Blimey was this thread originally well over a year ago
Yeah, time goes by fast and very little happens! However, I think there were several threads of very similar name - this one has a particular spelling mistake in the title
I think
this is the latest news on the slightly reduced IR theory, due late 2009.
Due to EASA timescales, any "EASA IR" is well further out than 2009, IMHO. 2012 seems an likely date because that is the "convergence" year for a lot of the current proposals.
However, the whole matter is mostly political, and any look at the politics surrounding the IR, together with the much smaller likelihood of a major pan-European airspace structure revision, makes it highly unlikely that any "full privilege EASA IR" will be substantially different to the existing one.
The next few years are going to carry a lot of uncertainty.
If I wanted the IR
now and was willing to buy a plane (a virtual pre-requisite for airways flight) I would do the FAA IR and then optionally (or if necessary later) follow the ICAO to JAA IR conversion options which are currently very reasonable (well, reasonable in terms of flying; you still have to sit ALL the writtens).
I got the IR over 2 years ago and have had an enormous value out of it. Foreign trips in particular are a piece of cake, relatively to the stunts I was occassionally pulling when limited to "official VFR". I could have just sat on my bum and waited for the new Euro IR which was absolutely "just around the corner" even back then.
Even if EASA does somehow manage to kill off the N-reg scene in 2012 (which is possible but not without very substantial grandfather options for all the bizjet crews etc) that is FOUR more years of great flying for me.
And one day we will all be dead. Nothing in this game is assured.