Not Englishal but maybe I can help. Sometimes i position a Citation low level VFR around the London area below 2500 feet.
Sometimes we fly IFR rules out of controlled airspace and then have to descend VFR to the airport. This is usually to save time and hence money on short trips of less than 100 nm where its not practical to fly airways or going across the country W to E or E to W using military corridors.
Typically you may fly at FL150/160 etc with someone like London Military and then descend with a lower level RS descending to keep below controlled airspace.
Often you may fly out of a smallish airfield where you climb and may travel some distance before entering the airways system and are then reliant on a radar service or leave an airway and descend out of controlled airspace to the destination airfield.
Usually when they realise that you are a Citation the radar service keeps a special eye on you as you are a lot faster.
But it is a worry in those situations and a non transponding glider in IMC would be a big concern. We have TCAS and radar controllers will usually pick up transponding aircraft but may miss non transponding aircraft or put them down to clutter.
That is why I say that if you are not equipt to be in cloud and carry equiptment to minimise the risk to the rest of us you should not be there as the MK1 eyeball is of no use in cloud.
I would love to know why the glider regulations stipulate a parachute in cloud ? Is this incase they collide with another aircraft or the pilots are not competant at instrument flying and may loose control? It is madness.
In the same way as you can not enter the airways sytem with a U/S transponder you should not be allowed to fly in cloud without a fully serviceable transponder. If we cannot eyeball eachother its russian roulette.
It will probably take a glider taking out a 737 before the CAA change their double standards
Pace
Last edited by Pace; 31st Aug 2008 at 21:09.