by Paul Bertorelli

One man’s piece-of-cake flight decision may be another’s palm-sweat-inducing nightmare. How can you tell when you’re about to go too far?

If you’re an instructor, you don’t need much right-seat time to have made this observation: some pilots are more comfortable—indeed are eager—to confront what others consider beyond-the-fringe flight scenarios. A potent example is the freshly minted 175-hour Instrument pilot who thinks nothing of departing into a 200-foot overcast the day after his checkride. On the opposite extreme is the timid soul whose palms sweat at the mere thought of a 10-knot crosswind or a hint of mist and cloud in a forecast. …