[Peetwo]

ICAO audit report released...err apparently?? - 

Not sure where the final report is but apparently Betsy and Co are now privy to the results, via Club Betsy: https://www.infrastructure.gov.au/infras...it-program

The 2023 ICAO focused safety audit and assessment
In February 2024 ICAO completed its final report following a focussed aviation safety audit held in September 2023. The report reaffirmed that Australia has an effective aviation safety oversight system. The report highlighted areas where Australia could more fully realise the benefits of closer alignment with ICAO’s standards and practices and these areas will be responded to through corrective action plans agreed with ICAO and updates to our State Safety Program (SSP) and National Aviation Safety Plan (NASP) this year. ICAO also undertook a State Safety Programme Implementation Assessment in September 2023. ICAO assessed Australia as having a mature aviation safety system overall that proactively identifies, manages and mitigates safety risks.

Australia’s results can be viewed via the ICAO website.

Australia’s State Safety Programme (SSP) and National Aviation Safety Plan (NASP) 

The SSP is the primary publication used to describe how Australia ensures the effectiveness of our aviation safety system. It is a summary of all Australian aviation safety-related legislation, risk management and assurance processes, as well as safety promotion mechanisms, that support Australia’s aviation safety system. The NASP summarises Australia’s safety-related activities and establishes Australia’s safety goals, safety risks and priorities for enhancement. The department, working closely with CASA and other aviation safety agencies, is in the process of updating our SSP and NASP. The department will be finalising drafts of these plans, taking into account ICAO’s recent recommendations, for industry and public consultation in the first half of this year. The Australian Government expects to publish the updated SSP and NASP in mid-2024.

Hmm...passing strange that Su_Spence in her latest spin-n-bollocks briefing didn't mention the wonderful results from the ICAO audit?? 

Director of Aviation Safety, Pip Spence

Improving safety is a complex topic that keeps us on our toes, generates passionate industry feedback and delivers valuable lessons.

Being open to reviewing how things went, learning from those lessons and remaining flexible have been crucial components of both our regulatory philosophy and our approach to transitioning to the flight operations regulations we introduced more than two years ago.

As we work our way through the third year of phasing in the new rules, we remain dedicated to realising the safety improvements they promise.

Central to this is being adaptable and attentive to industry feedback on any challenges encountered during the transition period without losing sight of what we are trying to achieve.

We have been engaging with industry on a sector-by-sector basis to better understand the readiness of operators and any support they require in adopting the provisions we deferred when we first introduced the new regulations.

We are evaluating each stage and looking for opportunities to improve before we proceed with our plans for subsequent stages.

If you're an air operator I encourage you to read the article below for information on what is next.

Just as safety is a fundamental function of CASA, innovation and flexibility are key to facing the challenges of an evolving aviation industry.

We are tweaking our organisational structure and introducing new initiatives through programs such as our General Aviation Workplan and National Oversight Plan.

We were also joined in mid-February by two new senior executives who will be familiar to many of you.

Former Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA) chief executive Steve Campbell joined us as executive manager of our National Operations and Standards Division and former Recreational Aviation Australia (RAAus) chief executive Matt Bouttell started as executive manager of our Regulatory Oversight Division.

Steve has been RAAA’s CEO for 3 years and previously served as aviation advisor for former Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Michael McCormack.

Matt started his career at Qantas and worked in roles ranging from maintenance to analyst and principal strategy advisor.

Both bring with them a wealth of aviation experience and may already be familiar to some of you.

The new senior management appointments followed a highly competitive recruitment process, and they round out what I believe will be a highly positive, collaborative and engaged executive leadership team here at CASA.

It will be dedicated to a regulatory approach based on sound risk assessment, flexibility and meeting our obligations to optimise safety for the aviation community.

All the best,

Pip

MTF...P2