>.....like the head-in-the-sand attitude on the Railways....wrong kind of snow/leaves/rain too wet etc. etc. ...always somebody elses fault<
055166k, I take some exception to your comments about the UK Railways as I happen to work in the industry (as I cannot currently secure employment in aviation but that is another matter!) and can assure you there is certainly no "head-in-the-sand attitude" and that ANY operational matters are taken very seriously, ESPECIALLY if they are safety related.
However we have our "friends" in the UK media to blame for all their inaccurate reports and general scaremongering and, coming back to the thread topic, the matter of certain flights outside CAS is yet another example of the media putting the fear of God into the travelling public when the risks are quite minimal.
What makes anyone think that they are not going to be involved in an airprox WITHIN CAS? Just because you are in CAS does not mean that nobody else is around and we must remember that not all flights are radar monitored at all times.
Even within the ANO there is a caveat that adequate lookout must be made at all times notwithstanding that the flight is being conducted under IFR.
Generally speaking I think the CAA have got the balance about right and airspace is under constant review. We must also remember that other airspace users have a right to use the skies and the CAT does not have an absolute monopoly on the use of airspace.