Now, now, boys and girls - I get the impression that a momentary action of self-defence may be called for here.
Words are being twisted - or misread, either deliberately or accidental.
When I said about the FAA I/R course being about the same as a UK IMC (done in the UK, with a UK instructor [who understands the rating you are training for]) - I meant in terms of (flying) workload and skills required - and I still stick by that. Before Cusco and Keef etc. start squealing that they have both an FAA I/R and a UK IMC, so do I - and a UK I/R, too.
What I
didn't say was that the groundschool is much harder - and this is partly due to lack of experience with Federal airspace and procedures. Before your IMC courses and tests you probably built up some (however little) flight experience in the UK - and you are (hopefully) familiar with things like Lapform 214 and 215. Over here, there is none of that - and, as suggested by Cusco, you get zapped with geographically based questions - not easy for us Limeys.
The CAA flight test assumes you are acting as pilot in command - hence you get a briefing before hand of the flight profile, so that you can have a mental picture of what you are trying to do....and you get to choose the approach - just as you would if you really were PIC. If that approach is not available you figure it out for yourself.
A and C - could I ask you two things?? Genuine questions - not trying to catch you with anything. Firstly what "theoretical bull" did you encounter when you did your own CAA IMC test - and secondly, what aircraft type did you use for the test...can I slide in a third question.....what altitude did you go down to on one engine during the approaches, before the Go Around??
Back to the plot.....Romeo.....you comment in your initial posting at not having many gadgets to play with. So why an instrument rating then?? You need a full IFR kit (two altimeters and FM immune radios) to go play in the airways............and some de-icing equipment would be nice (if not anti-icing) if you want to use UK airways - which was your original question.
You also ask
and how useful is it to be able to fly airways in this country anyway?
and that is what prompted the reply "worthless".
The
training , I have to agree with Cusco, is invaluable - but you asked about the
rating and that, I believe, is worthless
for what you want to do with it
Skills - yes....value - none. You need to have the right aircraft, with the right kit, the right experience - and THE NEED to fly the aircraft in IMC. If you are staying at PPL level is it really worth the cost of completing a foreign instrument rating for your pleasure flying around the UK in an ill equipped aircraft??
I don't devalue the FAA I/R in the slightest - it works perfectly well, and I agree with the principle of "why don't all the American airplanes crash at Heathrow" argument...........but I don't see it having a USE in your PPL folder.
Do the training, by all means - you can learn a tremendous amount..........but why learn to fly a single engine approach in a twin engine aircraft into Fort Myers when you are going to fly single engine aircraft around the UK?? Heathrow is, I believe, the only airfield within the London and Scottish FIR's (which is the only place your IMC is valid), that you cannot legally fly into under IMC conditions without a full blown Instrument Rating - and I'm pretty sure that if you needed to do it in an emergency, they would let you go there anyway.
TRAINING - invaluable. RATING - worthless (for what YOU want to do with it).
You haven't yet started on the questions of keeping it current???