Cruise clearance

No, it doesn't. If the cloud layers are 4000 to 5200 and he's heading east,
he'd have to climb to 7500 to operate VFR-on-top.

Thank you all for the comments.
Never thought it would open such a can of worms.
As I stated in my original post, I did not want to climb to 7000, since I was
only 30 miles from my destination. By the time I would have been at 7000, I
would start my decend. Only reason for not flying through all the cloud layers,
was for the comfort of my passenger ( wife who doe not like to fly) VFR on top
would have been 7500.
All I needed was 200 feet and I would have been on top.
Thanks
Hank N1441P

Bill Gamelson wrote:

ATC can assign altitudes that are wrong for direction of flight.


This is true. The "East is least and West is best" only applies to VFR
flight. A good example is when I was flying East at 6000 and ATC instructed
me to climb to 7000. I was IFR at the time. I started picking up ice at
7000 and requested "lower". ATC then cleared me back down to 6000, not 5000
which they could have.



And IFR in uncontrolled airspace.

Matt

"Matt Whiting" wrote in message
...
Bill Gamelson wrote:

ATC can assign altitudes that are wrong for direction of flight.


This is true. The "East is least and West is best" only applies to VFR
flight. A good example is when I was flying East at 6000 and ATC
instructed
me to climb to 7000. I was IFR at the time. I started picking up ice
at
7000 and requested "lower". ATC then cleared me back down to 6000, not
5000
which they could have.



And IFR in uncontrolled airspace.

What about lost-comm?

91.185(c)(2), "The highest of... (ii) The minimum altitude... for IFR
operations..

If you're on an airway, would that minimum altitude be the MEA or MOCA, or
would it be the MEA rounded up to a hemispherical altitude? And would you be
particularly concerned about that question in an actual IMC lost comm?

-- David Brooks

What about I'm assigned 5000, and I'm level at 5000. I request
a "cruise 7000" and am granted that request. ("347FB cruise
seven thousand").

Why would you request a descent and approach clearance if all you wanted was
to climb from 5000 to 7000? If you want a higher altitude, ask for a higher
altitude.


I didn't say that "all I wanted" was to climb... I said what my ATC request
was, and gave no indication as to why. When I ask ATC for a clearance, they
don't ask me why.

But to give you one scenario, I'm at 5000, nearing my destination, and there's
a big bad cloud in front of me which goes from 2000 to 6000. I don't want to
enter the cloud because I'm afraid of the dark. Or maybe there's ice. Or
maybe my passenger's uncomfortable. Or maybe I just want to test the system.
Or maybe it's for training.

So, a "cruise 7000" lets me climb over this cloud, and then descend back down
to 5000, and then descend to my destination and do the approach (where the
conditions are 800-2, but it's a nice cloud, not a big bad cloud, and I've
already pushed my passenger overboard anyway)


1: is this an improper request? (never mind whether it will
accomplish what anybody thinks I want to accomplish)

Yes.


Why is the request =improper=? (again, never mind whether it accomplishes what
you may think I want to accomplish) And why would granting it be improper?


you cannot get to 7000 from 5000 without climbing. [...] I advise you to get
off the drugs.


What do you think the drugs are for?

Jose





--
(for Email, make the obvious changes in my address)

"Teacherjh" wrote in message
...

I didn't say that "all I wanted" was to climb... I said what my
ATC request was, and gave no indication as to why. When I
ask ATC for a clearance, they don't ask me why.


But they do assume you understand what you're requesting.



But to give you one scenario, I'm at 5000, nearing my destination,
and there's a big bad cloud in front of me which goes from 2000
to 6000. I don't want to enter the cloud because I'm afraid of
the dark.


If you're afraid to enter clouds there's no reason for you to pursue an
instrument rating and this will never be an issue for you. A cruise
clearance is an IFR function.



What do you think the drugs are for?


Recreation.

But they do assume you understand what you're requesting.

I do. I am at 5000 feet. I am requesting a clearance which will allow me to
climb to 7000, stay there a while, go back down to 5000 feet, and go even
lower, even down to the ground at my destination. Does "cruise 7000" not allow
me to do that?


If you're afraid to enter clouds there's no reason for you to pursue an
instrument rating...


There are some clouds that nobody should penetrate. There are some clouds a
cherokee shouldn't penetrate. There are some clouds my mind will never
penetrate. And there are some occasions where, even though a cloud is benign,
I would prefer not to enter it.

Early in my IFR career, I saw lightning in a cloud right in front of me, a
cloud that was no more than 2000 feet thick. It made no sense to me, but I
wasn't going to enter something like that that made no sense to me. I asked
for and got a clearance above it, and found out that what I was seeing was the
lightning from a thunderstorm a hundred miles ahead, at night, which lit up the
cloud in front of me. I learned something that day.

It happens, despite evidence to the contrary.

Jose


--
(for Email, make the obvious changes in my address)

"Teacherjh" wrote in message
...

I do.


How can you be sure?