Examining effects of instrument flight instruction on noninstrument -rated pilots' flight proficiency

Continued flight from visual weather conditions into conditions of poor visibility is the most prominent cause of fatal aviation weather-related accidents. A quantitative, posttest research design was used to determine if either 30 or 60 minutes of instrument flight instruction would significantly improve a noninstrument-rated pilots ability to control the aircraft after entering adverse weather conditions. Sixty-six noninstrument-rated pilots were selected and randomly assigned to one of three groups. The control group pilots received no instrument flight instruction and were required to complete the simulated experiment flight immediately after the 10 minute familiarization flight. The other pilots received either 30 or 60 minutes of instrument flight instruction and were required to complete the simulated experiment flight immediately after the requisite flight instruction. The data were analyzed using a single factor independent design analysis of variance (ANOVA) to determine whether there was a significant difference among the groups' means, and Games-Howell pairwise comparisons tests were used to examine the differences between treatment means. The ANOVA indicated there was a significant overall effect ( p=0.0018). The Games-Howell results indicated no significant difference between the control group and the pilots who received 30 minutes of flight instruction; however, there was a significant difference in the experiment flight times between the control group and the pilots who received 60 minutes of flight instruction (p < .05). The increased pilot proficiency was indicated by the shorter times it took various pilots to complete the experiment flight. The more proficient pilots varied off course less than their less proficient counterparts. The results indicated a recommendation to change the Federal Aviation Regulations to require instrument flight during or between the required biennial flight reviews. That recommendation, if implemented, could possibly reduce the number of weather-related general aviation fatalities. It is recommended further investigation be done to determine the deterioration rate of that proficiency, whether a flight training device is as useful as an actual aircraft, and whether the proficiency gained from 60 minutes of instrument flying practice without the aid of a flight instructor would be as beneficial as 60 minutes of instrument flight instruction.