Eggs
Firstly, I do not understand the comparison between aircraft under IFR and VFR. Fast jet traffic often does operate under VFR and light aircraft often operate under IFR - the physics of the aircraft are no different, its the management of the different rules that is the issue.
i.e. the physics of the aircraft type do not change depending on the flight rules - obviously the physics of different aircraft are different.
A large pax carrying jet should not in my humble opinion have to worry about the continual possibilty of having to take avoiding action
Now I begin to wonder which planet you come from, since this possibility is all around us, e.g.
- airliners operating under RAS in open FIR between CAS
- 'turbulence commanded' level changes
- gliders crossing airways out of radar or radio contact
- TCAS incidents
- hot air balloons not painting and popping up in CAS
- human errors (e.g. private flights infringing without clearance, level busts)
etc etc etc
I would hope that the crew of any airliner carrying me were VERY alert to the continual possibility of taking avoiding action, even though it rarely happens.
See and avoid may be the last protection in the sequence, but to dismiss it as 'largely redundant' as you did is a very dangerous mindset to get into.
As an example, there are two engines or more on airliners and they are very reliable, so why bother learning the skills to deal with a shutdown, when the statistics prove that it is largely redundant?
Some issues are absolute, not relative and the skill of maintaing a good look out falls into the former category - it is far from being redundant.
A large jet will be travelling faster and be less manoeuverable than the usual GA type a/c. Obvious?!?
Maybe, maybe not. What is the roll rate of a Fokker 100 compared with a 172 or PA28 .... ask a F100 driver - I was amazed at the answer. Also a jet has much higher vertical manoeuverability.
NB: a PA28RT or PA32RT will be cruising around the approach speed of many airliners. I have cruised versions both types at around 140kias.
So whilst I understand the thrust of your point and agree that we should not throw airliners all over the sky and scare the pax, you are over simplifying.