PLT OF AN SMA TWIN IS ACCUSED BY ATC OF PENETRATING A CLASS D; ARPT AREA; AIRSPACE. DIVERSION FOR WX FACTORS.

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ON FEB/XX/95; I ATTEMPTED TO MAKE A LCL VFR FLT FROM FALCON FIELD; MESA AZ TO DEER VALLEY ARPT; PHOENIX; A DISTANCE OF ABOUT 23-24 NM. THE WX WAS MARGINAL VFR WITH CEILINGS RPTED AT FALCON TO BE 5000 FT BROKEN AND 2000 FT SCATTERED. I TOOK OFF AND FLEW N FROM FALCON TO STAY OUT OF THE CLASS B AIRSPACE OF PHOENIX. I THEN TURNED W OVER THE LOW MOUNTAINS TOWARD DEER VALLEY. I CLBED TO AND MAINTAINED 4000 FT; WITH AN AGL CLRNC OF 1000 FT PLUS OVER THE MOUNTAINS. AT THE HILLS OR MOUNTAINS I NOTICED THAT THE LOWER SCATTERED CLOUD LAYER HAD NOW BECOME BROKEN. THE WX CLOUDS WERE COMING FROM THE W. I MONITORED DEER VALLEY ARPT TWR AND THEY ADVISED LCL PLTS THAT THEY WERE GOING IFR. AT THIS POINT I CALL PHOENIX APCH AND REQUESTED IFR CLRNC TO DEER VALLEY. THEY INFORMED ME THAT DUE TO THE HVY IFR TFC IN THE AREA THEY COULD NOT GIVE ME A CLRNC AND TO STAY OUT OF CLASS B AIRSPACE AND MAINTAIN VFR. I WAS AT THAT TIME IN BTWN THE 5000 FT LAYER AND THE LOWER LAYER OF CLOUDS. I CIRCLED IN HOLDING FOR ABOUT 3 MINS OR SO AND MONITORED PHOENIX APCH WHO INDICATED CONSIDERABLE DELAYS IN APCHS AND I DECIDED TO RETURN TO FALCON WHERE THE ATIS CONTINUED TO RPT VFR CONDITIONS. I TURNED TOWARD FALCON FROM MY POS ABOUT 6-7 DME FROM DEER VALLEY. I WAS FLYING ACCORDING TO MY INSTS AT ABOUT 4100 FT. I WAS MORE THAN 500 FT BELOW THE CLOUDS ABOVE AND WAS AT LEAST 1500 FT ABOVE THE CLOUDS BELOW. MY VISIBILITY WAS 3-4 MI AHEAD. THE CLOUDS BELOW ME WERE NOW IN AREAS ALMOST OVCST. HENCE I WAS VFR ON TOP OF THE LOWER LAYER IN SOME AREA. MY NAV WAS VOR AND DME PLUS GPS. MY DIRECTION OF FLT WAS TOWARD THE SCOTTSDALE ARPT AREA WITH THE GPS LOCKED ON FALCON ARPT. UPON ARRIVING AT THE SCOTTSDALE ARPT THE LOWER CLOUD LAYER OPENED AND I COULD SEE I WAS PASSING OVER THE CTR OF THE ARPT. AT THIS POINT; I IMMEDIATELY LOOKED AT MY RADAR ALTIMETER AND IT SHOWED A DIGITAL READ OUT OF 2640 FT AGL. BASED ON THIS AND THE FACT THAT THE ARPT WAS AT 1508 FT MSL; I FELT I WAS ABOVE SCOTTSDALE ARPT CLASS D CEILING OF 4000 FT MSL. THE BASE OF THE PHOENIX CLASS B AIRSPACE WAS 6000 FT AT THAT LOCATION. I HEARD THE SCOTTSDALE TWR CONTACT APCH CTL WHICH I WAS MONITORING STATING A '337' JUST PASSED OVERHEAD WITHOUT COMMUNICATING WITH THE TWR. ABOUT 6 DME BEYOND SCOTTSDALE ARPT I BEGAN A SLOW DSCNT. I LOOKED AT THE ALTIMETER DURING THIS DSCNT AND MONITORED ABOUT 3200 FT AT 7 DME FROM SCOTTSDALE ARPT. THE LOWER CLOUD LAYER WAS THINNING AGAIN TO SCATTERED. THEY CLRED ME FOR A VFR L BASE APCH TO RWY 4 WITH INSTRUCTIONS TO RPT 2 MI AND WHEN I HAD THE ARPT IN SIGHT. I DSNDED TO 2500 FT TFC PATTERN AND RPTED 2 MI ON DME. AT 1.5 