Originally Posted by
AdamFrisch
It is a bit strange to allow a pilot with very little intsrument experience to fly in conditions where they are expected to navigate solely by instruments. The fact that it might be CAVOK and fully VMC out there at night is purely incidental - if you're not allowed to have any visual references, then what's the difference between doing it in IMC?
IFR is not the same as "navigation solely by instruments", nor is it the same as not having any visual reference. Instrument Flight Rules offer a mechanism other than the visual one for separation from obstacles (through minimum altitude rules) and from other aircraft (through ATC or cruising level rules). Night navigation is often carried out visually, while still adhering to the IFR.