CASA Briefing Newsletter - December 2013

[Admin]

From the Director of Aviation Safety

 

John McCormick

 

For many of us the Christmas-New Year holidays provide an ideal time to go flying. The weather can be good in most parts of the nation and the extra time most of us have away from work allows trips that may not be possible at other times of the year. If you are planning to fly over the holiday period or early in the New Year, in addition to other appropriate preparation, please be sure to use the online tools we now have available to make your flight as safe as it can possibly be. These tools – such as Out-n-Back and OnTrack – are valuable for everyone and almost essential for people who fly less frequently. OnTrack is an interactive guide to operating in and around Australia’s controlled airspace and currently covers 12 aerodromes. These are: Alice Springs, Archerfield, Bankstown, Camden, Darwin, Cairns, Cambridge, Jandakot, Launceston, Moorabbin, Parafield and Sunshine Coast. There are interactive maps, videos and detailed visual guidance on tracks, procedures and strategies to avoid airspace infringements. Out-n-Back is a great tool for anyone planning to fly across country – both populated and unpopulated areas. This online video and information package follows a 6000 kilometre round trip in a Cessna 172 and provides expert information on safety issues such as fuel management, navigation over featureless terrain, use of tablet devices in the cockpit, operating at last light and looking after your aircraft during a trip.

 

With the help of these safety education resources, coupled with responsible adherence to the relevant safety standards and rules, we all should be able to operate without incident throughout the holiday season. Please remember to identify and fly according to your own capabilities and think about issues such as fatigue and outside pressures or distractions. By planning your flights thoroughly and avoiding unnecessary risks you will enjoy your flying to the fullest and be ready for any challenges. I wish everyone in Australian aviation a safe and enjoyable holiday season and I look forward to a busy 2014 working to keep Australia’s skies safe for all.

 

Visit OnTrack.

 

Go to Out-n-Back.

 

Best regards

 

John F McCormick

 

Need help with medicals? We've got check lists for you.

 

Pilots and air traffic controllers now have a set of new tools to help them navigate the processes related to aviation medicals. CASA has released three easy reference check lists covering routine medical certificates, a CASA audit of a medical certificate and changes in medical conditions. The checklists have been published in three PDF files on the CASA web site for easy downloading and printing. For routine medical renewals there are four steps pilots and air traffic controllers should follow. These cover what to do when a medical is received and afterwards, obtaining medical reports and the DAME appointment, actions after the DAME appointment and what to do once CASA gets your medical application. Within each step a number of actions are set out for pilots and air traffic controllers. The check list for a CASA medical audit has three steps and there are two steps for a change of medical condition. The check lists build on a substantial amount of information on CASA’s web site about medical certificates.

 

Download your copy of the medical check lists now.

 

We're now on Linkedin for you

 

There's a new and easy way of keeping up-to-date with safety information and products from CASA. Simply go to the social media web site Linkedin and connect with CASA’s new Linkedin pages. You’ll find information on the latest safety products such as Flight Safety Australia magazine, DVDs, booklets and resource kits. The CASA Linkedin pages bring a wealth of information together in one location, making it easy to browse and find what is relevant to your operations. By following CASA on Linkedin you will be automatically sent the latest updates to the CASA pages, making staying up-to-date even easier. CASA’s presence on Linkedin complements CASA’s Twitter account and YouTube channel, which are growing in popularity all the time. The aim is to give everyone a choice about how they stay in touch with CASA’s news and activities to make sure as many aviation people as possible get the latest safety information.

 

Visit CASA's Linkedin pages now.

 

Lookout for structural tubular corrosion

 

Owners and operators of aircraft with a steel tubular structure are being told to be on the lookout for internal corrosion. A range of popular aircraft such as the Piper Cub, Piper Aztec, Mooney, Thrush and Robinson helicopters have a steel tubular structure that forms part of the primary or secondary structure of the aircraft. The issue has come to light from corrosion found in steel tubular structures in agricultural aircraft. In an airworthiness bulletin CASA says as many aircraft in various sectors of operations have steel tubular structures the problem may be more widespread than is currently known. Left unchecked the corrosion may lead to structural failure of an aircraft. CASA recommends that if engineers or aircraft owners are concerned about or suspect internal corrosion in tubular structures they should consult a specialist in non-destructive testing. Radiographic or other types of non-destructive inspections can determine the existence and extent of corrosion. Depending on the results of an initial inspection a repetitive inspection regime may be required. All internal tubular corrosion defects should be notified to CASA using the service difficulty reporting system.

