Originally Posted by
Alpha Whiskey Bravo
Sunfish I thought the very same thing when I was asked to read it and provide feedback. Technically you would be VFR in IMC however there is an overarching reg (It slips my mind right now) that says where you find yourself in an emergency situation, you are allowed to break any rule to ensure the safety of flight.
No one reads the various Road Traffic Regulations prior to getting a drivers licence, so a fundamental shift in the Examinations and the production of an AIM/VFRG is imperative to success. They have agreed to an AIM/VFRG and also to some really comprehensive education on the changes.
Oh and the CASA gentleman in charge is exceptional. He knew his stuff even though he was only in CASA for 18 months, he never said, "No we can't do that", and where he needed to, he asked the question to the rule writers in Canberra and came back pretty quickly with an explanation.
For example: Why is the reg regarding flight below 500 feet now missing, "Except due stress of weather"? Well it comes back to the overarching reg allowing you to do what is needed in an emergency. No worries, just make sure you educate that to everyone! Yep done deal.
AWB
What overarching regulation says that if you find yourself in an emergency situation, you are allowed to break any rule to ensure the safety of flight?
Surprising that a regulation with such an effect ‘slipped your mind’.
You may just be repeating some folklore about section 30 of the Civil Aviation Act, which has nowhere near the scope you assert.
If you are flying under the VFR and end up in IMC and an emergency because you failed to obtain and review a forecast, or were flying head down PPRuNing instead of keeping a good lookout or just flew into IMC for the fun of it, believe me: You’re in deep regulatory sh*t if you survive.
If the emergency was unavoidable, that’s a defence to a prosecution for offences that you commit in dealing with the emergency.
But “unavoidable” is a very, very high threshold.
And administrative action is not a prosecution.
Two words prove this: Dominic James.