Attention this weekend in the American soaring world is focused
anxiously on Houston, Texas as pilots await word of the annual U.S.A.
Rules Committee's closed-door deliberations. Will the sudden emergence
of fumata bianca (white smoke) signal that costly new still-to-be-
proven FLARM devices will be mandated in the upcoming comps season? Or
will Houston's crystalline air quality be fouled by a puff of fumata
nera (black smoke), indicating that the Rules leaders have elected to
exercise restraint, thus allowing the direction of technology and
market forces to illuminate the proper course? Cynics may sneer that
the Rules Committee have seldom exercised the wait-and-see strategy
before issuing a new encyclical, but one should never abandon hope.

[Or is the white smoke/black smoke thing really the other way around?
Or does white smoke emanating from the highly secretive session
suggest that weary Rules legislators wrapped up work early to enjoy a
little '60s era relaxation (Jefferson Airplane punctuated by coughing
and wheezing) before returning from the figurative mountain top?
Little is known and less is understood about the pressures on these
exalted leaders of our dying movement.]

Whatever the outcome on this specific issue, pilots are indebted to
Mr. Kirk Stant (66) in 2010 for helping keep the Rules Committee on
the straight and narrow path, philosophically at least. His
intentional FAA-legal overflight of Class C airspace a few months ago
sparked controversy over whether he should have been penalized, since
the Rules infraction occurred after he intentionally abandoned the
task for reasons of safety and set out for home. Current U.S.A. comps
Rules prohibit overflight of such controlled airspace even when legal
under federal regulations. And they impose a Draconian penalty whether
or not the task is still being flown. As anticipated, debate over this
case raged heatedly--valid points being raised by both camps--but with
the ultimate result being that the Rules Committee fell neatly into a
trap, with staggering repercussions!

To wit: The U.S.A. Rules Committee are now on record as saying (direct
quote), "Why make the rules more complicated?" !!! It is analogous to
America's President Obama being caught admitting that the wealthy
deserve more tax cuts!

This unprecedented concession should provide the impetus to commence
the painful but necessary process of deconstructing what has become an
inordinately complex Gordian knot of comps regulations. In fairness,
it must be acknowledged that hoodwinking the Rules czars in this
fashion was not Mr. Stant's idea alone. Other, unnamed conspirators
assisted in hatching this plot. But one brave soul stepped up to pull
the trigger, so to speak.

Well done, man!

SoarPoint ;o)