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Do we have too many regulations in aviation? It depends on your perspective. If you're
trying to pilot aircraft or profit
from them, than you will think we do. If you're a passenger or ground
pounder wanting not to get killed by airplanes, you probably think not.
Of course there are a lot more people in the ground-pounder
category. So it really doesn't matter what aircraft fliers think—the
voting masses will probably conclude that regulations are not excessive.
Many may even harbor a desire for more. That hurts. Its also the crux
of the saying "we fly at the pleasure of the people."
I've conversed with one fellow who says we don't need any regulation,
even in the airlines. When questioned about airlines taking unsafe
shortcuts his response: "they'll crash, nobody will fly them, and
they'll go out of business." As to those who perish in the process?
"Oh well." Obviously that's an extreme view that I do not share.
Our sport, for the most part, doesn't involve an unsuspecting public.
This nation was founded on many principles of which freedom is a big one. The
freedom to choose your own risk in your own pursuit of happiness was a
highly touted. So we must have balance. Most pilots despise regulations that
interfere with their personal choices of risk. Pilots should decide what
risk they take themselves.
This is an individual sport where participants
primarily risk only their own well being. Fortunately, in our case that is how
the regulation, FAR
103 works. We must work hard to keep it that way. |
A
Southwest Airlines 737 on final to Las Vegas McCarran Airport. 2. Looking
down Sacramento's runway 16 left while holding for takeoff using the
heads-up display (HUD). |
