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Originally Posted by ryan1234
I've never really, totally understood this school of thought (covering up instruments). Would you mind explaining a little bit more?
Sure.
It's not about disregarding instruments. It's about relegating instruments to their proper place. #1 on the hit parade of errors for both visual and instrument pilots is fixating and chasing.
On the visual side, it doesn't take very much experience as an instructor to figure out that most altitude/airspeed errors can be corrected immediately by forcing the pilot to develop visual cues.
Approach to landing, airspeed stabilizes when the pilot uses visual cues instead of chasing the ASI. Turns around a point, altitude stabilizes when the pilot uses visual cues instead of the altimeter. I've had Discovery Flights where the student, who has never flown an airplane before, has kept altitude within 100 feet - without the altimeter.
I only "always" take an instrument away in one situation - my students don't solo until they can land without the ASI (it usually only takes one landing). In other situations, if what I see the pilot doing suggests chasing instruments, I cover the offending one. So far, it's always worked and once the pilot realizes that the instrument is only needed to play a backup role, it can be brought back in its proper place.
It's not a school of thought that says, "fly without the instruments." It's a school of thought that says, "if you're having problems holding altitude, airspeed, heading, etc because you are fixating on or chasing certain instrument, take them away until the pilot realizes that he doesn't have to chase or fixate on them."
If a student doesn't show signs of the problem, there's no need for the solution.