Originally Posted by
Capn Bloggs
As for the "if it's not IMC, IFR don't need ATC", this is also nonsense. "OK, no clearance available? Let's go IFR-Pickup". Do some research on how many heavy-jet companies actually allow their operations to switch to VFR because a ATC clearance wasn't available. Not to mention the IFR cowboys (yes Huustan, cowboys) doing an IFR pickup with no prior coordination with the other IFR aircraft that is so close to them ATC can't/won't give them a clearance. Did the inventors of IFR Pickups actually think sane pilots would just go VFR, look out the front and hope that she'll be right
Generally you and I are on a sort of similar page, but I’m going to disagree with you on this one. There are a lot of reasons why ATC can’t give a clearance, primary of which is that if you aren’t on surveillance then you will have to be procedurally separated. The procedural separation standards are quite massive, been as high as 10 minutes. In this case if it was VMC an IFR pickup would absolutely be a smart manoeuvre, and then as soon as you’re on ADSB then ATC will separate you anyway.
Calling IFR pickup a cowboy manoeuvre is a pretty broad statement. As far as Class E goes in Australia, I see 2 issues. Pilots don’t actually understand how to use it, what level of service is provided and exactly what is and isn’t controlled in it. Controllers don’t fully understand the purpose of it, and don’t like not being fully in control of “their” airspace.