Eurocontrol is working on some new notam presentation, but it will still require the internet, so it will not be accessible to a large part of the GA community.
Sometimes you talk sense, but I do take issue with your regular inference that all aged, untransponderised grass strippers are somhow inferior members of the aviatic community.
I didn't say that. I merely said that there is a correlation between being a member of that community and
- not getting weather
- not getting notams
- not having a transponder
I would have thought that the said members would be proud of being able to fly thus unhindered, while some of us spend an average of 3.7 hours before every flight checking everything including the oxygen
Speak to almost any ATCO (they don't want to talk about this openly because it would make them look prejudiced against one section of GA) and they will tell you where the "biggest" CAS busts come from. I was once talking to Lyneham, outside their airspace, and they were pretty nervous about me being close. I phoned them up afterwards and the man said they had just had a bust by about 30 microlights, one by one, and every one, all going to/from some convention. While there are plenty of pra*s in any section of GA, I don't think you would get a 100% score like this out of most of them.
Flying "simply" is fine and it works if you stick to the regular short trips. The airshow locations are well known and if your regular jaunt avoids those, avoids Farnborough etc (Royal flights), then you will probably never do anything
illegal by never getting notams. And if you don't carry a transponder, if you did bust somewhere they probably won't be able to track you back home.
It is when you try to do a longer distance version that you expose yourself to potential trouble.
Seriously I do think there is a business opportunity for a "mobile internet for pilots" ground course. One would cover AFPEx and notams and weather, and setting up a little £200 laptop from Ebay to get the internet, all in one go. Throw in a bit on Navbox and Skydemon, too. All the good stuff which should be in the PPL ground school, but never will be. Where is Irv Lee??