Well this has mushroomed into quite a discussion!
I do disagree with Bose-x re the IFR. If we are flying in the TMA we are under IFR just like all the other traffic. I regularly climb through and sometimes hold in cloud layers - if I was VFR / SVFR (Which our clearance is not) I would not be able to do this as i'm not maintaining flight in VMC conditions. The ATCO's treat us as they would any other traffic and consider us as operating under IFR in the TMA (I phoned them and asked).
As an example - consider this possibility:
We are cleared to FL100. When at FL100 the controller requests us to take a radar heading 090 because of some traffic they want to slot around us. While on this radar heading we enter IMC. If I was VFR I would not be able to accept a radar heading that took me knowingly into IMC.
Just one example, I may be wrong in my thinking - discuss!
What have I decided (so far!):
- I will log actual time in IMC as 'Instrument time' and use the 4/1 method too.
- I will log a small amount of IFR time (A conservative 30% of total flight time representing the climb / holds to altitude in the TMA) (BUT be clear about what this experience is made up of on my CV - I have no interest or intention of misleading people and whilst I agree this is not a full departure, airway, arrival - it is in my view good operational experience nonetheless.