[Peetwo]

AMDA and the Lethbridge concession for GA - 

Courtesy Sandy, via FB and the AP email chains:

AVALON East gone. See below.

A few years ago my wife and I flew into Avalon East around midday on a trade day.

There were more marshals in number than the approximate dozen GA aircraft already parked.

The strip was extremely rough and I would not have landed there if the surface condition had been notified.

I was informed by the ferry bus driver that CASA had been running surveillance over each aircraft and the pilots, delaying them, going through paperwork etc.

Fortunately they’d gone for lunch when we arrived.

Never again. 

The Airshow was once a great event, these days very little GA, it’s main game being selling to the military. Avalon Airshow used to attract 500 plus GA aircraft as well as many GA exhibits of all sorts of GA aircraft and associated businesses like GA maintenance and equipment companies.

Too bad.

There’s really nothing there for us now, but no doubt CASA inspectors will be at Lethbridge on double time making work for themselves and nuisance for everyone else. The Salary Factory won’t be put off by greatly diminished aircraft visiting numbers.

Those same inspectors should be employed by our Premier to do roadworthy and licence checks in all the cars that turn up to the MCG on big footy match days. Probably have to have the riot police handy at the same time but people should know that their Government cares about keeping us safe with a bonus;  keeping our taxes up by employing lots of bureaucrats.

For those few GA masochists that might still wish to run the gauntlet, Lethbridge is more than 40 km from Avalon. Better allow another two or three hours travel time to your fun day waiting for the minibus, traffic etc.


Ref: https://www.facebook.com/sandy.reith.31

MTF...P2 

PS: Here is another Sandy experience from the last AMDA event that he attended...