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IFR required equipment

Posted by on January 11, 2010 4 Comments Category : Flight Instructor Blog Tags :

With Paul’s recent post on the VFR day and night equipment mnemonics, I figured it would be a good opportunity to start collecting some more. If you’re working on your Instrument rating, you’ve probably wondered if there are any mnemonics for the IFR required equipment dictated by §91.205.

GRABCARD is the classic memory tool:

  • Generator or alternator
  • Rate of turn indicator (turn coordinator or turn & bank indicator)
  • Altimeter, sensitive (Kollsman window)
  • Ball (inclinometer, the ‘level’ component of a turn coordinator or turn & bank indicator)
  • Clock (digital display or sweep second hand)
  • Attitude indicator
  • Radios as required for navigation and communication
  • Directional gyro or heading indicator

Of course, the applicable VFR day equipment always applies as well, and if you’re flying IFR night you’ll need the VFR day and night equipment.

Have you got alternate mnemonics for any of the §91.205 required equipment? Let us know in the comments and we’ll add them!

4 Comments



  1. Matthew P. Sokalski on Apr 24, 2013

    I don’t have mnemonics to share but I am looking for help. I just have failed my CFII check ride oral part. How would you explain an importance of every instrument required in an IFR flight? I started with operating principles and got shot down by an examiner, who stated that all of this a student should know form his private license course. Right, but when I presenting this lecture to a CFII instructor in order to be signed off, he did not correct me on that, so I am wondering why.



  2. NIKHil on Sep 30, 2013

    Hi, m an air force pilot flying MI 17 v5 chopper….. just wanted to know that what are the basic requirements for my aircraft to be cleared for IFR. except for gpws and an independent duplicate hydraullics i have rest other things on board including transponder sensitive altimeter etc



  3. Eric Spitzer on Mar 04, 2017

    Can an Artificial Horizon with a slip skid be used for the Gyroscopic turn requirement in place of a turn & bank Instrument?



  4. Sebastian Ewoldt on Jun 13, 2019

    @Eric Spitzer. I don´t think it’s possible. The slip skid in the AI will provide the ball, but it won’t give you a rate of turn indication, so you won’t be able to directly read when you are performing a standard turn.
    Obviously you can calculate your rate of turn from your ground speed (if available) and your bank angle, but is not a practical way to do it airborne, during IFR maneuvering.

    Greetings.

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