[Peetwo]

Alphabet wars continue on 457 pilots -

Via the Oz:

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Union wants bush pilots ahead of foreigners


Jesse Moll flies Navajo Chieftain ferrying remote workers. Picture: Justin Kennedy.

The Australian
12:00AM January 19, 2018

MATTHEW DENHOLM
Tasmania correspondent Hobart
@MatthewRDenholm

Australia’s largest pilot union is demanding a review of the use of foreign pilots in regional areas, ­arguing there are hundreds of young bush pilots who could fill the vacancies.

The Australian Federation of Air Pilots, which represents more than 4500 commercial pilots, says the decision to grant two-year visas to foreign pilots on ­regional routes was a cop-out and a blow to hundreds of young pilots desperate for airline jobs.

“There are hundreds of Australian pilots across the nation who are qualified, ready, willing and able to fill these airline roles,” federation president David Booth said. “These are local Australians who are coming through the training system and flying up in remote areas in the Northern Territory, Queensland and the Kimberley.

“There are many more with dormant licences who could easily reactivate their careers if ­demand warranted. Furthermore, there are many Australian expat pilots eager to return home to Australia after years of being abroad. This latter category are willing to take a junior position just to get back home.”

Some young bush pilots, such as those flying charters or shifting workers in and out of remote worksites, already have sufficient experience to work on regional passenger routes, while others could be supported to gain the necessarily levels.

Mr Booth accused regional airlines, which lobbied the Turnbull government for the visas after the abolition of 457 visas, of preferring to replace ­experienced ­pilots with overseas captains ­rather than investing in training first officers for those roles.

Regional airline pilots are being poached by the major airlines for the big city routes, as global demand for pilots increases and Qantas shifts some 737 crews up to its new 787 Dreamliners.

Regional Aviation Association of Australia chief executive Mike Higgins rejected the union’s claims, arguing that the speed of the attrition of regional captains and constraints of pilot training regulation meant foreign captains were needed as an urgent fix.

“Whilst there are young guys out there, they simply are not qualified enough, or experienced enough, to move across,” Mr Higgins said. “Therefore the 457 visa pilots we’re looking for are only experienced captains. They can mentor and train the young guys to come through.”

Mr Booth said the definition of “regional” for the purposes of granting visas to foreign pilots was anywhere outside Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne.

“It’s ­impossible to say Perth, Adelaide, Darwin are regional areas,” Mr Booth said. “We say a better way for the industry to deal with this is to train Australians into the positions, improve the working conditions (at regional airlines), and that will drive better retention.”

Jesse Moll, 30, who moved to Darwin from Perth to take up a job flying staff in and out of sandal­wood plantations in a seven-seater Navajo Chieftain, is one young pilot ready to move up to regional airlines. “To go up to a turbo prop (passenger plane), I wouldn’t need much at all,” he said. “I’ve applied a couple of times to a few places and I haven’t got the hours just yet. Some are asking for 1500 (flying hours), some are asking 1000. I’m just short of 1000 but I have enough twin (engine) time.”

Mr Moll, who has had his commercial pilot’s licence for about three years, said it was disappointing to see regional airlines import foreign pilots. He said airlines needed to lift salaries and were partly to blame for the shortage.

“Surely if they had a bit of ­forward thinking they could have seen they would need more pilots soon, ­espec­ially as a lot are going to be retiring,” he said.
However, unions and employers argue for streamlining of what they see as overly burdensome regulation recently imposed by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority on pilot licensing.

Mr Booth said this had led to “serious delays” for “no safety benefit”. “They’ve imposed a huge amount of red tape on to ­especially the smaller operators, who can ill afford it. For example, if you flew small turbo props you used to have to do one instrument rating flight test a year. That changed to requiring you to do as many checked flights as types of aircraft you fly, so you might have to do four or five of these tests a year, at a cost of $5000 a test.”

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton did not respond to ­requests for comment but has defended the use of visas for pilots as balancing the need to give priority to local workers while also meeting skills shortages.

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& from Jamie Freed, via Reuters this AM :

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Outback Australians grounded as pilot crisis worsens

Jamie Freed

(Reuters) - A recruitment drive by Australia’s Qantas Airways Ltd (QAN.AX) after a seven-year hiatus is exacerbating shortages of pilots at regional air services that provide a lifeline to remote communities in the country’s sparsely populated Outback.



A Qantas Airways Airbus A330 aircraft can be seen on the tarmac near the domestic terminal at Sydney Airport in Australia, November 30, 2017. REUTERS/David Gray

As airlines from Asia, Europe and North America vie for pilots amid a global shortage, there is growing concern among people in Australia’s vast interior who rely on flights to major cities for medical treatment.

Ewen McPhee, a doctor in the remote mining town of Emerald, said that when he referred patients for specialist care they often needed to travel nearly 1,000 km (621 miles) to the nearest big city, Brisbane.

“Then they have to fly,” he said. “It is an 11-hour drive otherwise for an ill patient with quite a significant problem.”

Over the last four months the 80-minute flights have not been as reliable as usual, McPhee said, with last-minute cancellations for lack of pilots.

Regional Australia’s predicament illustrates the broader risks the aviation industry faces from a lack of pilots as the number of annual air passengers globally is expected to nearly double to 7.8 billion over the next 20 years.

Around the world, airlines will be forced to review the wages, training and conditions they offer younger pilots as they open new routes and pursue ambitious expansion plans.

Australia’s pilot shortage closely parallels one in the United States, where major airlines are on a hiring spree and regional carriers like Seattle-based Horizon Air have canceled hundreds of flights because of a lack of aviators.

Both countries have a culture of pilots paying up to $100,000 of their own money for training and flying for years at regional carriers on low pay to gain experience to be hired by major airlines.

To help fill in the gaps, the Australian government has reopened two-year visas for foreign pilots. Regional airlines however say longer visas are required to attract pilots from overseas.

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MTF...P2  

[Peetwo]

Par Avion steps up to the plate -

Via the Oz:

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Small airline Par Avion spreads its pilot training wings



A Par Avion aircraft over Tasmania.

The Australian12:00AM January 23, 2018


MATTHEW DENHOLM
Tasmania correspondent Hobart
@MatthewRDenholm


A small Tasmanian airline is to double its pilot training school and is urging reform to ensure Australia cashes in on the strong global demand for pilots.

As airlines complain of a regional pilot shortage, and overseas airlines poach Australian pilots, Par Avion Flight Training, at Cambridge Aerodrome, near Hobart, will this week unveil plans to train about 100 pilots a year.

The company will offer two diploma courses — a commercial pilot licence diploma and another on instrument rating, upskilling qualified pilots to fly at night and in poor weather.

Managing director Shannon Wells said the courses would be offered under the Vocational Education and Training Student Loans scheme, meaning graduating pilots would not pay the $90,000 to $100,000 cost until they starting earning.

“This … will provide jobs locally, allow student pilots to remain in Tasmania to train and it will help Australia address the national shortage of trained commercial pilots,” Mr Wells said. “We plan to expand our training classrooms and facilities at Cambridge, including the purchase of new aircraft, to meet the growing demand for places.”

Par Avion, which flies regional routes and charters in Tasmania, had been approved to provide pilot training to overseas students, and was in discussion with a Southeast Asian airline about training its pilots in Tasmania. “We are in advanced discussions with some international schools and airlines to help them meet increasing demand for training commercial pilots and flight instructors,” Mr Wells said.

It is understood Par Avion is close to a deal with a Malaysia-based airline. Combined with the VET courses, the developments are a rare win for Australian pilot schools. Some pilot schools in other states have been purchased by foreign interests.

Mr Wells said pilot training was complex, with providers having to meet the dual requirements of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and the Australian Skills Quality Authority. While each brought valuable contributions, he believed some “harmonisation” of requirements would help the industry expand.

There was huge scope for Australia to dramatically expand pilot training for domestic and overseas airlines. “There is nothing physically or logistically stopping us training more pilots up; it’s just the paper work. If that can be brought to order there’s no reason why every airport in the nation couldn’t set something up. There’s enough demand,” Mr Wells said.

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Top stuff Shannon...

Also yesterday from the Oz:

Love is in the air with China

12:00amGEOFF CHAMBERS, EMILY RITCHIE

The number of flights to and from China has soared, and Australian pilots are reaping the benefits.

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The number of flights to and from China has soared to almost 2.7 million passenger movements a year, fuelling the poaching by ­Chinese airlines of experienced Australian pilots.

Passenger capacity has tripled in the past decade and risen again since China struck the first agreement of its kind in December 2016 to allow unlimited flights between Australia and China.

Trade Minister Steve Ciobo said China was poised to replace New Zealand as Australia’s top tourism market due to the deal.

Analysis by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade using Department of Immigration and Border Protection data shows the greatest rise has been in Chinese travellers to Australia.

The number of foreigners travelling on Australian airlines (Qantas) to and from China jumped from 123,800 to 445,000 between 2007 and 2016.

During the same period, the number of passengers flying on Chinese airlines jumped from 590,300 to 2.225 million (including 659,000 Australians).

“China has been gaining on New Zealand for more than a decade,” Mr Ciobo said. “Importantly, this growth is set to continue with China’s increased prosperity forecast to fuel another trebling of numbers over the next decade to 3.9 million by 2026-27.”

For Australian pilot Brett Austen, 51, the boom has had benefits.

Taking up a position with China’s Tianjin Airlines meant higher pay, faster career progression, flying larger aircraft, generous annual leave and the prospect of early retirement.

He has also fallen in love and married Chinese woman Rui Li, with whom he has a four-week-old daughter, Mikaela.

Tianjin Airlines has expanded from a fleet of small Embraer 190 and Fairchild Dornier aircraft when Mr Austen joined in 2010 to Airbus A320s and A330s with international routes to Japan, South Korea, Russia, Thailand and now London, Auckland, Melbourne and Sydney.

Captain Austen’s career has grown with the airline and he now commands the A330 on international routes. He was the first foreign pilot employed by the airline but there are now more than 100.

The Australian last month revealed Chinese airlines were poaching experienced Australian pilots by offering in some cases more than $750,000 a year, sparking concerns that pilot shortages in regional Australia could spread to major domestic routes.

While it would be difficult to return to Australia and step into the same role on the same aircraft, Captain Austen said China was attractive for pilots nearing the end of their careers.

“Once you go to China it is very difficult to come back. Airlines in Australia are based on seniority, so all the experience you have means nothing. You will start as first officer again with the major Australian airlines and maybe work back up to captain in eight to 10 years. For me, even though working in China was unplanned, it has given me great opportunities that were not possible in Australia,” he said.

