Isn’t the IR(R) an IR less the bullshit?
Like most interesting questions the answer is complicated. There is an element of assimilating some not very useful knowledge involved in the IR. The worst of this has been eliminated with the CBM IR but some remains. On the other hand the basic syllabus covers largely essential skills and few, if any, pilots claim to have been up to standard with less than 40 hours training. Since the IR(R) only involves 15 hours (in fact it might be less than that since it’s only 10 hours by sole reference to instruments), it is surely self-evident that pilots on an IR(R) cannot have been taught either the whole range of skills or reached the same standards as they would during an IR. So the question becomes – is the range of skills required and the level of competence demanded appropriate for the uses pilots will put them to? Many if not most UK pilots come to the IR via an IR(R). Why not ask them their view. We think you will find that they will tell you their IR(R) was valuable, but before doing the IR they had not realised the standards they were capable of achieving.