On Tue, 18 Jan 2005 13:49:20 +0000 (UTC),
(Paul Tomblin) wrote:

In a previous article, said:
(a) Instrument approaches to civil airports.

Unless otherwise authorized by the Administrator, when an instrument
letdown to a civil airport is necessary, each person operating an
aircraft, except a military aircraft of the United States, shall use a
standard instrument approach procedure prescribed for the airport in
part 97 of this chapter.

If you can see the runway and can land without violating VFR cloud
separation rules, then the instrument letdown is no longer necessary, so
this clause shouldn't apply, right?


I would say not right.

Under the circumstances we are discussing, the airfield is IFR,
therefore, presumably, an "instrument letdown" is required, although I
suppose that language can be reasonably argued to mean that IMC
conditions exist.

It's an interesting proposition, I think.