FAA PPL night flight requirement - does it have to be DUAL?

"Peter" wrote in message
...

"Paul Sengupta" wrote

So my night flying was legal, in fact it was done fully IFR, mostly in
IMC, because I can do that in the UK outside Class A with my night
rating and IMC rating.

Didn't you do a suitable cross-country for your night rating?

Not quite; the FAA night x/c needs to be 100nm total and can be either
A-B-A (where A-B is 50nm in a straight line) or A-B (where A-B is
100nm in a straight line).

I did do well over 100nm (dual) but not between suitably distant
separate locations.

It also needs 10 takeoffs and full stop landings all done during
official night (called Civil Twilight in the USA). I think for the NR
one needs just 5.

Not many UK PPLs with the night rating will have done that particular
combination as there is no need for it.

I know for a fact that some US-based flying schools have accepted a
*solo* night x/c flight, but due to lack of time to do this in the USA
I am following the much more complicated and expensive UK based route
and the few "methods" of doing it here won't accept this

The establishment also refuses to accept any of my current 25 dual
instrument hours towards the FAA IR 15-hr dual requirement (which any
of the schools in Florida accepts OK) but that's another story...


Peter.

As I have said before my training for the night qualification done in Naples
ensured that I did the necessary take offs and landing and cross country to
meet the US requirements but also included the 5 solo take offs and landings
required for the night qualification. Total time was 6.5 hrs.

As far as the instrument time is concerned, get another training
organisation if you can. The IMC rating training time is allowable towards
the training requirement for the FAA/IR. The school is trying to stiff you
for additional time. In theory you only need three more hours of training
being signed off by a FAA CFII. The rest of the instrument time can be done
with another PPL acting as your safety pilot whilst you practice approaches
etc.

The one thing IMC rated pilots seems to excel at despite the limited
training we have to do is partial panel flying. My US instructor remarked to
me that all his British IMC rated students were far better than average on
partial panel.
Mind you, most of my 15 hours was done on PP anyway.
FWIW, the training done for the IMC renewal was also accepted. At the end of
the day, I went to the US with 30 hours on instruments, over half being
training for the IMC and the renewals, flew another 25 hours in simulated
and actual IMC and passed the checkride.
The DPE checked all the numbers with me and he was entirely satisfied.