Remember
Attitude indicator is always a primary instrument to scan.
CHAPTER 07 · INSTRUMENT SCANNING
IFR Practical Training
First Steps in Practical IFR
— A Pilot's Guide
Best practices for pilots stepping into the world of instrument flying.
A practical companion for your IR journey — written by a pilot, for pilots. Covers preflight planning, IFR procedures, approaches, emergencies, weather and human factors.
THE AUTHOR CAPT. MACIEJ PEIKERT
EDITED BY JAKUB KUBRYŃSKI
EDITED BY JAKUB KUBRYŃSKI
Written by a 23,000-hour pilot
Captain Maciej Peikert distills nearly four decades of airline and instructor experience into a practical training companion.
Practical, not theoretical
Good practices that connect PPL knowledge with real IFR flying.
Interactive quizzes via QR
Every chapter has a companion quiz unlocked by a code in the book.
The Book
About the book
What it is
A 169-page practical IFR companion that walks you through the entire IFR flight, start to finish — from the first NOTAM check to the missed approach call.
What's different
Applied, procedural, operational content. Not another theory textbook — this is the cockpit-side knowledge that bridges what you learned and what you'll actually do.
Who it's for
IR students working toward their rating, instructors building training material, and ATOs equipping their fleets and classrooms.
From the book · Classic six-pack
Straight from the book
A glimpse inside
Six things you'll remember long after you close the book.
Remember
During the briefing stick to the rule: Fly – Navigate – Communicate. Do not leave PFD unattended, keep it scanning even if the AP is ON.
CHAPTER 03 · APPROACH BRIEFING
Remember
Proper pre-flight preparation facilitates navigation, lowers workload, and increases situation awareness and self-confidence during flight.
CHAPTER 01 · PREFLIGHT PREPARATION
Remember
For ILS each dot represents approx. 0.5° deviation (5-dot scale). Half-scale deflection is 1.25° only.
CHAPTER 03 · ILS APPROACH
Remember
The primary goal of the briefing is your mental preparation for the approach — not to satisfy SOP or instructor.
CHAPTER 03 · APPROACH BRIEFING
Remember
Reaching visual contact at MAPt does not guarantee landing.
CHAPTER 03 · MISSED APPROACH
— From First Steps in Practical IFR by Capt. Maciej Peikert
See the full table of contents →169 pages · 7 chapters · dozens of subtopics
Everything inside
A detailed look at what the book covers, chapter by chapter.
Everything before pushback — building the mental model of the flight, the paperwork, and the fuel plan.
What you'll learn
NOTAMsAirport statusAirspace Use PlanWeather briefingAirport chartsMEL / CDL / KOELATC flight planSTAY phrasePBN itemsTransponder codingAlternate aerodrome planningOperational Flight PlanFuel calculationWeight & BalanceNoise Abatement DepartureNADP1 / NADP2Take-off performance
"Proper pre-flight preparation facilitates navigation, lowers workload, and increases situation awareness and self-confidence during flight."
Book pages: 17 – 35
Author
Who wrote this
Maciej Peikert
Author · Captain23,000+
Flight hours
28 yrs
Airline operations
19 yrs
On Airbus A320 family
Captain Maciej Peikert is a distinguished aviation professional who has been flying since 1986, accumulating over 23,000 flight hours in the air. He has spent nearly 28 years in airline operations, with close to 19 years on the Airbus A320 family. Maciej is also a flight instructor at some of Poland's largest training organisations, including as an IFR instructor at LAW Flight Academy in Dęblin. His line-flying career has taken him across Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and both North and South America. First Steps in Practical IFR distills that cockpit experience into a practical companion for pilots entering the world of instrument flying.
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