 

Find out more about steel tubular corrosion.

 

Act now before the CASA Christmas closure

 

Christmas is upon us so you must act now if you will need any CASA services over the holiday period. CASA's offices will close from midday (AEST) Tuesday 24 December 2013 and will reopen on Thursday 2 January 2014. All routine CASA services to the aviation industry will be unavailable between these dates. Anyone who may need routine CASA services during this holiday period must contact CASA now. Talk to your local regional office or the CASA Licensing and Registration Centre. Consider if you will need services such as the issue of a pilot medical, the issue or change of a licence, aircraft registration, variations to air operator’s certificates or the issuing of any other documentation. These services will not be routinely available during the Christmas-New Year break.

 

Of course, CASA will be on standby to provide assistance with urgent aviation safety issues, but please limit requests to matters that cannot wait until normal business resumes. For urgent assistance call CASA’s main telephone number - 131 757 - and follow the prompts. Foreign air operators who require assistance over the Christmas period are requested to visit the international operations section of the CASA web site for all general information. If urgent help is required for operations such as medical non-scheduled flights, CASA’s international operations can be contacted on +61 7 3144 7400. Anyone who needs to make an urgent or short notice request relating to airspace, such as the creation of temporary restricted airspace, should contact +61 2 6217 1177.

 

Get more information on the Christmas New Year closure.

 

Regulation review seeks submissions

 

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development, Warren Truss, has announced the opening of the public submission stage of the Aviation Safety Regulation Review. The review is examining how well the nation’s regulatory system is positioned to ensure Australia remains at the forefront of aviation safety globally. “The general and regional aviation sectors, in particular, have told the Government they are concerned about the costs of regulatory compliance and how our regulatory system compares to other countries,” Mr Truss said. “This review will place us in a strong position to ensure our aviation safety standards remain up to the challenge of meeting the predicted expansion of aviation over the next 20 years. Australia has a world-class aviation safety record but that doesn’t mean we should sit by and just hope it stays that way. I encourage everyone in the Australian aviation industry to engage in this review. The Coalition Government is determined to do everything it can to make a good safety system even better.” The Review Panel, chaired by Mr David Forsyth, has called for public and industry submissions. Submissions close on 31 January 2014. The review panel will provide its report to the Deputy Prime Minister in May 2014.

 

Submissions to the review can be made through the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development’s website at: Aviation Safety Regulation Review.

 

Be informed about new licensing rules

 

With the implementation date for the new licensing suite of regulations now set at 1 September 2014, there is extra time for pilots to familiarise themselves with the modernised rules. CASA’s web site has plenty of information on the new Part 61 of the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations and more material will be posted as it becomes available. An easy way to get the latest news on the licensing rules is to subscribe to the licensing email lists – there is one for pilots and one for flying training organisations. By subscribing people get updates automatically on key issues and information. To get an overview of the changes there are already three fact sheets published on CASA’s web site covering flight crew licensing, flying training and authorisations for non-licensed personnel. The flight crew licensing fact sheet covers flight reviews and proficiency checks, the benefits of the changes and new terminology, as well as providing general information. A more detailed booklet on Part 61 that can be downloaded explains the new licence structure, changes to licence types, aircraft category ratings, aircraft class or type ratings, endorsements and operational ratings.

 

Get the licensing fact sheets.

 

Download the Part 61 booklet.

 

Subscribe to the email distribution lists.

 

Make sure your ELT works

 

Updated advice on the installation and maintenance of emergency locator transmitters has been released. The advice, in an airworthiness bulletin, aims to improve the performance and reliability of emergency locator transmitters. Regulations require emergency locator transmitters to be carried on most flights so that a distress beacon is activated either manually or automatically following an accident. Research has shown where a beacon is not activated after an accident a range of factors affected performance. These include not arming the beacon before flight, incorrect installation, flat batteries, lack of water proofing, lack of fire protection and damage during an accident. Operators and maintainers need to be aware that fixed fuselage emergency locator transmitters must be installed, maintained and operated in accordance with approved data. A periodic inspection of the system should also be carried out in line with approved data. Defect reports highlight problems with emergency locator beacon batteries such as using the wrong sized battery and leaking electrolyte, which can occur in extremely hot weather conditions. Aircraft operated in northern and central Australia should have their beacons checked more frequently. All reports of emergency locator transmitter defects should be reported to CASA using the service difficulty reporting system.

 

Read the emergency locator transmitter airworthiness bulletin.