Yes, the AMA coverage is secondary unless the member has no primary coverage available (read that as renters or homeowners).

know for a fact that the AMA does require that you exhaust your coverage BEFORE you file a claim. A friend dropped a giant scale war bird through the roof of a nearby manufacturing plant and was upset when the AMA refused coverage until after he had contacted his homeowners carrier.

As for the jet incident, the participants already have resorted to legal fun and games so I suspect we will never really find out what the result is. I would expect the shooter to be defined as at least negligent, and AMA coverage is good for that kind of stupidity. Intentional acts are also negligent, but they are also normally actionable. I do not wish to second guess the legal piranha already attracted by the smell of fresh meat.

Now as for the Frequency Pin Control issue, I strongly suspect that the system in use is defective or someone violated the rules. My club rules are that you put your AMA card in place of the pin or you do not fly. If you turn on a radio without the pin and shoot someone down, you just bought a plane. If you get shot down because you didn't get the pin or or don't leave your AMA card, that is tough because you are at fault.

If the pin is missing (Frank took it home last month), you still leave your AMA card and any flyer has to find the person whose card is in the frequency pin slot before you fly. If Frank took the pin and left his card, cover it with yours and fly at your own risk. The risk is that Frank will return and turn on since he has the pin! In those cases, the 2 work it out with the club position being that Frank did violate a club policy by taking the pin home.