IMC currency
Oh no, I hear you groan - not another IMC post!! Afraid so. If it's any consolation I've already done a search through this forum but can't quite find what I'm looking for.
After reading through numerous posts about the IMC it seems people fall into 2 camps - those that say the IMC is a 'get out of jail free' card and those that say it can be fully utilised, as long as your IMC skills are current. I'm not looking to start a debate on those 2 points as they have been extensively debated before.
What I would like to know is how much can you expect to pay to join a group with an aircraft that is capable of flying IMC safely (by safely, I mean it has instruments that are up to the task and well maintained)? What are the running costs compared to a SEP that is only used for VFR flight? To provide figures presume a 1/4 or 1/5 share in the aircraft. How may hours per month of IMC flight/practice would you feel are needed to keep this qualification current (I realise this probably depends on the person)?
While I haven't even started my PPL (yet!!) I'd be interested to know how much more money I would need to budget for to keep this qualification current if it were something I attained post-ppl.
cheers