Along with many countries, the UK does not allow civilian aircraft to fly at night under Visual Flight Rules

Visual flight rules

Visual flight rules are a set of regulations which allow a pilot to operate an aircraft in weather conditions generally clear enough to allow the pilot to see where the aircraft is going. Specifically, the weather must be better than basic VFR weather minimums, as specified in the rules of the...

. However, unlike many countries with a similar night VFR ban it does not require pilots to be Instrument Rated

Instrument rating

Instrument rating refers to the qualifications that a pilot must have in order to fly under IFR . It requires additional training and instruction beyond what is required for a Private Pilot certificate or Commercial Pilot certificate, including rules and procedures specific to instrument flying,...

 to fly at night.

The Night Qualification

According to CAA FCL form SRG\1126 (current September 2006), a minimum of 5 hours night time flight is required for a night qualification. Of these 5 hours, at least 3 hours must be dual instruction and at least 1 hour must be cross-country navigation. In addition to the flight time requirements, a minimum of 5 solo take-offs and 5 solo full-stop landings are also required. The form stipulates "full-stop" landings because touch-and-go landings are not permitted at night. The minima specified apply only to the aeroplane night qualification. The requirements for helicopter night qualification are far more stringent and include a minimum of 100 hours post-PPL(H) experience as pilot of helicopters. The night qualification permits flight at night under Instrument Flight Rules

Instrument flight rules

Instrument flight rules are one of two sets of regulations governing all aspects of civil aviation aircraft operations; the other are visual flight rules ....

 in Visual Meteorological Conditions

Visual meteorological conditions

In aviation, visual meteorological conditions is an aviation flight category in which visual flight rules flight is permitted—that is, conditions in which pilots have sufficient visibility to fly the aircraft maintaining visual separation from terrain and other aircraft. They are the opposite of...

 outside controlled airspace

Controlled airspace

Controlled airspace is an aviation term used to describe airspace in which ATChas the authority to control air traffic, the level of which varies with the different classes of airspace. Controlled airspace is established mainly for three different reasons:...

. It is important to stress this: the qualification does not allow the pilot to enter Instrument meteorological conditions

Instrument meteorological conditions

Instrument meteorological conditions is an aviation flight category that describes weather conditions that require pilots to fly primarily by reference to instruments, and therefore under Instrument Flight Rules , rather than by outside visual references under Visual Flight Rules . Typically, this...

, it merely shows that the pilot has done sufficient basic instrument flight training to fly on clear nights.

Control Zones

The Night Qualification only allows night flight under IFR outside controlled airspace. Access to airports inside controlled airspace by aircraft flying visually is obtained by flying under Special VFR

Special visual flight rules

Special visual flight rules are a set of aviation regulations under which a pilot may operate an aircraft. It's a special case of operating under visual flight rules .- Use in different regions :...

 within the airport's control zone.

See also

• Barany chair
  Barany chair
  The Barany chair or Bárány chair, named for the Austro-Hungarian physiologist Robert Bárány, is a device used for aerospace physiology training, particularly for student pilots. The subject is placed in the chair, blindfolded, then spun about the vertical axis while keeping his head upright or...
  
  
• Air India Flight 855
  Air India Flight 855
  Air India Flight 855 was a scheduled passenger flight that crashed during the evening of 1 January 1978 about off the coast of Bandra, Bombay , India. All 213 lives on board were lost...
  
  
• John F. Kennedy, Jr.#Death
• Spatial disorientation
  Spatial disorientation
  Spatial disorientation is the inability to correctly interpret aircraft attitude, altitude or airspeed, in relation to the Earth or point of reference. Spatial disorientation is a condition in which an aircraft pilot's perception of direction does not agree with reality...