NZ1009,
Good stuff mate, I have to admit I really did think you were a journo but added the questions to make it look like I was giving benefit of doubt.
300hrs is probably enough to have an appreciation of the constant trade off between safety and getting the job done. There is always a trade off ,otherwise we would never start the engines for fear of an engine fire.
The question is where do we draw the line?
eg Did you have a LAME do a walk around of your C152 after engine start and do a "sniff check" to ensure no fuel/oil leaks , no obstructions in front of prop etc? Of course not. Would it be a good idea to do that on an airliner? Sure....what size though? A 19 seat turbo prop? Fifty seat turbo-prop? Jet a/c only? Wide-bodies only? Where is that line ???
If you ask the bean-counters who employ LAMES you will get a different answer than if you ask the LAMES, or the A380 captain, or the SLF.
I personally think a specific check by the LAME that the leading edge devices are out is a good idea.
Have fun up north . Cheers for the PM, Framer.