Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

1 Answers

IFR Equipped vs IFR Certified

Asked by: 34 views FAA Regulations

A scenario: the TCDS for an airplane (in this case an 8KCAB) is silent on certification for VFR or IFR. The AFM states “VFR-only”. It is equipped iaw 91.205(d) and flown by a current IFR-rated ASE pilot. Can the airplane fly on an IFR clearance? 91.205 implies it can, but does the “VFR-only” in the AFM prohibit IFR flight or only flight in Instrument Meteorological Conditions? If operated in IMC on and IFR-clearance with the AFM VFR-only restriction, what regulation has been violated?
Citations, please.

Ace Any FAA Written Test!
Actual FAA Questions / Free Lifetime Updates
The best explanations in the business
Fast, efficient study.
Pass Your Checkride With Confidence!
FAA Practical Test prep that reflects actual checkrides.
Any checkride: Airplane, Helicopter, Glider, etc.
Written and maintained by actual pilot examiners and master CFIs.
The World's Most Trusted eLogbook
Be Organized, Current, Professional, and Safe.
Highly customizable - for student pilots through pros.
Free Transition Service for users of other eLogs.
Our sincere thanks to pilots such as yourself who support AskACFI while helping themselves by using the awesome PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, and Android aviation apps of our sponsors.

1 Answers

  1. Best Answer


    David R on Jan 30, 2025

    CFR 91.9(a) says you may not operate an aircraft except by complying with the operating limitations specified in the AFM. So if it says in the Limitations section of the AFM that the aircraft is VFR only, or VFR only flight is otherwise is considered an operating limitation, then you cannot operate the aircraft under IFR without violating 91.9(a).

    The question you seem to be asking is can you operate IFR when VMC , but it seems the relevant regs do not focus on the conditions but the rules. You are directed to operate only under Visual Flight RULES, not Visual Flight CONDITIONS and implicitly you cannot operate under IFRules, even if in VMConditions.

    +1 Votes Thumb up 1 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes


The following terms have been auto-detected the question above and any answers or discussion provided. Click on a term to see its definition from the Dauntless Aviation JargonBuster Glossary.

Answer Question

Our sincere thanks to all who contribute constructively to this forum in answering flight training questions. If you are a flight instructor or represent a flight school / FBO offering flight instruction, you are welcome to include links to your site and related contact information as it pertains to offering local flight instruction in a specific geographic area. Additionally, direct links to FAA and related official government sources of information are welcome. However we thank you for your understanding that links to other sites or text that may be construed as explicit or implicit advertising of other business, sites, or goods/services are not permitted even if such links nominally are relevant to the question asked.