Captain Austen moved to China in January 2010 after the collapse of his employer Sky Air World in Brisbane during the global financial crisis. His contract is a typical Chinese airline deal that allows for 110 holiday days a year and pays more than $US300,000 ($375,000) a year after tax.

“For money and vacation, these are one of the best contracts in the world today. This is the reason pilots are heading to China for work,” he said.

Mr Ciobo said the government’s “historic aviation agreement with China” had helped drive the record influx of Chinese visitors and the explosion in flights from China.

Mr Ciobo, who led a tourism delegation to China last year to explore opportunities arising from the agreement, said Chinese tourists had been the biggest spenders since 2011, racking up a record $10.3 billion in the year ending September 2017.

The DFAT trade report shows Australia’s total trade in goods and services has reached a record $735.5bn, headlined by a 16.8 per cent surge in exports to $373.2bn on the back of iron ore and coal.

MTF...P2

[Peetwo]

Poms not keen on divorcing EASA  

When you consider recent comments from our guru on such matters the Reverend Forsyth:  (Refer: The Rev is back banging the drum)

..The Abbott government’s air ­safety tsar has called for reform of “unnecessary” red tape stymieing aviation, urging a more “collaborative” approach by the “hard-line, bureaucratic” regulator.

David Forsyth, who chaired a 2013-14 review into air safety regulation, said needless red tape was still imposed across all areas of Civil Aviation Safety Authority regulation, four years after his ­report was delivered.

“Australia has quite a lot of unique regulations, unnecessarily so,” Mr Forsyth said. “It would be a good thing for Australia if we harmonised our regulations with overseas, particularly with the two big regulatory bodies around the world: the Federal Aviation Administration in the US and the European agency.

“We shouldn’t try to reinvent the wheel all the time and have something different and unique … because we don’t need to.”

Mr Forsyth said “unique” ­requirements existed “across the whole suite” of CASA regulation.

“(That is) operations, flying training, maintenance, air traffic control, the airports,” he said...

Now can anyone see the irony of the following Reuters article when compared to our bureaucratically embuggered, non-harmonised, isolationist policy in regards to aviation safety regulation and administration?
 
Via Reuters :

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EU could dash hopes for UK to remain in aviation safety agency


Julia Fioretti


4 Min Read

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Britain could be excluded from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) after it quits the EU, raising the prospect of increased certification costs for airlines and manufacturers and dashing London’s hopes of keeping its membership.



FILE PHOTO - An aircraft makes its approach to Heathrow airport in London, Britain, October 30 2017. REUTERS/Toby Melville

EASA ensures airlines respect safety rules and certifies aerospace products across the bloc, helping to bring down the costs of development and production within the industry. In addition, the EU has a bilateral agreement with the United States under which they accept each other’s certifications.

The EU is preparing its negotiating position for its future relationship with Britain and appears to be taking a hard line on aviation.

“UK membership of EASA is not possible,” the European Commission said in slides presented to member states last week which will inform its negotiating position for a transitional agreement and the future relationship with Britain.

The Commission sketched out a vision of the UK having an aviation agreement with the EU along the lines of those the bloc has with the United States and Canada.

Membership of EASA is contingent upon accepting the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union, something Britain has ruled out.

The British government, airlines, the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have all called for Britain to remain a part of EASA once it quits the EU in March 2019, to ensure cooperation on safety continues and avoid increased certification costs.

Should the UK leave EASA, its manufacturers would have to pay for FAA certification to sell their products in the United States and maintenance facilities would have to pay to be certified as meeting FAA standards.

“It makes no sense to recreate a national regulator. At best, you replicate the vast majority of European regulation, and you’d have to do it over an extended period of time. At worst, you create unnecessary barriers,” CAA Chief Executive Andrew Haines said in a speech in September.

If Britain is not allowed to remain a part of EASA, the CAA would have to take over its responsibilities in making sure airlines respect safety rules and manufacturers and maintenance companies meet standards, raising questions about whether it has the capacity to do that.

Haines said the CAA was purposely not planning for that scenario “as it would be misleading to suggest that’s a viable option.”

UK aerospace industry body ADS, which counts Airbus (AIR.PA) as a member, said last week it would take approximately 5-10 years for the CAA to rebuild its safety regulation capability to take over EASA’s current responsibilities.

In the slides, the Commission says there could be a bilateral aviation safety agreement with the UK where both sides have separate certification systems. If there is “reciprocal trust”, there could be a simplified certification process of products from the other side, but no mutual recognition.

The head of the U.S. FAA was in Brussels in December to call for clarity on the safety regime Britain would operate under post Brexit, saying it would be highly costly for manufacturers if Britain left EASA as the FAA would have to make its own findings, “manufacturer by manufacturer.”

“Seeking new aviation arrangements is a top priority and we aim to have the new arrangements in place before the day of exit,” said a spokesman for Britain’s Department for Transport.

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Safe skies are empty skies! -



MTF...P2

[Peetwo]

Courtesy Hitch off the Yaffa:

The BITRE GA Study report was released in December 2017 after a 12-month study.

GA Study Report reflects Reality: Industry
30 January 2018

The BITRE GA Study report released in December last year is an accurate representation of the current state of the industry, but provides no answers, according to two of Australia's largest lobby groups.

The report came after a 12-month study into the GA industry by the Bureau of Infrastructure Transport and Regional Economics, which presented several conclusions and opportunities for government action.

Ken Cannane, Executive Director of the Aviation Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Business Association (AMROBA), said the GA Study report accurately presented the current challenges facing the general aviation community.

"AMROBA is of the opinion that this study provides a fairly presentable report of the situation confronting general aviation in Australia even if it does not provide the answers to fix the decline that our members principally place on regulatory reform over the ages," he said.

"What the study clearly identifies is it is time for economic regulatory reform that will lower on-going costs to all aspects of the general aviation sectors including providing regulatory services in a timely commercial manner. Like the FAA modernisation of their regulatory environment, this study economically supports the transfer of CASA engineering functions and responsibilities to industry entities.

"AMROBA’s only concern is that this study could be used by the public service to not make the economic reforms that are necessary to create a sustainable and safer general aviation industry that would also meet government expectations of jobs and growth."

Cannane did express disappointment that the study failed to identify what he considers the root cause of the GA downturn: the removal of independent flying instructors.

"When I was in the CAA, we knew in the mid 1990s that the removal of the (ANR) independent flight instructor in 1988 was the real reason for the decline in pilot training/numbers," he said.

"Until re-introduced, based on the FAR Part 61 model, private flying and flight training will continue to decline. Independents kept flying clubs and regional access to flying training.

"They were the heart of GA."

Greg Russell, Honorary Chairman of The Australian Aviation Associations Forum (TAAAF), said the study report not only reflected the reality for GA, but also highlighted the magnitude of the regulatory reform needed.

"What the report has done is recount a lot of what we already knew," he said. "Yes, the fleet's ageing and that's not getting any better, and there's has to be some strategies to help the industry start the process of rejuvenation.

"The issue of access to airports, and a myriad of things related to training and small private pilots out of some of these bigger airports. This has been an issue for some time.

"But for me one of the bigger conclusions relates to the safety regulator, and I think it just points again to the job that's ahead of CASA in terms of the reform program and its impact on the industry, and GA in particular."

Russell also said that a flagging GA sector has had a knock-on effect right across the entire aviation industry, which underlines the importance of GA

"We've looked in the past at various sectors of the aviation industry–the domestic, the regional and GA–and there's been a view that they are quite distinct sectors, when in fact they are a continuum, and an important continuum in the industry. A healthy GA is increasingly going to mean a healthy aviation industry right across the board."

When asked if the BITRE GA Study was the plan of action GA needed for recovery to begin, Russell was reserved in reply.

"There's a feeling of healthy scepticism still around the whole process," he said. "We'll study it further and consider the conclusions."

Read more at http://www.australianflying.com.au/lates...TfdRB39.99

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[Peetwo]

AAAA voice concerns for loss of CASA indemnity -

Yet another potential nail in the industry coffin could be delivered if the aviation safety bureaucrats decide to do away with indemnifying authorised flight testing officers.

Via the Oz:   

Warnings over test indemnity plan

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

Agricultural aircraft operators have warned of a ‘disastrous ­impact’ from abolishing CASA indemnity for pilot flight testers.

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Agricultural aircraft operators have warned of a “disastrous ­impact”, including exacerbating the pilot shortage, from abolishing the indemnity provided by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority for industry people conducting flight tests of pilots.

Without the indemnity cover, approved testing officers “will be even less likely to continue providing the services they do, and no senior application pilots will take up the challenge of providing an ATO service without the backing of a government indemnity”, the Aerial Application Association of Australia warns.

“The removal of the indemnity would have a disastrous impact on aviation safety, specialised training capacity and the already existing pilot shortage,” the group warns. “It is likely that in the face of no indemnity being provided, the number of available ATOs for training and checking in aerial ­applications will collapse.”

The comments are contained in a submission, obtained by The Australian, to a high-powered ­review into CASA’s indemnity and insurance arrangements.

The warnings comes amid fears of a regional pilot shortage and overseas airlines poaching Australian pilots.

While CASA has been indemnifying “delegated” personnel doing aviation-related functions, including tests of flight crew, since 1991, new rules change this. Under the changes, ATOs are expected to transition to get a “flight examiner rating”, where they are no longer considered to be doing CASA functions as delegates, but instead exercising “privileges” of a rating — and need to get their own insurance on the private market. New flight examiners who have never been an ATO have never had CASA ­indemnity.

CASA has extended the time for ATOs to surrender their ­delegation and get the rating to midyear. But, reigniting debate, the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development, ­assisted by CASA and the powerful ­Finance Department, is ­reviewing the indemnity arrange­ments for industry delegates and “authorised” people, which also include designated aviation medical ­examiners.

The agricultural operators say there are only a “handful” of ATOs and examiners doing aerial training. As well, they are concentrated on the east coast.

They see the service “as ‘putting something back into the ­industry’,” the submission says. “It is certainly not a viable commercial venture in its own right "...The already very fragile basis to the provision of low throughput training/testing/checking would be severely challenged by any ­significant negative impact from the lack of provision of an indemnity, or a significant increase in costs due to a need for commercial insurance..."

“The obvious consequence of this would be a crisis in the provision of training/testing/checking for aerial application and other highly specialised sectors.”

A spokeswoman for CASA said that as consultation is under way, the body would not comment on individual concerns being raised at the moment.

The consultation is considering four proposals: keeping the present arrangements; extending indemnities to anyone doing work previously done by delegates; giving indemnities on a case-by-case basis; and giving them where commercial insur­ance is not available.

A representative for the Infrastructure Department said: “All submissions received during the consultation process will be considered before any decisions are taken on future indemnity and ­insurance arrangements.”