MI I HAD THE ARPT IN SIGHT AND DSNDED TO 500 FT ON THE BASE LEG. I LANDED WITHOUT PROBS. ON LNDG I WAS REQUESTED TO CALL THE SCOTTSDALE TWR WHICH I DID. THE SCOTTSDALE TWR STATED THAT I HAD PASSED THE CTR OF THE ARPT WITHOUT COMMUNICATING WITH THEM. THE SUPVR FURTHER STATED THAT HE WAS A PLT AND THAT I WAS LESS THAN 1000 FT OVER THE ARPT WHICH ACCORDING TO MY RADAR ALTIMETER WAS 2640 FT AGL. I TRIED TO EXPLAIN THIS TO HIM BUT HE WAS PERSISTENT. I EXPLAINED THAT I WAS MAINTAINING VFR AS INSTRUCTED BY THE PHOENIX APCH AND THAT I HAD HEARD HIM SPEAK TO APCH CTL. HE ASKED WHY I DID NOT CONTACT SCOTTSDALE TWR. I TRIED TO EXPLAIN I DID NOT FEEL I WAS VIOLATING HIS AIRSPACE AT THE ALT MY INSTS INDICATED. HE THEN STATED THAT CONDITIONS WERE IFR AT THE ARPT AND THAT I WAS FLYING IN IFR CONDITIONS. AGAIN I TOLD HIM I WAS FLYING BTWN CLOUD LAYERS AND I WAS MAINTAINING VFR. HE STATED THAT CONDITIONS WERE SUCH THAT I COULD NOT HAVE GOOD VISIBILITY. I TOLD HIM I HAD GOOD VISIBILITY WHERE I WAS OF 3-4 MI AND I HAD NO INTENTION OF VIOLATING HIS AIRSPACE. I FURTHER INFORMED HIM THAT I WAS IFR RATED AND HAD BEEN A PLT FOR OVER 20 YRS. I HAVE ALWAYS MAINTAINED AN ALT OVER POPULATED AREAS OF OVER 1000 FT AND ALWAYS KEPT CLR OF CLASS D & B AIRSPACE WITHOUT CLRNC. HE STATED THAT MY RADAR ALTIMETER WAS IN ERROR. I TRIED TO EXPLAIN THAT WHEN I GLANCED AT MY ALTIMETER AFTER 7 DME FROM THE SCOTTSDALE ARPT I WAS PASSING 3200 FT IN MY DSCNT. I ASKED HIM IF I WAS REQUIRED TO CONTACT THE ARPT IF I WAS AT ABOUT 3000 FT AGL. HE STATED THAT I MUST CONTACT THE ARPT TWR UP TO 4000 FT FOR CLASS D AIRSPACE. HE DID NOT ACCEPT ANY EXPLANATION AND STATED THAT HE WAS FILING SEVERAL FAR VIOLATIONS WITH THE FLT STANDARD OFFICE. AT THIS POINT I AM WRITING MY SIDE OF THIS CONTROVERSY. I INTEND TO HAVE MY ALTIMETER AND RADAR ALTIMETER CHKED FOR ACCURACY. I FLY IFR FOR OVER 90% OF MY 100 HRS PER YR. I AM IN THE FAA WINGS PROGRAM AND TAKE INST AND ANNUAL FLT CHKS EACH YR WITH CERTIFIED INSTRUCTORS. MY INST CHK RIDES ARE USUALLY EVERY 6 MONTHS. I USUALLY FLY SOME ACTUAL 6-10 HRS IFR IN 30 HRS OF FLT. IN THIS CASE I DO NOT BELIEVE I VIOLATED ANY FAR'S. I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT FOR THE SAFETY OF THE SYS; WHEN IFR RATED PLTS ARE FLYING UNDER VFR RULES AND THEY ARE OUTSIDE CTLED AIRSPACE; WITH WX CHANGING IN THEIR COURSE OF FLT; THAT THEY BE GIVEN PRIORITY FOR IFR REQUESTED CLRNCS. THIS COULD BE ACCOMPLISHED WITHOUT OVERLOAD OF THE SYS BY HAVING APCH OR CTRS REFER REQUESTS TO NEARBY CLASS C OR D AIRSPACE CTLRS; IE; TWR FREQS; FOR TEMPORARY IFR CLRNC. THIS CLRNC WOULD ALLOW THE CLRNC TO A SAFE IFR ALT AS KNOWN BY THESE CTLRS AND HAVE THE PLT HOLD AT A SAFE FIX ON A TEMPORARY BASIS. HE THEN COULD BE WORKED INTO THE SYS WHEN TIME PERMITTED.