Yes he can, provided he flies in accordance with the VMC minima relevant to the class of airspace. It would be a brave man who would file a flight plan which might restrict him to certain routes or levels and be sure he could remain 1000 ft vertically or 1500m horizontally from cloud and/or clear of cloud in sight of the surface etc for the whole flight. Remember you are also subject to the more stringent minimum height rules under IFR. To my mind, once IFR is cancelled it would be difficult to keep refiling it once you are back on track clear of your particular cloud.

Don't confuse Instrument Flight Rules with Instrument Meterological Conditions, or Visual Flight Rules with Visual Meterological Conditions. On an IFR flight can you can fly a visual (conditions, not rules) approach to an airfield, but you are still subject to the separation and restrictions afforded to an IFR flight. You are in VMC but under IFR (as are most airliners at altitude).

Just to reinforce a couple of things CM said.

First point: You do not need to file a flight plan to fly IFR, provided that the flight remains outside CAS (ie open FIR).

Second point: You must remember that to 'simulate' IFR, you must have a safety pilot and dual flight controls.

[ 11 December 2001: Message edited by: Whipping Boy's SATCO ]

There is a very similar exchange going on on another thread headed "A question I should have asked earlier..." which gives further info.

eyeinthesky,

Are you sure that you must maintain 1000'/1500m, if you are IFR without an IR/IMC rating?

My understanding was that you must keep to the most stringent of the rules for the airspace you're in under the rules you're following (VFR/IFR), and the restrictions of your license. The 1000'/1500m rule is part of the VFR rules. The restriction of the basic PPL only stipulates clear of cloud and in site of the surface. In fact, I seem to remember a thread a couple of months ago where someone suggested that avoiding the 1000'/1500m rule is about the only practical reason for wanting to fly IFR if you don't have a IR/IMC rating (although even then you could usually keep below 3000', where the rule doesn't apply anyway, unless there's some airspace or something down there that you don't want to bother with).

As for having two threads on the same subject, perhaps one of the thread-starters (NigelS or pil) could close his thread, and we can carry on with just one thread?

FFF
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FFF: I think you may be right. My point was that in order to comply with the restrictions on your basic PPL you might find the requirements of routes or levels on IFR flight make it impossible.

I assume we are talking about flight outside CAS here. If you take the parallel of a PPL with a night rating only (no IMC) then he is flying under IFR but must remain VMC, so it must be possible to fly IFR by day with a basic PPL provided you remain VMC at all times.

Kermit 180! we do all exagerate - it's not meant to be a disparaging comment it's human nature - first time I did PFLs I was, "Wow he cut the engine and, I picked a field, shaped up to land in it got to 40ft before we pulled away!" Of course really the engine was merley idled and we got to over 500ft from the field. The exageration much better describes our feelings!