after having obtained the commercial pilot license.

If you instead attend an integrated CPL course, it will be better for you to complete the course on a single-engine piston helicopter (as we explained in the previous tutorial) and obtain the instrument rating ab initio, after having received the license.

The course

If you intend to access the IR course you will need to have flown at least 70 hours alone (remember in the previous tutorial, when we mentioned this requirement?). This experience is the one required to fly twin-engine turbine helicopters.

Private pilots can also obtain this qualification provided that they obviously have the 70 PIC hours of experience and the night flight qualification (which a CPL has automatically).

THE TYPE OF MACHINE ON WHICH TO PERFORM THE RATING

Depending on the flight school you attend, the instrument flight qualification can be carried out on different types of helicopters and simulators.

There are several ways to obtain this qualification and the most common one is to use a simulator for the first 40 hours of training (which you can also do inside the Hour Building if you are attending a modular course), then you will have to do the qualification on the chosen twin-engine helicopter (8 hours of flight with an instructor plus the exam) and then conclude the IR course with another 10 hours plus the final exam.

TWIN-ENGINE AND SINGLE-ENGINE

Let’s open a small parenthesis: why do we always talk about twin-engine helicopters when there are also courses for the IR qualification on single-engine aircraft?

There is a regulatory gap here because EASA requires you to do part of the training and the final exam on a helicopter “certified for instrument flight” (this sentence contains the whole meaning). This means that the aircraft must not only be configured for this type of training but must technically be able to fly in low visibility conditions. To do this it will therefore need to have a double electrical system, a double hydraulic system, an autopilot and other technical requirements.

Now, in Europe, these requirements are only met by twin-engine helicopters, so even if there is an approved course to get the instrument flight qualification on “single-engine” helicopters, in reality you will not find even one that is technically usable.

Ergo, the instrument flight qualification is only carried out on twin-engine helicopters, with the resulting cost consequences.

IR course recap and costs

Recapping how and when you can obtain this qualification, let’s review the various scenarios that may arise:

MODULAR COURSE

If you are following a modular course, you can approach instrument flight after obtaining the license or take advantage of a part of the training within the hour building (these will be part of the hours that it is not mandatory to fly as a PIC) and then keep the part on a twin-engine helicopter when you have a little more experience.

INTEGRATED COURSE

If you are following an integrated course, you can instead do the entire course within the ATP-IR. Remember two things though:

the first is that the school will have to have a certified and insured helicopter to fly a student pilot
the second is that you will go to take your final exam to obtain the CPL license, at the same time as the exam for the IR rating and the exam to obtain the type rating: so 3 exams in 1, on a helicopter that you will have flown with an instructor for only 15 hours…

maybe it is better to divide things up a bit, right? Do commercial flying on a simple helicopter, a single-engine on which you have flown more than 100 hours and then attend the course to obtain the IR rating.

COST

The cost of a complete ATP-IR course or a CPL course plus subsequent IR rating is practically the same, but educationally your experience will be very different: you will have more time to study, evaluate which helicopter to take this important step on and perhaps make agreements with companies that can partially sponsor this step.

In conclusion, this is an important qualification and one must think very carefully before hastily venturing into a course, without adequate experience and knowledge of the market.