> "X is an necessary person" is not a logical argument for "what X is doing is necessary". Seems like a misapplication of a sort of transitive property.

As I said, there is a lot to say about that. The idea is that it creates a culture around aviation that ultimately produces good commercial pilots. Pilots from countries where recreational aviation is not as developed are usually not as good, I saw an article about that but I don't remember it. I think it was about a crash that could have be prevented had the pilot reacted correctly.

Ok, a common path for a commercial pilot in the US is to start to learn how to fly in a small aircraft with an instructor. Then fly by himself. But flying is expensive, so many future pilots become instructors themselves, so that they can do a lot of hours and pay for qualifications that become more expensive as planes become bigger and more complex.

When they finally get to fly an airliner, they have a lot of experience, and more importantly a lot of it as a pilot in command (flying solo is being a pilot in command). Not only that but being a flight instructor is excellent training, you have to let your student make mistakes while guaranteeing his safety. In the end, you have pilots with great decision making abilities, which is one of the main reason for them to be there the first place.

This is only possible in countries with a strong aviation culture. Without airfields, without people who just want to fly for fun, you can't be a flight instructors if you have no one to instruct.

Some countries do not have that culture, and future pilots are instead trained in flight schools that train them to be operational as quickly as possible. Problem is: they spent almost all of their flight hours as students, so maybe they know how to fly, but they are not used to take responsibility for the plane.

So letting people dick around in the sky may not be necessary, but certainly contributes to making better pilots.

I have mixed feelings about aviation culture. I grew up near an airport with planes frequently overhead, and used to read Flying in high school. I attended Embry Riddle as an undergraduate, but didn't take flying lessons. Some people were decent, others yelled "f-gg-t" at my long hair. At this point, I'm never going to be a pilot due to medical requirements.

The pilot in my extended family can afford to own and maintain a small aircraft because he sold a tech company that he founded, so he has no intention or need to work for an airline.

People talk about "environmental justice", it's a thing, right. People who live in the vicinity of airports and presumably are breathing the lead, are often, I think, not the same socioeconomic class that takes a lot of commercial flights, let alone flies private planes.

So what I'm saying is, I don't hate private pilots, but if I was dictator, I would ban leaded gas, with the understanding that there would be consequences and screaming, and be indifferent to it. I don't think it's a hard choice as to what would be better for society even if there are tradeoffs.