The Regional Aviation Association of Australia is also strongly opposed to moves to wind back the indemnity, warning that commercial insurance policy here is “simply not adequate and it is an increased cost to industry”.

TICK..TOCK Barnaby, the aviation shit-list is growing!  

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&.. also from the Oz today:

Demand means pilots take shorter route in flying for major airlines



The time spent in “feeder jobs” before flying for major airlines has fallen dramatically, according to pilots, amid concerns a shortage may lead to foreign airlines poaching Australian talent.

Rhys McClintock is a senior pilot at Navair, a luxury private air charter operation based in Sydney. A former surf instructor, he changed career flight path after a pilot came in for a lesson.

“He said, ‘come and learn’. I worked my way up,” Mr McClintock said.

The 27-year-old has been working in Sydney for two years and in that time he’s witnessed a major change. “The guys that are coming through used to go fly freight,” he said. “They’re only there for a short period of time and are being snapped up by Australian airlines. Two years ago, people were sitting in there five or six years. Now they’re doing six months and are out and up.”

The Australian recently revealed ­that Chinese airlines are looking to poach Australian pilots by offering enormous salaries of $750,000 a year.

Mr McClintock said he’s not at all surprised. “Corporate aviation has a ­select group of guys that fit the mould,” he said. “The dream for most pilots is the whole airline thing. This used to be a feeder job, now people skip this one.”

It’s not a dream for him, however. “I like flying in corporate aviation, you’re not just a pilot — you do heaps of stuff.”

Rick Pegus, a pilot and man­aging director of Navair, said ­Chinese airlines would do well to base pilots in Australia but fly them to China.

“It would not surprise me if they hired some, even if they based them here,” he said. “If you fly for Chinese airlines, you can fly to China for a day.”

Mr Pegus said only the most experienced pilots would be ­offered salaries as high as $750,000, but they would be who China would look to hire. “They’d be the ones you want to poach, they’d want the expertise that’d drive the safety culture,” he said.

The comments come as recent figures about the surge in flights to and from China, partly on the back of an “open skies”-style agreement struck in Dec­ember 2016, have added to concerns about poaching by ­Chinese airlines of experienced Australian pilots.

Recent figures show that the hours flown in flying training has plunged by more than one-third since peaking in 2009.

A landmark review into general aviation by the Bureau of ­Infrastructure, Transport and ­Regional Economics last year ­described the combined costs of pilot training and attracting and retaining staff were “key challenges” for the general aviation industry.

MTF...P2

[Peetwo]

Carmody Capers in denial on CTAF cock-up -


Via Annabel in the Oz today:

CASA denies CTAF plan canned

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

CASA says it has not yet make a decision on expanding common traffic advisory frequency broadcast areas.

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The nation’s aviation safety regulator says it has not yet make a decision on its controversial proposal to expand the common traffic advisory frequency broadcast areas near non-­towered ­aerodromes, moving to hose down suggestions it has canned the idea.

The proposal has split the sector as it has support from regional airlines but has been criticised by the Regional Airspace and Procedures Advisory Committee, Recreational Aviation Australia and businessman and aviator Dick Smith.

Under the proposal, the CTAF radius would be widened to 20 nautical miles and 5000 feet in altitude at non-controlled airports.

Pilots use the CTAF at non-towered airports to indicate their plans and position.

There has been speculation within the sector in recent days that the Civil Aviation Safety Authority has dropped the proposal.

However, in a statement responding to questions from The Australian about whether CASA had abandoned the plan, a CASA spokeswoman said “no decision has yet been made”.

“Consultation on the proposed changes closed on January 12 and more than 1000 responses were received,” the spokeswoman said.

“We are encouraged by the high level of engagement from industry on this topic and are now analysing this feedback and considering next steps.

“As safety is our primary consideration we are keen to have a practical solution which delivers the optimum solution for the flying public.”

The proposal on the CTAF is contained in a consultation draft that advises light pilots at some small airstrips to use the “multicom” radio frequency of 126.7 MHz.

The release by CASA of the multicom proposal came after years of debate about earlier changes to radio frequencies.

CASA had been criticised about its handling of some radio frequency procedures and the release of the multicom proposal was described by CASA as part of its delivery on long-running issues. But the debate over expanding the CTAF has cast a shadow. CASA has previously said that the proposal on the CTAF was aimed at supporting the plan for the use of the multicom frequency.

The plan would “ensure that aircraft conducting instrument approaches are on the same frequency as aerodrome traffic, prevent multiple frequency changes during climb and descent and ensure transmissions at busy aerodromes do not experience clutter from the multicom frequency”, CASA says on its site.

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& Sandy with a comment in reply... :



Great photo with the story Annabel but with respect I doubt that that’s a regional airline service being depicted there, the airstrip is too dusty, likely to be soft after rain, and too unkempt. What the photo might portray is a runway little used and in a poor state of maintenance. Just as General Aviation having been hammered into the ground by CASA, the small amount of GA activity these days means that many outback airstrips are not properly maintained or have simply disappeared. The flying communication frequency changes mooted by CASA will be a safety disadvantage to most GA flying operations because, for much of the flight time, aircraft flying into such airstrips will not have the benefit of advice from Air Services controllers

Unfortunately CASA, even with some 830 employees and a non flying CEO on c. $600,000 pa (with the fatuous title “Director of Air Safety) doesn’t have the ability to assemble a rational and acceptable proposition to change the status quo. Until, or more likely ‘if,’ the Minister takes control and changes the Act the present terminal trajectory for GA will continue. The CASA model of governance is broke. Alex in the Rises.

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[Peetwo]

Dear Alphabets...L&Ks

Via AOPA Oz BM..

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THE AUSTRALIAN GENERAL AVIATION ALLIANCE (AGAA)
Protecting and promoting our Freedom To Fly

Tuesday, 13th February 2018

AOPA Australia Members & Supporters,

It is with great pleasure that I can now announce the: Australian General Aviation Alliance, an industry partnership to protect and promote our freedom to fly.

The founding members of the Australian General Aviation Alliance are;

- Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association of Australia
- Aircraft Maintenance Repair Overhaul Business Association
- Sport Aircraft Association of Australia

Each of our Alliance members have identified the value of working together to build unity and consensus on our industry's most important issues, ensuring that general aviation speaks with a clear voice, whilst recognising the importance of each association's individual identity and membership.

Standing together, our Alliance will tackle the complex and difficult regulatory issues and is committed to the goal of achieving general aviation revitalisation through joint industry promotion, airshows and events, youth engagement, safety awareness and advocacy.

The Alliance is a milestone achievement for general aviation and I extend my thanks and appreciation to both the SAAA and AMROBA, who each share AOPA Australia's vision for a unified industry.

On behalf of our founding Alliance members, I now call on our industry's other associations to pledge their support and membership to the Australian General Aviation Alliance.

Together, we can make a difference.

Yours Sincerely,

BENJAMIN MORGAN
Executive Director - AOPA Australia
Telephone: (02) 9791 9099
Mobile: 0415 577 724

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MTF...P2

[Peetwo]

Dear Alphabets...L&Ks

Via AOPA Oz BM..

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THE AUSTRALIAN GENERAL AVIATION ALLIANCE (AGAA)
Protecting and promoting our Freedom To Fly

Tuesday, 13th February 2018

AOPA Australia Members & Supporters,

It is with great pleasure that I can now announce the: Australian General Aviation Alliance, an industry partnership to protect and promote our freedom to fly.

The founding members of the Australian General Aviation Alliance are;

- Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association of Australia
- Aircraft Maintenance Repair Overhaul Business Association
- Sport Aircraft Association of Australia

Each of our Alliance members have identified the value of working together to build unity and consensus on our industry's most important issues, ensuring that general aviation speaks with a clear voice, whilst recognising the importance of each association's individual identity and membership.

Standing together, our Alliance will tackle the complex and difficult regulatory issues and is committed to the goal of achieving general aviation revitalisation through joint industry promotion, airshows and events, youth engagement, safety awareness and advocacy.

The Alliance is a milestone achievement for general aviation and I extend my thanks and appreciation to both the SAAA and AMROBA, who each share AOPA Australia's vision for a unified industry.

On behalf of our founding Alliance members, I now call on our industry's other associations to pledge their support and membership to the Australian General Aviation Alliance.

Together, we can make a difference.

Yours Sincerely,

BENJAMIN MORGAN
Executive Director - AOPA Australia
Telephone: (02) 9791 9099
Mobile: 0415 577 724

Update via Oz Flying:

AOPA, SAAA and AMROBA are the three founding members of the Australian General Aviation Alliance (AGAA) (composite image Diamond Aircraft / Steve Hitchen)

Aviation Associations form Strategic Alliance
13 February 2018

Three major general aviation associations have formed the Australian General Aviation Alliance (AGAA) in order to provide what they say is better represention of GA interests.
Announced today, AGAA's founding members are AOPA Australia (AOPA), Sport Aircraft Association of Australia (SAAA) and the Aviation Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Business Association (AMROBA).

AOPA CEO Ben Morgan said that the intent of AGAA is to strengthen the position of GA in Canberra.

"Each of our Alliance members have identified the value of working together to build unity and consensus on our industry's most important issues, ensuring that general aviation speaks with a clear voice, whilst recognising the importance of each association's individual identity and membership," he said.

"Standing together, our Alliance will tackle the complex and difficult regulatory issues and is committed to the goal of achieving general aviation revitalisation through joint industry promotion, air shows and events, youth engagement, safety awareness and advocacy."

Both AOPA and AMROBA have been members of The Australian Aviation Associations Forum (TAAAF) in recent years, but over the past six months have found themselves at odds with TAAAF policy, particularly when it comes to the issue of 457 visas for pilots.

There has also been some discontent over the perceived power of the Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA) and the Aerial Application Association of Australia (AAAA) within TAAAF.

TAAAF Chairman Greg Russell told Australian Flying that he was disappointed in today's announcement, but felt the move would not weaken TAAAF's influence in Canberra.

"We really have been making some progress through TAAAF and our relationships not just with CASA, but with the department and I'm confident that will continue. We've broadened the number of associations that have been interested in what we've been doing over the past 12 months.

"I've been around the industry long enough to know that people have their own agendas and if they feel they can be better represented through this association [AGAA], well that's the way life is."

Russell was very quick to dampen suggestions that regional and agricultural aviation sectors had too much influence on TAAAF policy.

"We reject that absolutely. I'm coming up for three years in this role now, and I've always found the TAAAF meetings largely to be collegiate and people's views are normally taken in to account. There are some times when we can't form one opinion because of separate views, but there's been no evidence of that sort of thing [undue influence] whilst I've been in the chair, and I wouldn't anticipate it."

