Instrument - Part 61 or Part 141.. ? What would you do?

I am sure this issue has been discussed many times over. But, each case is different and, I thought I would get the opinion of my fellow JCers.

I have my PPL with about 67 hours. I have not flown much since 2010 and am looking into getting my Instrument rating in the near future. My old instructor is no longer flying and I have to look in to alternate options. The other place in Fargo, offers a 141 instrument course. I was wondering if this is a good option for someone with low hours like me? I think I would like the structure and the pace; but am not sure how often I will be able to fly.

Any opinions and thoughts?

In my opinion I would do it part 61, go out fly your x-c's get real flying experience and have fun at the same time. In part 141 you could do it in less hours but at the end you're going to spend the same amount as part 61 with fewer hours in your logbook. Commercial all the way part 61 is the way to do it. My 2 cents...............

All comes down to cost really.

Part 61. You are going to have a hard time getting a job with the minimum number of hours that a 141 school can "graduate" you with. You'll still have a hard time getting a job with the standard 250 hours of part 61 times.

Cool. Thanks for the replies. The problem is - not flying enough for me. I work 8-5 on most days; with 2 hours thrown in for commuting. That means weekdays are out of the q. Weekend flying is largely contingent upon weather. This entire weekend was spent..... doing nothing thanks to bad weather and no instructor.

So, building that 50 hours PIC XC time is going to be tough. I know the 141 does not need the XC time. Am in no hurry to get to my CSEL/CFi/CFII ticket just yet. I was more interested in getting the IR done - as I have a feeling it might give me more options to fly and build time.

Also, I will need a TSA approved school as am not a citizen.

A part 61 instructor can help you through the TSA process as well. It takes a little time, but the process is available online.

http://www.aopa.org/tsa_rule/

Completely inaccurate and highly subjective.

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OP, it makes no difference.
The quality of instruction, experience and expense is dependent on the individual instructor and the schools set policies and rates.
141 or 61 isn't the correct question to be asking.

I am trying to get the Instrument done - as cheaply as possible. That is the question here - which would be cheaper?

haha, good question and that is all dependent on your local situation and which flight schools in your area *suitable*.

Hour wise 141 will have fewer rental hours.
Rates will vary from school to school, so if the 141 rental rates are comparable to the 61 school then the 141 school will be cheaper. If the same school offers either 141 or 61, 141 will be cheaper.

Yup. Sent out a few emails. Have to see what works. Once I have more feedback, I will post here and have more details

Good work, too many people jump in to a flight training course without doing any leg work or simply taking out a calculator. True!

Yup. The problem is Fargo is 50 miles away. So I have to factor in a 100 mile round trip on the weekends.

Probably have to put this on hold till 2013 or later - till then MS FSX FTW.

You know, the place to cut hours and save money is just not on your instrument rating.

With that being said, part 61 is the way to go because you really need as many hours as you can get at this point. Less hours = less experience. Less hours = less chances to be hired.

Since you only have 67 hours right now, I would recommend that you take a few hours and just enjoy what you have accomplished thus far. See if you can get 3 others to go with you to a few neat places and split the cost. I used to pal up with a flying buddy and a couple of cute passengers and fly to the beach for the day in a 172. Great way to build time and you might find some other benefits.

If you expect to get a commercial rating, then the best "time building" you can ever get is while you do your instrument rating. Every instrument hour is useful. Every instrument hour makes you a better pilot.

I would much rather spend extra money on extra hours during instrument training than fly boring "time building" cross country flights after instrument training that don't offer the opportunity to learn much. Keep in mind that you don't have to have a CFI on every instrument training flight. A safety pilot buddy works just fine, at times, and might be able to help you figure out some things that the CFI hasn't drilled into your brain yet.

Joe

Fixed it for you. Doing it 141 does not gaurentee anything will get done quicker. It only makes it so if you are an exceptional student who already has a good grasp on things that you may finish quicker.

I did some of my training in a 141 school, and finished in 61 school. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the 61 school more. But I think a lot of it comes down to the school you are attending.

I shouldn't have to tell you that starting a quoted post with "fixed it for you", unless it is done for humor, is a jerk move. You've been here long enough, it's time to start acting like it.

What I said was correct per the CFRs.

What YOU were or were not able to do as instructor at a given flight school in California is immaterial to the OP.

Schools don't need to be TSA approved, you just need the TSA blessing. Any CFI can help you with this.

Only 15 hours instruction needs to be dual - if you can find someone to split time with, that will work for the balance of the sim / XC time.

Maybe you can find some retired guy that likes flying - lot of aircraft out there that would fly more if someone is splitting the gas bill. EAA chapters would be a good place to look, or a note in an FBO bulletin board.

Good luck!

Tell that to the student that gets stuck on a 141 stage check and starts to waste hours running circles at the same place...........

I would go with the part 61 school as well. For all intensive purposes you're going to be slowly but surely paying for those first 250 hours to get to your commercial. The way I saw it was a bit more hours for my money but it was all towards that magic 250 which I think you'd like to get to to become a CFI?. I had shared my time with a guy doing some safety pilot here and there as he did for me. That way I was able to get quite a bit done while splitting some time with out a CFI in the plane the entire time. For me, it worked out really well. And yes, as long as you're renting you may as well plan those 51 nm trips along the way. That way you'll have that cross country time for the ride.