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VMC Minima for EASA PPL holders

Yes; I am not suggesting one can fly “VFR” in 1500m

Visual enroute navigation is not possible unless you fly ridiculously low and in a familiar area. Has to be 100% radio nav (GPS, basically).

On the final approach, you can just see the runway from about 600ft AGL, at the 1500m (1 mile) distance.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Maybe it is actually 1500m. It does appear that way. What did the AFE book say it is ? So maybe the PPL question is wrong, or they havent qualified it properly in expecting the 5km answer.

My AFE Air Law book has two different pages on VMC minima.

The first one, titled simply “VMC Minima” says in controlled (F&G) airspace, in fixed wing aircraft at 140kt or less: 1500m flight visibility"

Then later on in the book, there’s a section for JAR PPL licences. The chart there is titled “weather minima for a JAR PPL holder without IMC rating or Instrument Rating” and it says in uncontrolled (F&G) airspace, at 140kt or less: 3km flight visibility.

As I’m studying for the EASA PPL, I figure the latest/correct information should be based on the UK ANO – that’s law after all – in which case, assuming the link in my original post is the correct/latest document (it’s dated August 2012), the minimum flight visibility required for me as an EASA PPL licence holder would be 3000m. (?!)

EGBJ and Firs Farm, United Kingdom

Has to be 100% radio nav (GPS, basically).

Peter, you wimp… NDB only… haha

Disclaimer, I can only imagine that the a toilet smell inside the cockpit will be almost guaranteed should you try it. I wonder if ATC services stretch to buying a pilot new pants… interesting thought.

Can the member states file a difference on minimum flight vis? It’s purely academic anyway, I fly for fun, and although I am IMCr so have the ability to fly on instruments after things get below about 3000m the fun aspects exponentially drops off.

EDHS, Germany

As I’m studying for the EASA PPL, I figure the latest/correct information should be based on the UK ANO – that’s law after all

Not in the case of an EASA licence. Part FCL which allows the ICAO VFR Minima of 1500 metres trumps the UK ANO. In any event JAA licence privileges were removed from the ANO on 12 Sept 2012 when Part FCL became Law. The 3 K minima only applies to UK National PPLs issued pre 1999 in accordance with the ANO..

As the IMC rating has not changed since the 1980s then the 1800 metre minima remains historic and no longer relevent unless you have an old UK PPL.

As the IMC rating has not changed since the 1980s then the 1800 metre minima remains historic and no longer relevent unless you have an old UK PPL.

This is digressing from the OP’s question but surely that is the case only if

  1. on an IFR arrival, if you cancel the IFR clearance before commencing the instrument approach, or
  2. on operations at airports where nobody is reporting a visibility figure

The reason for 1. is that under IFR on the IMCR you need 1800m reported vis whereas under VFR you need 1500m.

If say you are flying in IFR conditions (e.g. IMC) on a PPL+IMCR, and you want to land at Airport X, and ATC there is reporting a vis of 1700m, then you cannot legally fly the instrument approach and land there under an IFR clearance because you would be IFR all the way down to the runway.

To land in 1700m, you somehow you have to make yourself “VFR” first

In Class G you can do that just in your head, but if say going to a Class D airport you have to tell ATC you are cancelling IFR.

But if you cancel IFR overtly, ATC would probably send you into the visual circuit which you probably can’t fly in 1700m

Last Edited by Peter at 11 Nov 19:33
Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

i thought both the 1800 meters and 1500 meters came from different people interpretation on 1 nautical mile.

which was the icao minimum for vfr. the UK were not happy with such a low requirement and made in 3km. (it was something in nm before that but i can’t remember that).

so for imc holders they decided to make the minimum 1nm. which was then interpretated as 1800 meters.

when easa came along they interpretation 1nm as 1500 meter hence we now have the discrepancy.

for the record i regularly fly vfr in 1500 meter vis and in fact i did today. when positioning a 150 for a radio change

That’s very possible, but the ANO always used metres for horizontal vis, while the USA uses statute miles.

Loosely 1 SM = 1600m while 1 NM = 1800m so maybe that’s it.

In the ANO, 1800m appears on page 266 and page 277. It appears clear the distinction between 1500m and 1800 is deliberate.

Funnily enough, 1500m or 3000m doesn’t appear anywhere in the ANO. But then neither does GPS

Last Edited by Peter at 11 Nov 21:35
Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom
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