unlike the NPPL which was a product of authority and industry synergy.
Dammit, Beagle, you know I love conspiracies and you have just demolished my favourite one
I thought the NPPL was pushed by the PPL training industry so they could have a cheaper product to stick on their price list - regardless of whether it would be of any use to anybody for actually flying somewhere (producing
pilots is not the industry's job; this isn't the RAF) and the resulting NPPL uptake profile (some 2/3 are former full PPLs who cannot any longer pass the CAA Class 2 medical) seems to support this.
EASA does turn out a load of **** on occassions but I suspect the NPL will be an interesting piece of paper for the vast majority of European VFR-only pilots who never go very far and who want a simple GP medical. And the GP medical is clearly a good idea since pilot incapacitation barely features in accidents and 3rd party (ground based) losses are even more negligible. It is the IFR stuff that worries many people but that's another story...........