Take off in the soup, fly straight and level for a while, and then land a plane in the same meteorological conditions, thick fog and/or heavy cloud overcast, say between 200 feet off the ground and 6,000 feet AGL (above ground level) without ever engaging the autopilot. It’s a satisfying feeling because it requires skill and typically, in that sort of weather, thunderstorms aren’t usually part of the equation. I always preferred landing to minimums (200-foot ceiling and a half-mile visibility) over messing with heavy turbulence any day. Out of all the ratings I got – private pilot, commercial pilot, multi-engine,