Once you become a private pilot, the usual next step (if you continue your training) is to get your instrument rating. This will certify you to fly with reduced visibility and not being able to see outside the airplane. It’s a pretty challenging rating and most pilots would tell you it was as hard or harder than getting your private pilot’s license.
But it’s also one of the most rewarding ratings because you become a much better pilot in the process. I would argue you also become a much, much safer pilot in the process. But knowing that becoming an instrument rated pilot can be daunting usually has pilots asking the question: how long does it take to get an instrument rating?
Becoming an instrument rated pilot requires 40 hours of simulated or actual IFR conditions. How long this takes depends on how often you are able to fly. Assuming each training flight is 2 hours in length, it would require 20 training flights. If you flew two times per week that would take 10 weeks or 2.5 months to complete your rating.
Just like your private pilot training days, the length to complete your rating really depends on how often you are able to train. The more often you can train, the less you will have to repeat lessons and the faster you will progress through the curriculum and learn all of the required materials. Personally I completed my instrument rating in 2.5 months because I flew 2-3 times per week.
One of the benefits of the instrument rating is that you can do all of it at night if you’d like because you will be wearing a view limiting device anyways. Your private training was done 90% during the day but the instrument can be done just about any time. With the exception of one training flight and my check ride, I did 100% of my IFR training at night. This made it easier to train after work during the week and not impact my schedule too much.
Part 61 vs. 141 Requirements for Your Instrument Rating
Your training requirements will be slightly different whether or not you are training under a Part 61 or Part 141 program.
In short, Part 141 flight schools have a more structured training regimen that must be approved by the FAA, and are also subject to periodic inspections as well as student volume and check ride pass percentages.
As a result, they are allowed to graduate students with fewer requirements than Part 61 programs.
Pilots seeking their instrument rating must have 40 instrument training flight hours and 50 cross country hours under Part 61 requirements. Pilots training at a Part 141 flight school need only 35 instrument training hours for their instrument rating, and there is no minimum cross country requirement.
| Part 61 | Part 141 | |
| Instrument Training Hours | 40 | 35 |
| Cross Country Hours | 50 | N/A |
For more reading on this topic, see our full post on Part 61 vs. 141 Flight Schools.
Other Pre-Requisites that Could Impact How Long It Takes to Get Your Instrument Rating
We just mentioned 40 hours of simulated or actual IFR conditions, but there are other pre-requisites that you’ll need to meet before you are eligible to take your check ride. Depending on your previous flight experience and how well you planned ahead during your days of private training, you may or may not have some extra work to do before you can take your check ride. This could impact your timeline and how long it takes. According to 14 CFR 61.65(d) here are the aeronautical experience requirements for the instrument rating:
50 hours of cross-country flight time as pilot in command, of which 10 must be in an airplane. If you are coming straight out of your private pilot license training and into your instrument rating, this is usually a pre-requisite that will extend the time it takes to qualify for your instrument rating. You will not accomplish 50 hours of cross-country pilot in command time during the normal course of your private pilot training. Usually pilots will get their private pilot’s license with maybe 5-8 hours of PIC cross-country time, which means you’d need another 45 or so hours to get your instrument.
While this can seem a little discouraging, use it as an opportunity to go see the country. The FAA is giving you an excuse to go rent an airplane and leave your city for up to 50 flight hours. Capitalize on that! But just know that your technical timeline to getting your instrument rating would be longer than a different pilot that has flown for 5 years since becoming a private and already has their required cross-country PIC time.
The FAA does have that funny carve out at the end there that 10 hours must be in an airplane. So in the event that you are already a helicopter pilot and have 40 PIC cross country hours, then you’ll only need 10 PIC cross-country hours in an airplane to qualify for the instrument rating.
40 hours of actual or simulated instrument time. The reg is a little more descriptive than this, but the main takeaway is that you need 40 hours of instrument practice. You might have already gotten some “hood” time (or simulated IFR) during your private training and that would count towards this requirement.
You can do some of your training in an AATD (advanced aviation training device) simulator which is still log-able and much cheaper than flying an actual airplane. If you are training at a flight school be sure to ask what kind of equipment they have that you can leverage for some of your required flight hours. I trained at American Flyers and was able to do about 10 hours in the sim that cut down on my training costs (side note: I have over 100 flight training hours at American Flyers, and hundreds of more on the ground, and here is my unbiased review of their flight training program).
IFR 250nm cross-country. This will be worked into your training curriculum as part of your 40 required hours, but this is really the only “special” requirement within the instrument training regimen that you’ll need to accomplish. You’ll take a long cross-country flight with an instructor and be simulated (or actual, if you’re lucky) IFR the whole way, under an IFR flight plan where you’re talking to air traffic control along the route of flight.
You’ll have to fly 250 nautical miles total and perform three different kinds of instrument approaches at three different airports along the way. This was about a 4 hour training flight for me that day in a Cessna 172. It’s pretty tiring because you can’t see outside the airplane for any of it. Great experience, though!
Ground School and Written Test Prep
There is a significant amount of new material you’ll need to learn for the instrument rating that is not really covered at all (or at least not in depth) during your days in private training. Learning how to read new approach plates and an entirely new map (the IFR map is different than the VFR map you’ve gotten used to by now) are two that will be net new material for you.
You’ll cover in much more depth all of your avionics, how they work, and how to identify when one or many are failing, because when you’re IFR you’re solely relying on these.
You’ll study weather more closely than you did during your private, because you will inherently be flying in marginal weather rather than just avoiding it. The private was easy… just avoid clouds and reduced visibility to stay safe and compliant. When you’re an instrument pilot, flying into that kind of weather gets exciting but you’ll need to understand it and not just avoid it.
All of this to say, ground school is a significant part of the instrument rating and you’ll need to factor this into your training schedule. I have always found the intensive 3-day ground school weekend to be extremely helpful in being indoctrinated into the curriculum and passing your written test from the get go. I did ground school and flight training at American Flyers and had a very good experience, and so if you have access to an intensive ground school program near you I would highly recommend it. It is great to get your written test out of the way at the beginning of training to get some momentum and also just focus on the flying from then on.
If you don’t have access to an intensive weekend ground school, or think that would be completely overwhelming, I highly recommend King Schools curriculum and flight training. It’s all web-based now so you can download their videos and courses onto your computer, phone, or tablet, and access it anywhere. I did my commercial ground school through King and was very pleased with it. Their humor is a little goofy but it’s a proven program and has worked for a lot of people.
Conclusion
Getting your instrument rating primarily consists of the 40 hours of instrument training you’ll need to accomplish, but there are a few other pre-requisites such as PIC cross-country time and an intensive ground school regimen that you’ll need to be mindful of when estimating how long it will take you to complete your rating. It is a very rewarding rating and will make you a safer pilot (even when you’re flying VFR).
As with other ratings, just take it one lesson at a time and try to fly as consistently as you can so that you don’t lose momentum or get overwhelmed. If you know you’re going to be really busy for the next couple months but then free up, consider delaying the start of your training until you are in a better season and can dedicate a healthy amount of time and attention to your training. You’ll never regret it.
Blue skies! (well, in this case, I wish you gloomy skies so that you can take the hood off and get some actual IFR instead of just the simulated stuff!)
Related Reading: How much does an instrument rating cost?