AOPA Australia Industry Stakeholder meetings

[FlyingVizsla]

AOPA Attends the First Industry Stakeholder Meeting

 

 

 

AOPA President Marc De Stoop attended the first Industry Stakeholder meeting with DAS Skidmore and Stakeholder Engagement Manager Ron Walker last week and reports that with 25 aviation groups attending it appeared to be much of a talk fest.

 

 

 

 

 

Michael Monke, CEO of Recreation Aviation Australia was elected chairman of the group, with Ken Cannane elected vice chairman. Sub committees will be formed by the chairman to recommend high level policy initiatives but as always CASA and the DAS have no obligation to pay any attention to them.

 

 

 

 

 

DAS Skidmore reiterated his claim that the general aviation industry at a grass roots level is vibrant and growing. I challenged him to produce data to support this contention and he said for me to produce data to show otherwise. Given he’s making the claim against the majority of GA organisations who don’t agree, the onus is on him to produce the data but he is unwilling to do this.

 

 

 

 

 

I have joined with Dick Smith and Sandy Reith to commission a statistician to review the available data to prepare a report attesting to the state of GA. We are funding this personally and would love to receive volunteer help from the members with this initiative. Ben Morgan will have more to say about this during the week.

 

 

 

 

 

Despite Jeff Boyd’s pledge to look into delaying ADSB, the DAS is adamant there will be no delay.

 

 

 

 

 

According to all who attended the meeting the new fatigue management regulations covered by CAO 48.1-13 are an absolute disaster for the industry.

 

 

 

 

 

The DAS said he will not support any reforms to Avmed without the industry submitting all the data to support such a change. I challenged him to simply request the data from the aviation regulators overseas who have had the courage to make much needed changes but his response was to simply say the FAA in the US are not happy with their raft of changes, that have been forced upon them by politicians. Given the changes that have been signed into effect came from the FAA I find this contention mystifying. Certainly there will be people in the FAA, most probably in the medical section, who feel their ‘turf’ has been raided, but the reality is a huge government department in the United States has looked at the data available over many years and concluded that the way they were administering their medical regulations was out of date with current best practice. New Zealand has done the same.

 

 

 

 

 

The Regional Airline Association representative complained of two to three months delays in sorting out Class 1 medicals when any complications arise.

 

 

 

 

 

I suggested to the DAS that if he got CASA out of Class 2 medicals he may have the resources to better serve the commercial aviation community. His response was that Australia is a special case with an aging class 2 pilot demographic. This comment is frightening in its ignorance.

 

 

 

 

 

This is a direct quote from a NZ bureau of stats report from 2005.

 

 

 

 

 

The 65+ age group is projected to make up over one-quarter of New Zealand's population from the late 2030s, compared with 12 percent in 2005.

 

 

 

 

 

The number of people aged 65+ is projected to increase from half a million in 2005 to 1.33 million in 2051.

 

 

 

 

 

Next a report from the United States government.

 

 

 

 

 

The older population-persons 65 years or older-numbered 46.2 million in 2014 (the latest year for which data is available). They represented 14.5% of the U.S. population, about one in every seven Americans.

 

 

 

 

 

By 2060, there will be about 98 million older persons, more than twice their number in 2014. People 65+ represented 14.5% of the population in the year 2014 but are 65+ expected to grow to be 21.7% of the population by 2040.

 

 

 

 

 

Both the United States and New Zealand have the same issues with aging populations as Australia, yet they have both introduced reforms to make it easier for people to fly privately.

 

 

 

 

 

We intend to gather the data about incapacitation of pilots with the help of AOPA in the US and New Zealand, though it would be a simple process for CASA to simply look at their own ATSB reports and the record of RAA. But it’s obvious CASA won’t change without being dragged kicking and screaming through the process of reform.

 

 

 

 

 

Senator Nick Xenophon has already said post-election that he intends to take up the fight on the industries behalf with Senate Estimates, questioning the CASA hierarchy as regularly as possible about their decisions, or lack of them as the case may be.

 

 

 

 

 

Hopefully this and the New Stakeholder Engagement Group combined with ongoing media coverage will begin to force the changes needed.

 

 

 

 

 

The DAS stated at the meeting that he wants to work collaboratively with Industry. We welcome this approach but we need action to back up the words.

 

 

 

 

 

When we see the stubbornness on delaying the ADSB implementation dates in line with our peer countries to reduce industry costs, then add no internal CASA progress over many years on Avmed Class 2 reforms , we are righty skeptical of the DAS's all powerful position.

 

 

 

 

 

We, AOPA, and the rest of the Stakeholder Participants I witnessed, really want to engage with CASA and bring about much needed reform. We welcome Ron Walker into this coordinating or conductor role and his enthusiasm for the task. What we all want now is the DAS to act on the group’s recommendations and not be judge and jury and possibly executioner of them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marc De Stoop

 

President, AOPA

 

 

[FlyingVizsla]

Help Dick Smith farewell his Citation and send a message to CASA and the government about unique regulations in Australia.

 

Aviation identity Dick Smith is holding a wake to commemorate the departure of his much loved Cessna Citation CJ3 at his hanger at Bankstown Airport.

 

 

 

Dick says the relocation of the aircraft to the northern hemisphere is due to the high cost of compliance with ADSB in Australia. He faces a bill of more than $240,000 in order to meet the looming ADSB deadline and another $250,000 for a flight data recorder, required under Australia’s unique regulations relating to this type of aircraft.

 

 

 

 

 

The aircraft is also being relocated for avionics work after Honeywell and Collins, the manufacturers of the Citation’s avionics suite, have stopped having a direct presence in Australia, leading to massive delays repairing simple problems.

 

 

 

 

 

“That extra half million dollars and the complete lack of competitive servicing arrangements at Bankstown, means it would be unlikely for someone to purchase and keep the aircraft operating here in a viable way,” Dick says.

 

 

 

 

 

“Everyone is welcome for this really sad wake. As everyone knows, I see no life in aviation on the horizon at all. I am selling my aircraft now because I know, if I keep it any longer in Australia, I will lose even more money.”

 

 

 

 

 

The event will be held from 12 noon next Thursday, July 21, at hangar 631, 23 Miles St, Bankstown Airport.

 

 

 

 

 

It will also be a great opportunity for members to meet new AOPA Executive Director Ben Morgan who will also be attending.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mark Smith,

 

Editor, Australian Pilot.