You fail to take several things into account. In North America, private
planes are a viable and often necessary method of transport because of
the distances and the lack of other transport methods in some areas.

This is totally and categorically false. Outside of Alaska, private
airplanes are not "necessary" for transportation in America at all.

Which is sad, I might add. It would help grow GA if it were otherwise, but
too many people look at piloting as "too hard" (for a zillion reasons) to
achieve.

All these facts combined reduce private airplanes to "expensive toys"
in Europe, and they are viewed accordingly

Same here in America, but to a far lesser degree. Most people here think of
owning an airplane as being far more extravagant than boat ownership (for
example), even though the majority of ocean (or even Great Lake) going craft
cost far more than the average used entry level airplane.

And this is, after all, at the heart a discussion of the degree to which any
government should try to engineer society with tax code. In short, is it
intelligent to tax something like general aviation, with so many obvious
economic benefits for your population, to the point of extinction?

I would submit that the answer to that question is clearly "no".
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"