IFR just 5.4% of the time

On Mar 3, 8:24 am, Matt Whiting wrote:
Andrew Sarangan wrote:
On Mar 2, 12:03 pm, Mxsmanic wrote:

Andrew Sarangan writes:

Not necessarily. For driving, you only need a clear view of the road
and traffic ahead. Whether you can see the scenery around you is
irrelevant for safe driving. Except for the darkness inside the cabin,
which makes it harder to read maps, the darkness outside is not a big
factor. As long as you can see the horizon, airports, runways and
other airplanes, it does not make a big difference how much of the
scenery you can see.

What about terrain?

Terrain avoidance at night becomes a problem only in unpopulated areas
under an overcast moonless sky. It has happened, so it is a real
issue, but most pilots fly in areas where there are at least some
ground lights, moon or stars, and it is really not that hard to tell
if you are heading towards a mountain. On the other hand, unlit towers
are a real concern, regardless of whether it is day or night, and this
is why they get NOTAM'd.

If you are flying the minimum IFR altitudes, it still should not be a
problem, unless there is a chart error.

Matt- Hide quoted text -

True, but we are talking about flying VFR at night and how to avoid
terrain under those circumstances.