The three founding members of AGAA have encouraged other associations to consider joining the alliance.

Read more at http://www.australianflying.com.au/lates...uvU3Owx.99

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Australian Aviation icon services under threat -

Via the Oz today:

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Funding cuts threaten flying doctor services


Royal Flying Doctors servicing rural Australia.

The Australian12:00AM February 14, 2018

MICHAEL MCKENNA



ReporterBrisbane
@McKennaattheOz

The Royal Flying Doctor Service has warned it will be forced to abandon some of its health work in rural Australia unless the federal government reinstates funding cuts made last year.

The Turnbull government’s budget-repair measures slashed $10.2 million in funding from the RFDS this financial year in a move the 90-year-old organisation says can no longer be sustained without cutting services.

Corporate and private donors covered some of the shortfall from the budget cut — which reduced commonwealth funding to $57m — with the RFDS also using cash out of reserves normally used to buy aircraft.

In a letter to federal Coalition MPs and senators, the RFDS said it could no longer cover the cost of its nationwide operations, which include air retrievals, GP clinics and dental services for an estimated 600,000 people.

RFDS chief executive Martin Laverty said services already were stretched, and the cuts were delivered at a time when there was a growing need in dental and mental health.

Mr Laverty said the RFDS, which also receives state funding, wanted to avoid cutting back on services, which cover those people out of “Medicare reach’’ across Australia.

“It is unfathomable for us to even contemplate having to cut back at a time when demand in areas like mental health is growing,’’ he said.

“We didn’t have to cut any services this year because we had generous donors plug the gap.’’

It is understood the RFDS will consider cutting the operating hours and coverage of GP clinics in remote Australia, including in indigenous communities.

Last year, The Australian revealed that doctors working in Queensland indigenous communities had formally complained that cuts were adversely affecting health outcomes.

The government faces growing pressure from within its own ranks, especially among Nationals MPs and senators.

Queensland Nationals Senator Barry O’Sullivan last night said the funding needed to be reinstated or it could cost lives.

“The last thing we as a government should be doing is reducing funding for rural health services,’’ he said.

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More tales of woe for Regional Oz -

Via the Oz today:

Crackdown threat to bush services


12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

Air services to remote communities could perish because of the costs associated with security upgrades.

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Security crackdown ‘could push bush services to the wall’

The Northern Territory government has added its voice to warnings that any move to step up security screening at regional and remote airports could see some air services to the bush perish.

In a move that escalates pressure on the government to fund a possible crackdown from a federal review of airport security screening, the NT’s Department of Planning, Infrastructure and Logistics warned that extra security could drive up airfares.

In a submission to the Senate’s probe into services to the bush, the NT government also warns of “a loss of services where providing security renders marginally sustainable services uneconomical”.

“Many of the Territory’s remote and very remote Aboriginal community aerodromes have very limited or no passenger facilities, including terminals or shelters, and many are without power or water services,” the submission says. “There will be a significant cost if passenger or cargo facilities need to be constructed or upgraded to provide secure or sterile areas so that screening procedures can be undertaken, particularly where services are not frequent.”

The review of security at airports was ordered last year.

There have been suggestions that the review will lead to extending screening of passengers on aircraft weighing more than 20 tonnes to all regional public transport air services. But there are growing warnings about the impact of any new measures on the bush.

Mount Isa City Council told the review that the federal government or passengers travelling between major capital cities should meet the costs of extra security measures. “If the government is concerned a small regional aircraft may be used in a 9/11 style attack, then it is unlikely the terrorists’ target would be a remote community,” the council’s submission says.

A spokeswoman for Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said the government was considering a number of options and was “mindful of the impacts that security measures have on industry, particularly for regional and remote aviation”. “It is important to balance regulatory costs against maintaining the overall security and sustainability of the aviation network,” the spokeswoman said.

Flinders Council, which owns and operates the loss-making Flinders Island airport off the northeast coast of Tasmania, has also told the inquiry that tougher security measures at regional airports “will no doubt have a flow on” to passengers.

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&..

Regional airports face challenges

12:00amCAROLINE WILKIE

Regional airports arre facing a dilemma: either run at a loss or increase charges and risk losing services.

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Regional airports doing it tough, survey reveals


The federal government inquiry into the operation, regulation and funding of air route service delivery to rural, regional and remote communities has provided an opportunity to highlight the unique challenges regional airports face.

The Australian Airports Association recently surveyed members to better understand the challenges they face, with 51 regional airports responding.

The survey confirmed what anecdotal evidence has been telling us for some time: regional airports are doing it tough.

Often operated by local councils, some airports are faced with the dilemma of running at a loss or increasing airport charges and risking losing services.

Nearly 40 per cent of respondents expected persistent budget deficits across the next 10 years, even as airport costs are expected to rise by a further 38 per cent. Despite financial hardship, regional airports have been slow to increase airport charges, as they recognise the importance of accessible air services to communities. Three-quarters said their airport charges had stayed the same or reduced in real terms during the past five years.

But this has not stopped some regional councils feeling the pressure to go further, with 68 per cent reporting they’d been asked by airlines to reduce airport charges.

Of most concern, a quarter of respondents said these requests came on the back of a threat to reduce vital services to their region. With the vast majority of regional passengers carried by domestic duopoly airlines and in many cases only one airline serving an airport, council negotiating power can be extremely limited.

As they keep charges low, some councils are already subsidising essential maintenance and airport improvements.

Regional airfares remain high, with locals hit hard by the cost of travelling to medical appointments, family events and business meetings. Ensuring regional services remain affordable and accessible requires a collective commitment from airlines, airports and government to hold true to the ethos of fair and equal opportunity for everyone.

With 30 per cent of Australians living in regional and remote areas, it’s simply not fair for the cost of airfares to prevent them achieving the same economic and social outcomes as their city counterparts. It’s time to identify a sustainable way forward for the future that puts our regions ahead of profits.

Caroline Wilkie is chief executive of the Australian Airports Association.

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&..

Regionals call for Sydney slots

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

The rules for managing slots for landing and takeoff at Australia’s busiest airport are stymieing services to regional areas.

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Regional airlines renew calls for more slots at Sydney airport

The rules for managing slots for landing and takeoff at Australia’s busiest airport are stymieing services to regional areas, an influential parliamentary committee has been told.

Virgin Australia has reignited debate about reforming slot ­arrangements at Sydney Airport by warning of a situation where slots for NSW regional services during popular travel times are ­“extremely limited”.

The commonwealth legislation for slot management at Sydney’s Kingsford Smith Airport guarantees slots for regional services but caps their number during peak periods.

As well, the number of slots at the airport for regional services during peaks has fallen by 42, or 10 per cent, since 2001. The concern is that where peak slots for ­regional services have gone to non-regional services, they can’t be changed back.

“Timings in these periods are necessary for the operation of ­viable services by airlines, as they enable day trips to be undertaken by travellers originating both in Sydney and regional communities,” Virgin has told the Senate inquiry into air services to rural, regional and remote areas.

“Accordingly, the current leg­is­lative arrangements equate to less competition, fewer choices and potentially higher airfares on routes between Sydney and destinations in regional NSW until Western Sydney Airport ­becomes operational.”

Virgin says that while the commonwealth rules “were introduced to safeguard the operation of regional services, in reality they are inhibiting the growth of such services in the state”.

“To address this problem and support the expansion of regional services in NSW, the legislative framework should be amended to allow any slot held by an airline to be used to operate a ­regional or non-regional air service, as is the case in other states and territories, or alternatively, to allow non-­regional slots to be converted to regional slots,” the submission says.

The comments have renewed calls for regional airlines to be given better access to landing slots into during busy periods.

Airspeed Aviation managing director Ben Wyndham said he had tried for years to start a service between Narrabri and Sydney but “we gave up basically because slots are too hard”.

“If we could secure commercially viable slots into Mascot on a year-round basis, we would have had financial backing available. But because we couldn’t get that certainty, as a start-up, ­nobody was willing to help fund our expansion into regional scheduled air services.

“We shelved the airline project,” he says, but notes the firm has doubled its charter operations over the past six months.

A NSW parliamentary inquiry in 2014 recommended pushing the federal government to ­remove regional turboprop aircraft from the movements cap at Sydney airport and ensure that the access of regional regular passenger transport services to the airport was preserved.

NSW Transport Minister ­Andrew Constance said he was calling on Canberra to create five new slots exclusively for quieter ­regional aircraft.

“The biggest ­impediment to growth in regional aviation is the cap on slots into Kingsford Smith,” Mr Constance said. “We don’t agree with kicking this down the road until Western ­Sydney Airport is open. The federal government has the power to fix it now.”

A spokeswoman for Infrastructure and Transport Minister Barnaby Joyce said he was aware of the issue facing Virgin.

“Slots at Sydney airport for ­regional services are fully utilised during peak periods but unfortunately the current legislation does not permit the conversion of non-regional slots to regional slots during the peak period,” the spokeswoman said.

The government “is absolutely prepared to explore opportunities to increase flexibility for airlines where this improves access for ­regional NSW communities into Sydney”, she said. “Of course, any changes to legislation will need a bipartisan ­approach.”

Shame Barmybaby is too busy trying to save his arse...

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Alphabets & Airlines take on Regional woes cont/- 

Some good input/coverage from Oz Aviation...

Are charges and regulatory hurdles barriers to more regional flights?

February 21, 2018 by Jordan Chong


A file image of a Virgin Australia ATR 72 turboprop at Brisbane Airport. (Rob Finlayson)

Virgin Australia says regulatory restrictions and high airport charges are roadblocks preventing more flights to regional communities.

In a submission to the Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Committee’s inquiry into the operation, regulation and funding of air route service delivery to rural, regional and remote communities, Virgin Australia said regional services were more challenging from an economic perspective compared with routes between capital cities, given the difficulties of achieving economies of scale.

“Virgin Australia is aware that some regional communities hold a perception that airlines are seeking to earn unreasonable returns in setting airfares on regional routes and/or that airfares on such routes are cross-subsidising pricing on trunk routes,” Virgin Australia said.

“As many of the regional routes we serve do not deliver acceptable commercial returns at current levels of pricing, this perception is inaccurate.

“As with all routes we serve, the sustainability of our regional services relies heavily on our ability to match the capacity we deploy with the demand for our flights, as well as the effective management of costs.”

The Virgin Australia submission noted the special arrangements for regional flights at the busy Sydney Airport, where a certain number of slots are dedicated to regional flights during the morning and afternoon peak.

It said these regulatory restrictions were preventing the expansion of services on regional routes with latent unmet demand.

The Virgin Australia submission said there were 42 fewer slot pairs available for regional services in 2017 between 0700-0900 and 1700-1900 in 2017, compared with 2001, a decline of 10 per cent.

