Initial Rating

FAA Approved Part § 141 Enrollment Prerequisites
Students must be at Bay Helicopters 17 years old, hold at Bay Helicopters an FAA third class medical and private helicopter pilot certificate prior to commencing flight training. Students must be able to read, speak, write and understand English.

Students must meet the requirements of SFAR 73 and be signed off to act as pilot in command of the Robinson R22. VA students must hold a commercial helicopter pilot certificate or be concurrently enrolled in the commercial pilot course to qualify for tuition reimbursement.
 

Course Objectives
This course prepares students for the FAA instrument knowledge test, as well as the FAA instrument practical test. Students will obtain the aeronautical knowledge, skill and experience required to add an instrument rating to an existing private or commercial certificate with a rotorcraft category and helicopter class rating.

Course Description
The instrument rating course is for private helicopter pilots who wish to enhance their flying skills and learn more about navigation, weather and the air traffic control system. It is also for commercial pilots who want to gain a competitive edge in the job market, and meet the employment requirements of EMS, offshore and corporate operators.

Students who are working towards the commercial certificate are encouraged to take this course concurrently, saving time and money.

The ground school portion of this course incorporates the use of an advanced computer based IFR procedure trainer. This allows students to practice IFR procedures and approaches on the ground before performing them in the air. In flight, students will learn to control the helicopter by reference to the instruments. Students will practice instrument approaches at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport and other nearby airports.

Additional Rating (for FAA airplane instrument rated pilots)

FAA Approved Part § 141 Enrollment Prerequisites
Students must hold at Bay Helicopters an FAA third class medical and a private helicopter pilot certificate, as well as a private airplane pilot certificate with an instrument rating prior to commencing flight training.

Students must be able to read, speak, write and understand English. Students who wish to use the Robinson R22 for this course must meet the requirements of SFAR 73 and be signed off to act as pilot in command. VA students must hold a commercial pilot certificate to qualify for tuition reimbursement.

Course Objectives
This course prepares students for the FAA instrument knowledge test and the FAA instrument practical test. Students will obtain the aeronautical knowledge, skill and experience required to add an instrument rating for rotorcraft category and helicopter class to an existing instrument rating. The training provided meets FAA requirements for a commercial helicopter pilot to obtain a level of employment requiring an Instrument Rating.

Course Description
Instrument rated airplane pilots who also hold a helicopter pilot certificate and who want to apply their airplane instrument flying skills to helicopters will want to take this course. In addition to adding a rating, it offers an excellent review of instrument procedures. Flight training is normally conducted in the Robinson R22 IFR trainer, but can also be accomplished in the Bell JetRanger

In today’s job market a helicopter instrument rating is a requirement for practically all the higher paying jobs in the more sophisticated helicopters that now make up the bulk of the executive fleet and the offshore oil drilling industry. Few flight schools offer instrument training, and fewer yet have proper modern equipment, simulators and faculty with extensive actual instrument experience. At Bay Helicopters, we are an FAA approved, Part 141 instrument flight training center.

We have on staff, instructors with thousands of actual instrument hours who have flown worldwide with major corporations. We believe that we can offer our students the finest available instrument training with emphasis on international regulations and procedures as well as those used in the USA.

Bay Helicopters has a Computer Based IFR Simulator that is an effective and economical training aid students may use for solo practice or together with other students to build instrument proficiency at a very low cost. This training devise is also an effective learning tool when used with an instrument instructor to polish instrument techniques without the expense of using a helicopter.

The R22’s have an HSI and an ADF indicator with a slaved compass card as well as a Digital RMI which makes them a pleasure to fly on instruments.

The following costs are not included: books, aeronautical knowledge test, examiner fee and aircraft rental for the practical test.