At 15:36 26 May 2004, Papa3 wrote:

Lots of stuff snipped.

4. The value of badges in particular is primarily
one of personal
achievement, especially for the entry-level badges.
The impact of abuse
from a financial or other perspective is minimal, limited
primarily to the
conscience of the abuser.


Erm, well actually, if you turn up at a lot of British
Gliding Clubs you won't get to fly the shiny toys unless
you have a silver badge, sometimes even a gold badge.
This isn't the club's fault, to be able to afford the
insurance we have to restrict flying the shiny plastic
to people who can demonstrate a certain level of competence,
the insurance companies require this to be an internationally
recognised badge rather than the instructors discretion
on reading a log book.

Cheers,

Andrew Warbrick