“This has created a situation where the availability of slots at Sydney Airport for NSW regional services in the morning and afternoon peak periods is extremely limited,” Virgin Australia said.

“Timings in these periods are necessary for the operation of viable services by airlines, as they enable day trips to be undertaken by travellers originating both in Sydney and regional communities. Accordingly, the current legislative arrangements equate to less competition, fewer choices and potentially higher airfares on routes between Sydney and destinations in regional NSW until Western Sydney Airport becomes operational.”

Sydney Airport said in its submission to the inquiry 28 per cent of slots in the morning peak between 0600 and 1100 and 35 per cent of slots in the evening peak between 1500 and 2000 at Sydney Airport were allocated to regional services.

However, it said although the “Permanent Regional Services Series” slots, also known as a “regional ring fence”, was designed to support regional aviation, it had the unintended impact of disincentivising airlines to operate regional services.

This was because while a domestic airline was able to move from operating an interstate flight to a regional flight, once it did so it was unable to move to once again use that slot to operate an interstate route.

“Therefore, a disincentive exists to use the slot to operate the regional service in the first place, as doing so limits the airline’s ability at a later point in time to use that slot in line with demand and where they will achieve a commercial return,” Sydney Airport said.

Qantas described regional aviation in Australia as “operationally and commercially difficult” in its submission to the inquiry, given the inelastic demand profiles of many regional markets due to low populations and limited tourism appeal, as well as the high costs associated with flying to regional airports.

It told the committee passenger service charges were on average $16 per passenger for airports in New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria, compared with $25 in the Northern Territory, Queensland and Western Australia.

Moreover, 13 of top 15 most expensive airports in Australia that Qantas flew to were in WA and Queensland.



Qantas says regional aviation in Australia is “operationally and commercially difficult”. (Brian Wilkes)

“Airports continue to exercise monopolistic power over airport charges and, contrary to some commentary, this has a direct impact on the price of travel for consumers and challenges the commercial viability of regional air services,” Qantas said.

“Regional airports – particularly in regional Queensland and Western Australia – are by far the most expensive in the group’s network, charging significantly more than their capital city equivalents.”

“Whilst airfares in regional Australia may be higher than between major population centres, due to the confluence of supply and demand challenges, these services are not significant profit centres for the group.”

The peak industry body Airlines for Australia and New Zealand (A4ANZ) said airport charges represented a “significant proportion of airfares”, particularly on regional and rural routes.

The A4ANZ submission said Australian airports collected more revenue per passenger and generated significantly higher profits than their international benchmarks.

“In some cases the charges add more than 30 per cent to the base ticket price,” A4ANZ said.

“Indeed, one of biggest roadblocks to the airlines’ ability to introduce new and grow existing routes is high airport charges.

“Greater oversight by government to encourage and, where required, force constructive, commercial engagement is needed to minimise the negative impact of the airports’ monopoly powers.

“The threat of regulation would result in a genuine commercial negotiation, greater investment by airlines and improved efficiency in the allocation of resources.”

Airport charges represent a “significant proportion of airfares”. (Dave Parer)

Sydney Airport said aeronautical charges paid by regional airlines at Sydney Airport had not increased since 2001.

“Therefore, over the 16 years to 2017, regional aeronautical charges at Sydney Airport have fallen in real terms by 49 per cent,” Sydney Airport said.

“Therefore, any increases to airfares on regional routes cannot be attributed to Sydney Airport charges.”

Australia’s two major airline groups also reiterated their opposition to giving foreign airlines the right to operate domestic routes – aviation cabotage – arguing it would do nothing to boost air services to regional communities.

The issue of aviation cabotage has been raised a number of times in recent years, including in 2015 when the federal government considered opening up some domestic routes in northern Australia for foreign carriers.

The government’s 2015 Competition Policy Review, led by Professor Ian Harper, recommended removing cabotage restrictions for “all air cargo as well as passenger services to specific geographic areas, such as island territories and on poorly served routes”.

Then, as now, it was opposed by Qantas and Virgin Australia.

Qantas said aviation cabotage would “destabilise Australia’s aviation market with far-reaching impacts on the commercial and operational viability of Australia’s aviation network”.

“The group is opposed to aviation cabotage in all circumstances,” Qantas said.

“The group bases its strong opposition to aviation cabotage on the significant adverse consequences for Australia’s workforce and broader economic interests.

“There is no data or credible evidence demonstrating aviation market failure on regional routes that warrants moves towards cabotage.

“The presence of carriers operating on Foreign Air Operator Certificates would lead to a reversal of current safety arrangements applicable to domestic aviation. The domestic travelling public could not be assured the same high safety standards as foreign airlines operate under foreign safety regimes.”

Virgin Australia said removing cabotage restrictions would have “far-reaching consequences for the long-term sustainability of the Australian aviation and tourism industries”.

Further, the airline said cabotage represented “an opportunistic play for foreign carriers without a long-term commitment”.

“Operating alongside Australian airlines, foreign carriers would earn marginal revenue by offering capacity that could be priced at levels lower than the average cost faced by domestic airlines on these sectors,” Virgin Australia said.

“Over time, this could be expected to lead to network rationalisation by local operators, with aircraft redeployed to higher-yielding routes.

“This would come at a cost to tourism in regional areas, as domestic airlines play a key role in terms of investment in marketing and promotional activity.”

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Local government association joins campaign for increased funding of regional airports
February 21, 2018 by australianaviation.com.au



File image of a Rex Saab 340 at Broken Hill. (Scott Mason)

The Australian Local Government Association (AGLA) is the latest organisation to join forces with the Australian Airports Association (AAA) in campaigning for increased funding for regional airports.

Launched in October 2017, the AAA’s “Protect Regional Airports” campaign calls for a broadening of government support to fund improvements to regional airstrips to the tune of $160 million over four years.

The Australian Logistics Council, Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA) and Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) are also backers of the AAA’s campaign.

ALGA president David O’Loughlin said federal government funding was needed to support regional airports.

“Regional airports provide an essential service to our communities, and must be able to continue to serve the needs of local people safely and efficiently,” Cr O’Loughlin said in a statement on Monday.

“This can only be achieved by additional federal government funding to support our regional airports.

“We urge members of Parliament to ensure our regions aren’t forgotten in the upcoming budget process.”

Further, Cr O’Loughlin said many local councils were subsidising essential maintenance and upgrades at their regional airports and relying on ratepayer funds to offset the costs of operating these complex pieces of infrastructure.

The “Project Regional Airports” campaign is calling for the Regional Aviation Access Programme (RAAP) to be extended for a further four years, as well as the establishment of a new program to broaden the number of remote and regional airstrips eligible for government support.

Under the AAA proposal, the RAAP would be extended at $15 million a year for the next four years, while the proposed new airport grants program would fund regional airports (and not just remote airstrips) with $25 million a year for four years.

The AAA has called for the Commonwealth to contribute half the money while state and local governments to contribute the other half, with the funds used to address local challenges such as the lack of lighting, runway improvements and more essential animal fencing.

AAA chief executive Caroline Wilkie welcomed the ALGA’s support.

“Regional airports are the lifeblood of their communities and must be funded appropriately to ensure they continue to deliver essential access for people living and working in our regions,” Wilkie said.

“With many regional airports operated by local councils, we’re delighted to have ALGA’s support for this important campaign.

The RAAP is a government scheme that offers funding for upgrades to remote aerodromes (the Remote Access Upgrade Program, or RAU), inspection and related services at aerodromes in remote indigenous communities (Remote Aerodrome Inspections, or RAI), and subsidised flights to remote communities (the Remote Air Services Subsidy Scheme, or RASS).

The 2015/16 federal budget allocated $33.7 million to be spent over four years towards grants to regional airports for safety and access upgrades. The funding was generally provided on a matching co-funding basis with applicants.

Applications for the final round of remote airstrip upgrade funding closed in October 2017.

 

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Dick backs QF pilot academy -

Via the Oz:

Smith backs Qantas academy

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH
Dick Smith has thrown his support behind an announcement by ­Qantas that it will open a pilot academy.

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Businessman and aviator Dick Smith has thrown his support ­behind the announcement by ­Qantas that it will open a pilot academy that could train up to 500 pilots a year.

Mr Smith, a former chairman of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and its predecessor, said it was the best news he had heard for the last 20 years in aviation. He said Australia had the capacity to be a world leader in training pilots. He singled out a plan by Qantas to create an academy that would potentially be used not just by Qantas but by the sector more broadly by training pilots for other airlines.

The Australian has detailed the rush to sec­ure pilots, greater ­foreign ownership of Australian train­ing schools and the costs and red tape that have struck flying schools.

While posting a record interim underlying pre-tax profit of $976 million, Qantas boss Alan Joyce said the airline would set up the pilot academy to meet a growing need for pilots.

The school, expected to take students next year, will initially train 100 pilots a year for jobs within Qantas, but this could grow to 500 pilots a year on a fee-for-service basis if there was demand from the aviation industry.

Qantas has recruited 600 ­pilots since 2016 and plans a further 350 in the next year, Mr Joyce said.

“We want to make sure we have the talent pipeline that is charged well into the future.”

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& from the Border Mail:

February 24 2018 - 5:00PM
Qantas announces plans for pilot training school based in Australian regional centre

• [/url]
  David Johnston
  [url=http://www.bordermail.com.au/profile/585/david-johnston]
  

Local News



ALBURY has been urged to make a strong bid to become the home for the Qantas flying school capable of training up to 500 pilots per year.

The airline has committed to establishing the flying training centre as early as next year with an initial $20 million investment confirmed this week.

A large regional centre will be chosen due to easy access to uncongested airspace.
Entrepreneur and aviator Dick Smith said the city chosen would gain a massive economic boost and encouraged Albury Council to make a bid.

Mr Smith has campaigned for 20 years for Australia to become a flying training world leader, but has been frustrated by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority.

“They’ve been increasing costs, red tape and regulation so I understand flying training is down 30 per cent in the last five years,” he said.
 

Dick Smith

“Some services have been cut to regional Australia because there is not enough pilots and that is nothing short of criminal.

“It’s the best news I’ve heard in 20 years that Qantas are not only going to train pilots for their own airline, but they will train pilots who can then go out and get a job for any airline.

“Places like Albury can benefit and I would imagine the council should be getting a letter into Qantas saying ‘come to Albury’.

“They are talking about training up to 500 pilots a year so that is a lot of employment, accommodation, fuel purchased and a huge economic boost to the country town involved.”

Albury Council owns its airport.

Mr Smith will be in Albury on Saturday for the official opening of Rotor Solutions Australia’s new headquarters.

An Albury bid has the backing of Farrer MP and a pilot licence holder, Sussan Ley.
“I think we would be a perfect base for the new academy,” she said.

