Above transition level
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 1,115
Likes: 4
From: Yorkshire
Thing
Does that mean that IMC holders can't fly IFR then?
...it's not a guarentee...
MJ
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 5,982
Likes: 1
From: In the boot of my car!
Thing
You maybe up at FL95 on top Flying OCAS you start a descent to make a cloud break at 2000 feet to fly to a small airfield.
You enter cloud and are now in IMC descending so cutting many levels and not flying Quadrantles.
It happened to me with TICAS. Nothing showing transponding until a glider in cloud flashed past clearly visible in the cloud so very close.
i made a report on this near miss.
There is a risk but flying IMC/OCAS without radar and sometimes even with radar there is always that risk.
Flying OCAS IMC you try and reduce that risk as best as you can flying Quadrantles helps but its not an answer to all evils.
The only answer to that is to leave in CAS, cruise in CAS and arrive and land in CAS
Pace
You maybe up at FL95 on top Flying OCAS you start a descent to make a cloud break at 2000 feet to fly to a small airfield.
You enter cloud and are now in IMC descending so cutting many levels and not flying Quadrantles.
It happened to me with TICAS. Nothing showing transponding until a glider in cloud flashed past clearly visible in the cloud so very close.
i made a report on this near miss.
There is a risk but flying IMC/OCAS without radar and sometimes even with radar there is always that risk.
Flying OCAS IMC you try and reduce that risk as best as you can flying Quadrantles helps but its not an answer to all evils.
The only answer to that is to leave in CAS, cruise in CAS and arrive and land in CAS
Pace
Thread Starter
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 3,113
Likes: 2
From: 23, Railway Cuttings, East Cheam
I think you would have a better chance if you were actually IMC tbh because the chances are you're not going to meet Joe Bloggs coming the other way flying VFR. I flew from the top end of Wales to the bottom end in total clag once at FL60 and felt as safe as houses. You know anyone else in there is going to be flying a level unless they are completely incompetent.
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 4,729
Likes: 0
From: 75N 16E
I tend to fly quadrantals even when VFR, so that if I end up IFR then I am at the right level. Also as most airways are defined as FL then it ensures separation from CAS even with large pressure differences.
However, it is more complicated that it needs to be. Here is a typical real life scenario:
Take off on airfield QNH
Transit a MATZ at airfield QFE
Switch to RPS
Climb above transition alt and set 1013
Transit CAS zone, be asked to switch to their QNH and transit at 6000' QNH
Descend to 3000 on RPS
Contact airfield and be given QFE for landing.
Why oh why can't TA be uniform across the country, say 6k for the UK, and why on earth do I need QFE to land. I was once given QFE and I asked for QNH, and was told by the airfield to set "the fox echo"...
However, it is more complicated that it needs to be. Here is a typical real life scenario:
Take off on airfield QNH
Transit a MATZ at airfield QFE
Switch to RPS
Climb above transition alt and set 1013
Transit CAS zone, be asked to switch to their QNH and transit at 6000' QNH
Descend to 3000 on RPS
Contact airfield and be given QFE for landing.
Why oh why can't TA be uniform across the country, say 6k for the UK, and why on earth do I need QFE to land. I was once given QFE and I asked for QNH, and was told by the airfield to set "the fox echo"...
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 88
Likes: 0
From: Northern Europe
ICAO Rules of the Air, the coming Single European Rules of the Air (SERA) and most older national rules are clear about this.
Above the transition altitude (or above 3000 feet AGL if no transition altitude is published for the airspace in question) VFR flights should use an appropriate semicircular VFR flight level. (Altimeter setting 1013 hPa.) ATC can of course assign different levels for controlled flights.
Above the transition altitude (or above 3000 feet AGL if no transition altitude is published for the airspace in question) VFR flights should use an appropriate semicircular VFR flight level. (Altimeter setting 1013 hPa.) ATC can of course assign different levels for controlled flights.
