True, but once we go outside Sweden (and a few other places) flying in non-BRNAV (non-PBN?) airspace is impractical.
And it is impractical everywhere if you want to use IFR to avoid weather 
And if there is no weather, then one can just fly VFR (where ATC will let you 100% freely; only a very few countries in Europe).
I was told to get a certified engine, prop and avionics in order to obtain IFR clearance for my RV14. Once the aircraft would be declared “IFR capable” by my local CAA I see no reason why an IFR cross border flight would be impossible/illegal.
True. But you cannot do that flying over the small creek from UK to France apparently, therefore this capability is worthless in the entire European continent, as per definition on this board.
You know you cannot bad-mouth EuroGA, LeSving, without getting a reaction
You wrote: you cannot do that flying over the small creek from UK to France apparently, therefore this capability is worthless in the entire European continent, as per definition on this board.
You could have equally written: you can do that in Norway apparently, therefore this capability works in the entire European continent, as per definition on this board.
Both are nonsense, but the privileges of “homebuilts” are pretty well established, with plenty of previous threads – examples
Peter wrote:
is impractical.
Yes, that’s what I wrote, too!
boscomantico wrote:
The problem is that with all aircraft that that are not type-certified for IFR (such as all VLAs), you WILL find that restriction in the POH
For any aircraft type that was US CAR-3 certified (pre FARs), which is a lot of types, you will no find no reference to IFR or VFR approval. Some of them don’t even have a POH, only a very simple flight or owners manual in manufacturer format. There is no limitation on any of them, which is why the requirement for a restriction versus an explicit approval for IFR is a relevant point. Early Mooneys are one example of a CAR-3 certified aircraft.
(This is BTW the same difference in certification standard that makes it possible to use upholstery materials without testing for fire resistance, in the same aircraft)
I know, but left that out for brevity. In Europe, vintage aircraft are rare to start with, and then nobody will consider flying IFR in such things. The OP specifically enquired about using a DA20
Katana for low-cost IFR flights.
I think it’s good to understand the issue – knowledge is power. One factor that might motivate me to choose a Mooney M20 or Maule over something else for any kind of use including IFR would be CAR-3 certification. Conversely having learned of the real world consequences, I’m motivated to avoid recently certified types including anything FAA LSA, that have expensive maintenance requirements, equipment requirements or operational limitations buried in their type certification. In general, with the exception of FAA E-AB aircraft that (within Europe) are only practical to operate in Germany, the newer the type, the worse it gets for the owner.
Peter wrote:
Very few people do long VFR trips
I’d say very few GA pilots do long trips.
I’d also say the great majority of GA pilots are VFR only and so long trips are mostly made VFR
It’s hard to say… certainly the vast majority of GA is VFR-only, but the majority of pilots who I know who do long trips (say 500-1000nm radius from base) do them under IFR. So you have the two conflicting percentages. It may still be that most long trips are flown under VFR but I would doubt it. Within certain countries e.g. France it could well be, but not generally because the airspace system around Europe is such a mess to hack around under VFR.
Ultimately this translates to a fairly small market for certified versions of popular homebuilts, I think.
The OP specifically enquired about using a DA20 Katana for low-cost IFR flights.
Well, I used the Katana as an ‘extreme’ example for illustration purposes. I was thinking about all the “VFR-only” PA28 etc, assuming it may be sufficient to equip them with the required stuff according to Part NCO and start using them for IFR flights in VMC / light-IMC.
