In controlled airspace, the MEA or MVA [radar] is
controlling unless you have a IAP.

In Class G, you can fly under IFR in IMC w/o a clearance,
but you can't climb into or fly sideways into any controlled
airspace w/o first getting a clearance.

You can descend for a landing then, | Chris wrote:
| There is no problem setting up a descent to bring you
under
| cloud providing that whilst in cloud you remain 1000 feet
above the highest
| obstacle within five miles either side of your track and
once through the
| cloud are in VFR conditions."
In mountainous areas the minimum is 2,000 feet and most
areas of Class G large enough and high enough in which to
fly IFR are in mountainous areas. The far western
Kansas/eastern Colorado area comes to mind, there are only a
handful of airports within those areas.

Alaska pilots are probably the ones who do this type of
flying on a regular basis.



"Doug" wrote in message
oups.com...
| Chris wrote:
| There is no problem setting up a descent to bring you
under
| cloud providing that whilst in cloud you remain 1000 feet
above the highest
| obstacle within five miles either side of your track and
once through the
| cloud are in VFR conditions.
|
| The above cannot be done in the US. We can descend to the
MEA (which
| varies, ATC knows and will tell us), and if we are not in
VFR
| conditions, then we have to do an intrument approach.
MEA's are higher
| than 1000 AGL I can tell you that. MEA's are not
published, but ATC has
| a map of them. Radar coverage madatory for IFR flight
(with one
| exception, Class G). I don't honestly know what the rules
are for
| descent in Class G with no radar and no IFR clearance. I
don't think
| there are any. It doesn't happen much, almost all our IFR
flight is
| with radar coverage and ATC clearances etc.
|