And before Ryan & his instructor state that they can fly at night in Ireland under IFR so long as they stay in VMC, this too is prohibited in Ireland.
IAA Personal Licensing Order 2000. The relevant section is S19 (1):
A person shall not act as pilot-in-command of an aircraft or as co-pilot of a multi-pilot aeroplane or helicopter registered in the State under instrument flight rules unless such person holds a valid instrument rating -
(a) issued or validated by the Authority and endorsed in or deemed by the
Authority to be included in the licence held by such person or in the
validation of such licence, as the case may be, and
(b) appropriate to the category, class or type of aircraft flown.
There is a similar paragraph restricting other registrations operating under IFR in Ireland when the pilot does not have an IR.
The leglisative reference for Backpackers post is IAA Rules of the Air Order 2004, section is 38( 8 )(iii).
dp