[Peetwo]

TICK..TOCK goes the GA doomsday clock - 

Industry could soon be stuck up Shit creek without an OAR...

Via the Oz:

Overhaul airspace policy: Dick Smith

ANNABEL HEPWORTH
Dick Smith says the government should overhaul a policy proposal so costs to industry are considered when allocating airspace.

Businessman and aviator Dick Smith has urged the government to overhaul a policy proposal so costs to industry are considered when allocating airspace.

In a submission on the draft Australian airspace policy statement, Mr Smith says the document “does not mention anywhere that cost should be considered”.

The draft should be changed “to make it clear that the cost implications to the industry must be considered when allocating airspace to assist in moving towards a viable aviation industry”, he writes in the submission to the Department of Infrastructure, Regional Development and Cities.

The draft was released last month. The department has been taking comments on the document. The existing airspace policy started in 2015, but the Airspace Act 2007 requires a review of the statement at least every three years.

In his submission, Mr Smith points to the 2007 airspace policy statement, which said the government was committed to an airspace system that “best ensures the development of our aviation industry” and that an efficient use of airspace “is a benefit to the aviation sector and the Australian economy”.

He also says that since the Office of Airspace Regulation was set up, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority “has not taken into account increased costs to the industry when allocating airspace”.

“If this continues, it will further destroy the general aviation industry and the flight training industry.”

A spokesman for CASA said that its Office of Airspace Regulation “considers all airspace change proposals on a case-by-case basis to ensure the best outcomes for the safety of air navigation”.

“When making airspace determinations the Office of Airspace Regulation takes into account a range of important factors, including costs,” the spokesman said.

“Factors considered during decision-making include safety, the efficiency of aircraft operations and equitable access to airspace for all users.”

MTF...P2