“We already have the right services and supports in place for what Qantas will need, and I’ll certainly be doing everything I can to put a border bid in front of (chairman) Alan Joyce and the decision makers on this one.”

Mayor Kevin Mack said council had been in touch with Qantas to discuss the potential of the airline developing a pilot training academy in Albury.

“Albury Airport is the gateway for business, tourism and recreational travel for Albury and Wodonga as well as surrounding communities, and with four commercial airlines servicing the market, an academy to train the next generation of pilots would be a terrific fit for our wider community,” he said.

“We’re working now with Sussan Ley to prepare a preliminary proposal and we’re excited to think that Albury could be in the running to host a centre that would be crucial to the future of Australian aviation while also providing a huge boost to the local economy.”

Finally more on the Airports & Air Routes Senate Inquiry submissions...

Again via the Oz...

Third runway ‘to benefit regionals’

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH
Australia’s largest airport says greater use of its third runway would boost access by regional services.

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 Australia’s largest airport says greater use of its third runway would boost access by regional services.

Amid growing political scrutiny into regional air services, Sydney Airport warns that a preference by pilots and airways to use the main 3962m north-south runway over the 2438m parallel runway means fewer flights are able to land or take off from the airport during peak periods.

This “serves to limit arrivals of regional flights during the morning peak, while excess capacity remains on the parallel runway,” the airport’s chief executive officer, Geoff Culbert, says in a Sydney Airport submission to an influential Senate inquiry into services to rural, regional and remote areas.

“Rebalancing the use of the runways, with greater use of the parallel runway, would be greatly beneficial for increasing regional access,” he said.

The airport’s third runway was opened in 1994 because of the growing demand for aviation in Sydney, but after it opened there were protests over the hot-button issue of extra aircraft noise.

The submission comes as ­Virgin Australia warns that commonwealth-legislated rules for managing slots at the airport are “inhibiting” the growth of regional NSW air services and leading to potentially higher airfares.

In its submission, Sydney Airport also takes aim at the cap on aircraft movements.

The cap allows 80 slots in each hour, with the numbers counted every 15 minutes, which Sydney says “limits the growth of the number of services to Sydney Airport by regional flights”.

“By effectively having two caps, with one addressing scheduled flights and the other actual movements, there is a high degree of inflexibility to recover from a delay caused by weather or other events,” the submission says.

“With the timetable of regional flights specifically designed to allow people from regional communities to fly to Sydney and back on the one day, the inability to ­recover from delays especially risks frustrating their reasons to travel, such as arriving late or missing their appointment entirely.”

These problems are exacerbated by the way the north-south parallel runways are used, the airport argues.

“One measure that could be considered to increase access would be to exempt regional flights from the cap, provided they use the parallel runway, which has greater spare capacity than the main north-south runway,” the airport says.

“However, any such change would need to be considered in the context of the overall airport ­system and slot management at Sydney Airport to avoid causing other consequences.”

Regional Aviation Association of Australia chief executive Mike Higgins said the group supported any measure that would boost the productivity and accessibility of Sydney Airport to regional ­operators.

Mr Higgins said the group agreed that turboprop aircraft could be exempted from the 80 movements per hour cap, as they are from the curfew.

“This alone would increase the productivity at Sydney Airport by allowing more movements per hour,” he said.

“Moving more regional operators on to the third runway at Sydney comes with a penalty as it involves increased taxi times with a consequent increase in delays, aircraft turnaround times and a negative impact in on-time performance.

“Therefore any move to the third runway for regional operators would have to come with a corresponding benefit.

“To compensate for the negative commercial and operational impact of moving to the third runway any resultant increase in movements would need to be allocated to the slots currently preserved for NSW regional flights. Without this the regionals would be paying the penalty while the major airlines and Sydney Airport receive all the benefit.”

Australian Federation of Air Pilots president David Booth said the runway was operationally good but “unfortunately the 80 movement per hour cap is the limiting factor here”.

“There’s no real benefit unless the cap can be adjusted,” or the 15 minute measurements changed, Mr Booth said, noting that newer aircraft were quieter.

“In short, the solution is the cap, not the runway used,” he said.

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Security impost should be shared - expert  

Via the Oz today:

Security costs ‘must be spread’
12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH
With a push for greater security at regional airports, an expert has called for costs to be spread across the industry.

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The cost of any security crackdown at regional airports should be spread across all air passengers including those from capital cities, according to an aviation security expert.

As state, territory and local governments line up to warn that tougher security at regional airports could see some air services to the bush perish, security expert Geoff Askew says the costs should be shared.

Mr Askew, who ran Qantas’s security and emergency management for 20 years and is now principal at consultancy Askew & Associates, has told the Senate’s inquiry into regional air services that the security threat to aviation “is as real in regional Australia as it is in the capital cities”.

“There is a significant cost associated with the provision of leading-edge security technologies,” his submission says.

“The downside, particularly for regional airports with smaller passenger numbers, is the cost.”

He told the committee that aviation security costs should “be equally proportioned across the industry as a fixed-fee-per-passenger” cost in order “to preserve and encourage growth in vital air services to regional communities”.

This should include an approach based on the Canadian Air Transport Security Agency, where there was a centralised screening model to manage airport security.

The comments come as the government considers options to strengthen aviation security, including for regional airports.

Former infrastructure and transport minister Darren Chester ordered the Inspector of Transport Security to conduct the review last year

There are suggestions that requirements to screen travellers on aircraft weighing more than 20 tonnes will be extended to all regional public air services.

The office of the Minister for Home Affairs, Peter Dutton, recently said the government was “mindful of the impacts that security measures have on industry, particularly for regional and remote aviation” and that it was “important to balance regulatory costs against maintaining the overall security and sustainability of the aviation network”.

This comes amid a slew of warnings that tougher anti-­terrorism measures such as more screening could put an end to some air services in rural and regional areas.

Australian Airports Association chief executive officer Caroline Wilkie said “any changes to security requirements at regional airports must be funded by the federal government.”

“With regional airports already struggling to fund vital infrastructure maintenance and upgrades, it’s important the government provides funding certainty with any plan for new security measures in the regions,” Ms Wilkie said.

“The wide range of infrastructure and requirements at airports across the country mean that costings for security are often site-specific and require a tailored cost-recovery solution.”

She said security measures needed to be “proportionate”.

MTF...P2

[Peetwo]

And so it begins -

Via the Oz:  

Bush mayors jostle for academy

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

Women have made up about 15 per cent of more than 8500 applicants for Qantas’s proposed pilot academy.

---

Bush mayors jostle to host Alan Joyce’s pilot academy

Women make up about 15 per cent of more than 8500 ­aspiring pilots who have registered interest in Qantas’s proposed pilot academy, as regions vie to host the multimillion-dollar training ­facility.

The Australian can also reveal Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce has told state governments it ­expects the academy “will become a key contributor of economic growth and exporter of high- skilled jobs wherever it’s located”.

Amid a global pilot shortage, Qantas wants to get more women into the traditionally male-dominated industry. It has a goal of lifting the proportion of female pilots from 5 per cent, committing to a 20 per cent intake of women in this year’s pilot recruitment campaign. It hopes to double that over the next decade.

International Society of Women Airline Pilots’ communications chairwoman Kathy McCullough backed moves to get more women in the cockpit. She said the level of female pilots in the US was about 4-6 per cent.

Australian Women Pilots’ Association president Deb Evans said the education system needed to “make it far more visible that being a pilot is achievable and rewarding for women”, while airlines needed to make working conditions more flexible to help them achieve their objectives.

On the low numbers of female pilots now, she said perception that it was a “boy’s job” was part of the issue and there was a predominantly male training environment.

“Mentoring and more female role models are needed,’’ Mrs Evans said. “Not just the superwomen types but ordinary, accessible women who are pilots while still having some semblance of ­career-life balance.”

Last week, Qantas announced it would set up a pilot academy to train up to 500 pilots a year, which could make it the largest of its kind in the southern hemisphere. The carrier will hold talks with governments about possible locations and also expects to partner with an existing training provider.

CAE Oxford Aviation Academy general manager Michael Drinkall said it made sense for Qantas to want to partner with an existing flight training organisation “that has the physical and human capacity to meet their needs” because of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority approvals, staffing, assets and infrastructure work required in setting up training. He said a 2019 start-up would be “certainly a tight timeframe if starting from scratch”.

Leaders around regional Australia have put their hands up to host the academy.

Tamworth mayor Col Murray said the area already had infrastructure such as airspace, instrument landing system, control tower and parallel runway and CAE had recently opened a new operating base in Tamworth.

“We’ve already got a community that’s made the adjustment to small planes buzzing around with the training,” Mr Murray said.

Mr Joyce said the plan for the academy was part of his focus on future-proofing the carrier. “We certainly want the volatility taken out of the business,” he said.

“We’re finding no problem attracting people to Qantas. Last time we advertised we had over 1000 applicants from other airlines, from general aviation, from regional aviation and from the military,” Mr Joyce said.

“Our problem is if this trend continues, we think we’ll drain the ecosystem and that’s not good for aviation in the market. The reason why we want to get the pilot school up by 2019 is to future-proof that and give us another source of getting our own pilots.”

Mr Joyce has written to the states and territories about the plan: “Hopefully in the next few months we can get that process going and get conclusion on where it’s going to be based. I’ve had a couple of premiers who were getting rumours of this contact me.”

Hmm...here's an idea - why doesn't QF share the love around and sponsor several regional flying schools and at the same time bring back the Qantas Cadet pilot scheme? - Just saying...

MTF...P2

[Peetwo]

Flight instructor shortage deepens -

Via the Oz:

Instructor shortage ‘chronic’

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

A shortfall in flight instructors threatens to make it harder for Australia to avoid a pilot shortage.

---

Flight instructor shortage as airlines stock up on pilots

A shortfall in flight instructors threatens to add to Australia’s battle to avoid a local pilot shortage.

Amid a global rush to secure pilots, airlines are poaching flight instructors to work as pilots as they have experience in the cockpit.

An increase in the number of students has forced some schools to look at strategies including ­increasing pay and training to ­ensure they can retain enough ­instructors.

A new discussion paper circulated to the industry says that 70.6 per cent of employers have reported skills shortages, some of which are for instructors.

The paper, by Australian ­Industry Standards, says: “With the number of pilots currently predicted to increase substantially in the medium to long term, the need for qualified and appropriately skilled flight instructors, flight examiners and flight operations inspectors is also likely to ­increase.

“There is a demonstrated chronic shortage of flight instructors and flight examiners for both airplanes and helicopters. Similar shortages are experienced in other countries, with fierce competition for some specialist training skills. Multi-crew training and advanced simulator training skills are in particularly high demand.”

