Original Message

Casey Marland taught me a great lesson one night on a checkride in a 109 while in actual as a newly minted SPIFR helicopter guy. 

I had a good amount of IMC time in airplance but in the helicopter I failed to engage the ILS and it was still in ALT hold while I began lowering the collective in an attempt to capture the GS.  As the airspeed bled off, the 109 started to "wobble" as the AP was struggling to hold altitude and was seconds from from rolling with airspeed going under 55kts rapidly.  I realized what I had done about the same time that Casey was reaching for the controls and thankfully recovered the aircraft.

He let me take that aircraft to the edge and that lesson stuck with me every time a flew in IFR. For that I am thankful!   

Point being, poking in and out of a cloud in a Robinson is going to bite you in the real stuff.