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Aerobatics while on IFR Flight Plan

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FAA Regulations

I was curious about the legality of aerobatic rolls in class E airspace near clouds (10 feet clearance of clouds) and if it was possible to coordinate that while under IFR. Obviously, it couldn't be done under VFR because that would violate 91.155 cloud separation requirements.

But assuming the pilot and aircraft are qualified for aerobatics, and assuming that all rules of 91.303 are met (including being 4 miles away from federal airways and having 3SM visibility and all the rest of the requirements listed), and assuming I ask the controller for a block of altitudes and an area I can maneuver in freely without tracking a course, is this possible and legal?

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1 Answers



  1. Dimka on Jul 01, 2021

    It depends. 91.123 requires you to comply with all ATC clearances, like an IFR clearance for example. You would need to request a deviation from the clearance to do something different and it isn’t too hard to do.

    Example: During instrument training students have to demonstrate unusual attitude recovery, we just request temporary altitude and heading deviations, and ATC approves the deviations but specify “Maintain VFR at/above (x) altitude, and advise when back on the assigned heading and altitude.” We take a minute or two to do the maneuvers and get back on heading.

    If you want to do a whole routine then there may be more planning needed. You can also file/fly IFR to get to the clear weather, do your thing, then get an IFR clearance back to the ground.

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