Australian Pilot Training ­Alliance group chief executive Glen Buckley said “there is certainly a very, very big shortage of flight instructors in the industry at the moment”.

“That’s been caused by the strength in the airline recruitment,” Mr Buckley said. “Lots of instructors are moving through the ranks a lot quicker.”

After learning to fly, many ­pilots then accumulate hours by teaching others to fly before working for carriers.

Mr Buckley said “a lot of ­experienced instructors have left the industry because of the turbulence over the last couple of years”, while younger instructors were spending less time working as instructors.

At the same time, new rules for flight instructor ratings, contained in part 61 of the Civil ­Aviation Safety Regulations, have made it “more challenging” to qualify instructors.

“What we’ve got is a drain out the top very quickly and a slower development coming in from the bottom,” he said.

The situation comes amid growing debate globally about training the 637,000 extra pilots that aircraft manufacturing giant Boeing expects will be needed over the next 20 years. About 40 per cent of that will be for the Asia-Pacific region.

University of NSW aviation director of flight operations, Brian Horton, said the school had lost about 50 per cent of flight instructors last year, who had to be replaced, to Qantas, QantasLink and the Royal Flying Doctor ­Service.

“And our numbers are increasing so we actually need an ­increase in instructor numbers,” Mr Horton said.

“It’s a big problem and everyone is having the same problem.”

CAE Oxford Aviation Academy general manager Michael Drinkall said there was no real shortage of instructors at the “grade 3” entry level, but it ­became a serious issue once ­instructors have progressed to grades 1 and 2 and have built up their multi-engine time.

This makes them much more attractive candidates for the airlines, especially if they have completed their airline transport pilot licence theory exams, he said.

Mr Drinkall said the situation could exacerbate the pilot shortage. “Our student numbers are increasing from both local and international customers. As the academy grows, we need more ­instructors to train the extra ­students,” he said.

CAE has recently opened a new training base in rural Tamworth and has 45 international students in training, with numbers set to increase during 2018 and beyond.

“There are many Asian airlines seeking training for their cadet pilots and while we have the aircraft and facilities to accommodate them we simply don’t have enough instructors to meet the growing demand,” Mr Drinkall said.

“We need to grow our instructor numbers but we are losing ­instructors to the airlines in Australia and the USA almost as fast as we can recruit them. Our average tenure for instructors when I started with CAE in 2011 was about 2.5 years. Now it’s down to about 1.3 years.”

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[Peetwo]

Regional airport security debate heats up -

Via the Oz:

---

Airlines oppose tighter security

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

Regional airlines have launched a pre-emptive strike over any move to toughen screening ­at rural and remote airports.

Regional Aviation Association of Australia chief executive Mike Higgins said the effects of a security crackdown would be “keenly felt by relatively few voters in the bush” but would make no initial difference “to the daily lives of millions of city voters, other than some esoteric warm and fuzzy feeling that the government is keeping us all safe”.

Mr Higgins said smaller communities would “lose their air service completely and every ­regional community that monitors its airline passenger numbers will know who they are”.

His comments come after a slew of state, territory and local governments warned that tougher security at regional airports could see some air services to the bush vanish.

Last year Darren Chester, infrastructure and transport minister at the time, ordered the Inspector of Transport Security to conduct a review into security.

There are suggestions that ­requirements to screen travellers on aircraft weighing more than 20 tonnes will be extended to all regional public air services.

Mr Higgins said beefed-up screening procedures for passengers and their baggage at regional airports would go ­beyond the cost of buying hi-tech equipment and systems.

There would need to be “significant” structural alterations and additions to airport terminals, including sterile areas.

“However, that is only half the equation,” he said.

“The ongoing operational costs will easily outweigh the ­initial purchase and installation costs within a few short years. Further, as technology in this area becomes ever more sophisticated, the systems will ­undoubtedly require upgrading sooner than we can imagine.”

The office of the Minister for Home Affairs, Peter Dutton, ­recently said it was “important to balance regulatory costs against maintaining the overall security and sustainability of the aviation network”, and that the government was “mindful of the impacts that security measures have on industry, particularly for regional and remote aviation”.

Debate is also raging about how to finance the cost of any crackdown.

Mr Higgins said the costs of extra measures should be shared equally by every domestic traveller or paid for from the public purse.

The Australian Airports ­Association has argued for federal government funding, while security expert Geoff Askew has said the costs should be spread across all air passengers.


Regional airlines have launched a pre-emptive strike over any move to toughen screening ­procedures at rural and remote airports.

Regional Aviation Association of Australia chief executive Mike Higgins said the effects of a security crackdown would be “keenly felt by relatively few voters in the bush” but would make no initial difference “to the daily lives of millions of city voters, other than some esoteric warm and fuzzy feeling that the government is keeping us all safe”.

Mr Higgins said smaller communities would “lose their air service completely and every ­regional community that monitors its airline passenger numbers will know who they are”.

His comments come after a slew of state, territory and local governments warned that tougher security at regional airports could see some air services to the bush vanish.

Last year Darren Chester, infrastructure and transport minister at the time, ordered the Inspector of Transport Security to conduct a review into security.

There are suggestions that ­requirements to screen travellers on aircraft weighing more than 20 tonnes will be extended to all regional public air services.

Mr Higgins said beefed-up screening procedures for passengers and their baggage at regional airports would go ­beyond the cost of buying hi-tech equipment and systems.

There would need to be “significant” structural alterations and additions to airport terminals, including sterile areas.

“However, that is only half the equation,” he said.

“The ongoing operational costs will easily outweigh the ­initial purchase and installation costs within a few short years. Further, as technology in this area becomes ever more sophisticated, the systems will ­undoubtedly require upgrading sooner than we can imagine.”

The office of the Minister for Home Affairs, Peter Dutton, ­recently said it was “important to balance regulatory costs against maintaining the overall security and sustainability of the aviation network”, and that the government was “mindful of the impacts that security measures have on industry, particularly for regional and remote aviation”.

Debate is also raging about how to finance the cost of any crackdown.

Mr Higgins said the costs of extra measures should be shared equally by every domestic traveller or paid for from the public purse.

The Australian Airports ­Association has argued for federal government funding, while security expert Geoff Askew has said the costs should be spread across all air passengers.

---

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[Peetwo]

QF flying school bidding heats up -

Via the ABC news:

---

Qantas pilot academy bids fly in as more regional councils join the race

ABC Goulburn Murray
By Ben Nielsen
Posted Mon at 1:03pm Mon 19 Mar 2018, 1:03pm

 
Photo: Albury mayor Kevin Mack says the recent redevelopment of the local airport made it a frontrunner in the race for the new Qantas pilot academy. (Supplied: Albury Airport)

Regional councils are scrambling to secure a new regional pilot training academy, which is expected to be the largest in the Southern Hemisphere.

Qantas revealed its plan to build the $20 million academy last month, with the aim of training about 500 pilots every year.

Federation Council, on the New South Wales border with Victoria, is the latest contender in a growing number of councils who have bid for the academy.

The council has proposed the facility be built at Corowa Airport.

Mayor Patrick Bourke said councillors only recently floated the idea but residents had already voiced their interest.

"Obviously we'll need to do some consultation with user groups, but we're confident the facility assets are out there and we're keen to look at the prospect," he said.

"I've spoken to a few residents and they're very excited."

It is hoped the facility would reinvigorate the airport, which some residents were concerned had fallen into disrepair.

One resident said the bid was opportunistic, as the airport had largely been neglected by council.

"If they can get [the pilot academy], it'd be fantastic for the area — but the council has to maintain the joint. They do a crappy job now."

 

Photo: Residents are backing plans to have the training facility at Corowa. (Supplied: Steve McIntosh)

Councillor Bourke said the airport had plenty to offer.

"There's certainly good administration buildings and there's even a swimming pool for pilots," he said.

"There's big hangars and the facilities are pretty good, but I think the runways would need some attention.

"Until we look at the documents from Qantas, we won't know what they want."

Council bid not flying with locals

Unlike the Corowa Airport, which is based near an industrial estate, Albury Airport is nestled against residential northern Albury.

Resident Jan McIlroy said locals would face increased noise levels and air traffic, if Albury City Council's bid for the academy was successful.

She said residents were disappointed there hadn't been proper community consultation.
"A lot of us have come to Albury from Sydney or Melbourne to come to a nice, quiet rural town," she said.

"I know business is important but you really have to talk to your ratepayers about what kind of business it's going to be and how it's going to impact on the people that come here."

"If they're really that dead set on doing it, are they going to supply us with double glazing for all our windows and are they going to put noise curfews in place? Or is it all just going to be a pledge to get Qantas here?"

But Albury Mayor Kevin Mack said a recent redevelopment of the local airport made it a frontrunner in the race for the pilot academy.

"We think we're in a good position to attract that particular opportunity," he said.

"Certainly there's a lot to say about Albury as a destination, with 170 flights a week.

"Whoever gets it, it's a good proposition, and we'll be working hard for Albury."

A heated competition

Councillor Mack said the City of Wagga Wagga, which will also vie for the academy, was being too ambitious.

"I think Albury is probably more attractive because we haven't already got [a school], but [Wagga Wagga's] got the REX school — I don't think Qantas want to compete with REX."
But Wagga Wagga council general manager, Peter Thompson, said the Qantas facility would be a logical add-on to the existing school.

He said it would not be a surprise if every regional airport placed a bid for the project, because it represented a boost to local economies.

Mr Thompson's view was shared by Shellharbour City mayor Marianne Saliba.

"It's a good move for the Illawarra," Cr Saliba said.

"Any opportunity we have to grow [Albion Park Airport], to encourage our employment, to encourage growth and to assist a large company like Qantas is a really good thing for us."
"I'd hope the state government would understand what we're trying to do and support us."

Reigniting Australian aviation

No further information has been released about the pilot school, but a Qantas spokesperson said the proposal had taken off since it was announced last month.

"In 10 days, more than 9,000 budding pilots have registered their interest, with 15 per cent of these being women."

 

Photo: Dick Smith says the academy will be a gamechanger for Australian aviation. (ABC News: Tom Hancock)

The former chairman of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, Dick Smith, said the school would be a gamechanger for the Australian aviation industry.

"I think it's the start of revitalising aviation. We need a dozen flying schools like this."

"Albion Park is ideal, Albury's ideal, Camden, maybe Mittagong," Mr Smith said.

"There's so many good places in what I call other than non-city Australia."

"I'm enthusiastic we could become the world leader in flying training."

---

MTF...P2

[Peetwo]

CASA delays new fatigue rules, announces independent review
August 8, 2017 by australianaviation.com.au 1 Comment

& Bob's comment...

