[ryandrake]

(Disclaimer: am a pilot)

I think applying local pressure (I.e. the Santa Clara approach) will only annoy pilots and get their political associations (AOPA, EAA, etc.) to dig in and fight bans and closures. In general, pilots of small planes desperately want to switch away from leaded gasoline too! We all want the same thing. I have a family that I don’t want lead poisoned, too. But I’m not going to simply stop flying airplanes indefinitely waiting for the FAA to get its shit together.

Trying to get 100LL banned is like those protestors blocking rush hour traffic to advocate for their cause—it is unlikely to be effective, and it more likely just makes any potential allies into enemies.

[dougalm]

Thank you, that's really helpful context. I can easily imagine that failure mode playing out. The last thing we need is for it to become some kind of culture war.

Maybe local pressure would be more appropriate once the FAA approves G100UL for all engines. Then it could be about encouraging airports to make sure G100UL is actually available, and getting airlines like Cape Air to switch over their fleets.