Talk:Instrument rating

IFR outside controlled airspace

"[The IMC Rating] does not confer the privileges of a full Instrument Rating, but allows flight in IMC outside controlled airspace, IFR flight in class D and E airspace (IFR flight outside controlled airspace requiring no qualification)..."

This seems at least misleading, and at best actually wrong; IFR flight outside controlled airspace does, as I understand it, need either an IMC rating or a full Instrument Rating, as a non-instrument-qualified pilot must, by definition, remain VFR at all costs. Am I misunderstanding this? --Chrisd87 14:11, 4 August 2007 (UTC)

No, it's correct and yes, you're being befuddled by the UK's regulation of meteorological conditions and airspace class, as opposed to most (all?) other countries that regulate flight rules. A holder of a bare PPL can fly under IFR outside controlled airspace as long as they do not enter IMC because their licence restricts visibility and distance from cloud (by airspace class), not flight rules. It is basically up to the pilot what flight rules they are flying under at any point of a flight and they can change and keep changing according to their whim. Indeed that's how bare PPLs with a night qualification fly in class G at night - under IFR in VMC since night VFR is not permitted for civvies in the UK.

In my opinion it's a confusing mess construed by superannuated former RAF officers gaining second public pensions in a sinecure in the CAA: that's the way they did it in the RAF therefore it must be the right way to do it. It's time they gained some perspective and we came into line with the rest of the world on this and many other aviation regulation matters. BaseTurnComplete (talk) 21:31, 20 April 2010 (UTC)

Lede

I tried to insert a lede, but no contents box appeared. Does anyone know how to correct this? Valetude (talk) 12:20, 17 March 2018 (UTC)