Steve Robeson, K4CAP wrote:

wrote in message ...



Of course there are those that seem to think an amateur extra license is
of greater importance than an airline transport pilot certificate and an
instrument rating.



I am a Pilot, Jim, and don't think so...But we're discussing
AMATEUR RADIO in this forum, not FAA ratings and testing policies.



And if it were up to me, the FAA pools WOULD be closed. I can
tolerate the idea of a 71% correct Amateur Extra, but I'd rather not
think about a 71% correct ATP droning around with a load full of pax
and wx at minimums that made that 71% from a verbatim Q&A manual!



A pilot who screws up can do a lot more damage than a ham ever could.
I've been told
that small private planes )general aviation) are not permitted to fly
over Manhattan in NYC.
Because if your engine quits, there's no place to land it there. Not so
much over fear of
a 9/11 event. Some kid stole a Cesna and flew it into a skyscraper in
Atlanta IIRC.
Not much damage at all except taking out one office.