Originally Posted by
Pittsextra
What authority does the CAA have to check bank accounts and which bank account?
Let`s look at it from this angle. If a PPL can clock up 100hrs pa, at an hourly cost of say £250 for something like a PA46 ( and that is erring on the low side) that`s £25kpa If on the other hand he is clocking up 900hrs pa that is £225kpa. In the first one that is serious money for a plumber to spend on a hobby. In the second that`s nigh well impossible, unless of course he is seriously rich and has some kind of eccentricity for working as a plumber.
So my reference to banks and bank accounts was merely intended for the regulators to be given authority to access suspects finances to consider and verify the purpose of their flying activities.
With the current stink over financing of terrorism in this country, see last Sunday`s Times, HMRC is getting a hammering for not sharing info with the security services and in consequence it is likely some changes in legislation over the current confidentiality rules being changed. Now if the CAA was to be given a spoonful of that sort of medicine, what would that do to the prospects of any likely lads who would like to exercise the privileges of their PPL s for other than just a bit of fun on a sunny weekend .