On 21/05/2012 02:09, Fox Two wrote:
While I’m tempted to take the bait, Walt, I’m not going to bite on
any of the off-topic subjects you’ve left hanging. I will point out,
however, that your prejudice against the French (what is this anyway,
1760?!) is a textbook barrier to communication, and therefore safety.
If anyone has a better and safer way of doing something, you check
your pride and ego at the door, and listen to what it is they have to
say, regardless of where they’re from, what language they speak,
their gender or the color of their skin.

I don't have a dog in the France/USA fight but it was said earlier that
France's accident record was surprisingly bad - worse in fact than the
US. In this area the proof of a 'better and safer way of doing
something' is in the statistics and it appears they may not support your
case.

I read your description of the French (well, Fayence) system carefully
and it appeared well constructed to allocate scarce - and quite valuable
- club resources with a reasonable appearance of fairness and an eye to
the avoidance of internal disputes.

As a safety system, however, the level of bureaucratic detail seemed to
make it mainly an exercise in credentialism. What is the safety aspect
of arriving by 9am? In a club, cronyism also often undermines many
safety efforts.

What is Fayence's accident record?

GC


Moving on: I agree completely with Tom’s perspective of the SSA’s
ABC Badge program: it offers the greatest opportunity for a new
pilot to get that desperately needed initial guidance. The problem
with the program, though, is that it isn’t mandatory. I myself am
one of the Texan SSA Instructors, and I introduced the ABC Program to
my former club there to help improve training and safety. The
problem was that it wasn’t embraced by the club’s ‘ruling members,’
and it never took hold.

In France, the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale’s (FAI) ABC
Badge program continues through D, E and F, which basically coincides
with the Silver, Gold and Diamond Badges in the USA. Beyond
achieving the distance, altitude and duration requirements of each
badge, training is required for each badge as well. While not
required by the DGAC (French FAA) for pilot certification, the A-F
Badges are encouraged by the FFVV (French SSA) through financial
incentives to clubs who participate (a benefit of a socialist
culture); therefore participation is near 100%.

Tom is correct when he says that additional training is available in
the USA for pilots who seek it out, and he practices what he
preaches: Tom helped me when I sought him out (Thanks, Tom!), and we
each drove many hours to have our discussions. Unfortunately, only a
small minority of pilots are willing to make the effort to get
high-quality training.

The same accidents repeat themselves every year, and so many die
unnecessarily. Tom again is exactly right when he says that we need
to educate towards better awareness of what can go wrong. But as
long as advanced training remains merely optional, a gaping hole will
remain in the safety net.

Chris Fleming F2