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Dave Pressy with St. Charles flying service on behalf of Expert Village. We'll talk about
the two different types of flying, VFR and IFR. Most private pilots fly under VFR, or
visual flight rules. This implies that the flight will take place with good visibility
and away from any clouds. When flying in these conditions, a pilot spends eighty to ninety
percent of their time looking outside the aircraft, thus controlling the flight using
only visual references. The instruments are their just as a back up. This allows the pilot
to see and avoid other traffic. Much time is spent in training on controlling the airplane
simply by using your eyes and the airplane's position in relation to the horizon and ground
reference points. Pilots flying under VFR can fly along with the need to be directed
by air traffic control. This is the most common type of flight for a private pilot. IFR, or
instrument flight rules, is flying only with reference to instruments. This type of flying
requires a higher level of training, a thorough study and understanding of the regulations
and procedures and more refined piloting skills. Pilots use navigation radios in the aircraft,
along with ground facilities, including air traffic control to fly from one point to another
and execute an instrument approach, a procedure designed for the airplane to arrive safely
at a destination, using only instruments.