Definition
A pattern of flying in which the pilot reacts to each small movement of an instrument indication with a corrective control input, then over-corrects when the instrument swings the other way, producing continuous oscillation rather than stable flight. It is a symptom of fixating on instrument needles instead of flying the airplane's attitude and trimming for the desired performance.
Plain English
Constantly jerking the controls in response to every twitch of an instrument needle, so the airplane wobbles back and forth instead of holding steady.
Context Anchor
Used in integrated flight instruction, where a student learns to combine outside visual references with the flight instruments.
Derivation
From the everyday sense of 'chasing' — running after something that keeps moving away. The pilot keeps running after the needle, but each correction makes it swing the other way, so the chase never ends.
Why Pilots Care
It increases workload, destabilizes the aircraft, and prevents smooth, accurate instrument flight.
Analogy
It is like steering a car by jerking the wheel every time the car moves an inch left or right. The correction itself becomes the problem.
Intuition Check
The phrase does not mean the instruments are wrong or that the pilot should ignore them. It means the pilot is reacting to them too aggressively instead of making smooth corrections and waiting for the airplane to respond.
Example Sentence 1
The instructor noticed the student was chasing the instruments, so she covered the altimeter and had him hold altitude using the horizon instead.
Example Sentence 2
Instead of chasing the instruments, the pilot made small, smooth corrections using the attitude indicator to maintain level flight.