Bob says

August 8, 2017 at 4:23 pm

Why does that not surprise me . Useless regulator run by the airlines .

...If you want a perfect example of how an operator/airline can appear to tick all the boxes with a CASA approved FRMS, yet then have major issues of compliance and operability of that FRMS, go no further than the PelAir FRMS pre-ditching. Read & absorb Ben Cook's PelAir FRMS Special Audit Report - 09 CASA_Doc 10_Web

Update: Review report released - Finally!

Again via Oz Aviation:

---

 CASA releases final report of review of new fatigue rules
March 22, 2018 by australianaviation.com.au



Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) is seeking feedback in response to an independent review of its new fatigue risk management rules.

The review was announced in August 2017, when CASA deferred the introduction of Civil Aviation Order (CAO) 48.1 in response to feedback from the aviation community.

The final report, released on Thursday, said the independent review team “supports the need for CAO 48.1”.

“Scientific knowledge about fatigue and its effects on human reliability are strong enough to assert the existence of a significant risk exposure that needs to be properly managed,” the report said.

“The absence of a precise and reliable quantitative model to describe the exact link between duty time and fatigue on the one hand, and fatigue and airborne risk on the other, should not be used as an excuse to underestimate the need to adapt fatigue risk management approaches.

“On the contrary, these uncertainties must trigger a precautionary attitude and encourage routine regulatory attention to ongoing fatigue research, including aviation industry fatigue-related accident/incident analysis.”

To that end, the report outlined 24 recommendations to improve and implement the fatigue rules contained in CAO 48.1.

These included freezing “transition dates for all elements of the aviation industry until recommended changes resulting from the current review can be made to stabilise a final version of CAO 48.1 and all associated supporting documentation for implementation”.

Another recommendation called for CASA to adopt a “staggered approach to the implementation of and transition to CAO 48.1, with initial transition proceeding first for elements of the industry with the highest risk exposure”.

There was also a recommendation to revise flight duty period (FDP) limitations to make them more closely aligned with international averages, as well as increasing the flexibility of the fatigue risk management system (FRMS) option to enhance scalability through additional risk-based tiers.

The report also recommended CASA consider removing Civil Aviation Safety Regulations (CASR) Part 137 aerial application operations from CAO 48.1 “due to the sector’s lower relative risk exposures”.

“The current version of CAO 48.1 attempts to cater for the diverse nature of Australian aviation operations by proposing different rules for different groups of operations,” the report said.

“Within each of these groups however, there is still substantial diversity in the operations being conducted. Hence this approach may disadvantage some operators by imposing a rule set that is overly prescriptive and/or not suited to the varied characteristics of their operation.

“It is proposed that limited dispensations be allowed, where it can be shown that CASA considers specified fatigue mitigation to be appropriate relative to the risk exposure profile of an operation.”



The review was conducted by professional consultancy services company Dedale Asia Pacific. Members of the review team comprised two experts from Dedale, two from Integrated Safety Support (ISS) and one from the University of Queensland. There was also a three-person expert advisory panel that supported the review.

CASA chairman Jeff Boyd welcomed the report.

“The review team has confirmed the need to change from the old Civil Aviation Order 48 fatigue rules and standard industry exemptions and CASA’s Board supports this view,” Boyd said in a statement.

“The report provides a method to find an appropriate balance between fatigue risk and operational impact and the board is seeking input from industry on potential implementation issues prior to finalising changes to the rules.”

CASA said the deadline for public submissions in response to the report was April 17.

The final report and details on how to offer feedback can be found on the CASA website.

VIDEO: An October 2016 video published on CASA’s YouTube channel on CAO 48.1

The new CAO 48.1 rules had been welcomed by some aviation groups and condemned by others.

When their introduction was previously delayed in 2016, the Australian Airline Pilots Association (AusALPA), said its members were “very concerned” and described fatigue as a “clear safety issue” given how often it had been cited as a contributing factor in recent aviation accidents and incidents.

Meanwhile, The Australian Aviation Associations’ Forum (TAAAF), which comprises peak representative bodies in the local industry, has previously called on CASA to abolish CAO 48.1, arguing that “industry rejects the limited science it is based on, the ignoring of decades of safe operations, the massive costs it will impose and the complexity that will inevitably lead to non-compliance”.

The Regional Aviation Association of Australia (RAAA) chief executive Mike Higgins has said previously the association’s airline members had a different set of operational environmental factors to the larger operators.

“We are all for rules for managing fatigue, don’t get us wrong, but they have got to be fit for purpose,” Higgins said in the October 2017 edition of Australian Aviation.

“We are arguing on behalf of our members, who don’t fly multiple timezones, who don’t get up at 3 o’clock in the morning, who don’t land after 11 o’clock at night.

“Therefore any fatigue management rule should look at each individual sector of the regional airline industry and because we operate primarily in one time zone and so forth we should have a particular set of rules for managing fatigue.”

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[thorn bird]

Which begs the question.....?

How much money did CAsA squander on CAO48.1?
Who squandered it?
Is the person who squandered it still employed by CAsA and in what capacity?
How much money was squandered on Consultants to decide 48.1 is a tin of worms?
Did the person who squandered money on CAO48.1 also have anything to do squandering money on the Part61 tin of worms?
How much money did CAsA squander on Part61?
When is the government going to accept money has been squandered by incompetent people, to produce industry killing regulations that harmonise with no-one, and do not produce the stated aim of improving safety, nor managing risk other than reducing the number of hours flown by reducing the number of participants in the industry, forcing anything remotely innovative offshore, exporting Australia's maintenance offshore and moving whatever flying training into foreign owned monopolies, along with our airport infrastructure which benefits no-one least of all the punters who use those facilities?

[Peetwo]

Update: Thorny QON etc..etc..etc  

Which begs the question.....?

How much money did CAsA squander on CAO48.1?

Who squandered it?

Is the person who squandered it still employed by CAsA and in what capacity?

How much money was squandered on Consultants to decide 48.1 is a tin of worms?

Did the person who squandered money on CAO48.1 also have anything to do squandering money on the Part61 tin of worms?

How much money did CAsA squander on Part61?

When is the government going to accept money has been squandered by incompetent people, to produce industry killing regulations that harmonise with no-one;
and do not produce the stated aim of improving safety; nor managing risk other than reducing the number of hours flown by reducing the number of participants in the industry, forcing anything remotely innovative offshore; exporting Australia's maintenance offshore and moving whatever flying training into foreign owned monopolies; along with our airport infrastructure which benefits no-one least of all the punters who use those facilities?

Good QON you ask Thorny... However shouldn't we at least give Carmody a choccy frog? Because by default (with the release of the report) he is admitting (for once) that the CAO48.1 project was a waste of time, money and resources?

 Here is another rehash of the story, this time via the Oz:

Fatigue review’s wake-up call

12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

With longer and longer flights becoming more common, rules on pilot fatigue need upgrading.

---

CASA told to revamp pilot fatigue rules

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority has been told it could be more explicit on guidance for in-flight rest facilities for ultra-long-range flights amid the prospect of flights longer than 17 hours.

The independent review of the fatigue rules prepared for CASA notes the regulations don’t detail minimum standards for facilities such as bunks on ultra-long-range flights. Beyond the issue of the mega-long flights, the review recommends the adoption of flight duty period limits that are closer to international averages for the sector.

It also calls for a multi-tiered approach to fatigue risk management systems — which guide the design of rostering — with the most stringent requirements for commercial planes and cargo transport. This is aimed at ensuring that high compliance costs designed for large airliners are not imposed on less well-resourced operators.

The review, led by Melbourne-based consultancy Dedale Asia Pacific, also recommends revising or even doing away with the ­fatigue requirements for aerial agricultural operations. The development of the proposed new rules, reflected in CAO 48.1, were prompted by International Civil Aviation Organisation recommendations. It came after a series of accidents in which fatigue was considered to be a significant factor.

The Australian Airline Pilots Association has been critical of delays in the rules. But Regional Express recently warned that the changes to the fatigue rules had the potential to drive up operating costs .

CASA chairman Jeff Boyd said the review had confirmed the need to change from the old rules.

“The report provides a method to find an appropriate balance between fatigue risk and operational impact, and the board is seeking input from industry on potential implementation issues prior to finalising changes to the rules,” he said.

Also related to the Alphabets and from the Oz today :

Rural airstrips receive extra $7m


12:00amANNABEL HEPWORTH

Regional and remote airstrips are set to receive an extra $7m under measures being unveiled today by the federal government.

---

Regional and remote airstrips receive extra $7m for upgrades

Regional and remote airstrips are set to receive a further $7 million in funding under measures the government will unveil today.

The Australian can reveal that Infrastructure and Transport Minister Michael McCormack will outline the 31 projects that will get money under the Remote Airstrip Upgrade Program, which funds work in isolated communities.

One of the biggest projects to receive funding will be for the up­grading of Camooweal airstrip in Queensland, which is used by Royal Flying Doctor Service aircraft for the town’s weekly clinics and is the potential base for supplies and evacuation should there be a disaster in the region. The government’s $750,000 investment will be matched by funding from Mount Isa City Council.

Mr McCormack said remote towns and smaller communities “rely on good transport links to survive and thrive”.

“These airstrip upgrades will ensure continued access to essential, potentially lifesaving healthcare as well as fresh food, mail ser­vices and access to employment and education opportunities.”

Mr McCormack, who replaced Barnaby Joyce in the portfolio and as deputy prime minister last month, said he wanted to see the 31 projects under way “to make sure we deliver the infrastructure needed to boost local economies, support local needs and create more local jobs”.

The development comes as the Australian Airports Association has been pushing the government to beef-up the program.

The association has told Treasury the program should be ­extended for another four years in the May budget and should be ­allocated $15m a year.

The program was allocated $33.7m across four years in the 2015-16 budget.

Other projects that will receive announced funding today include Mapoon aerodrome upgrade in far north Queensland. That project will get $1.57m for works including clearing the airstrip, security fencing, a 250m runway extension and sealing the runway, taxiway and apron.

Also in Queensland, Quilpie will receive $210,000 in funding for pilot-activated lighting and an emergency power generator so the lighting can be operated in harsh weather.

Other work receiving finance includes the resealing and resurfacing of runways at Ivanhoe in NSW and runway resurfacing at Victoria’s Hopetoun.

&..

Virgin Australia’s advanced pilot cadets soon to take flight

Industry-wide efforts to ward off a looming pilot shortage have received another fillip with a group of Virgin Australia’s advanced pilot cadets to graduate today.

Members of the group, who completed a 22-week course at Flight Training Adelaide in South Australia, will take flying positions with Virgin on the ATR72 and Boeing 777 types.

Virgin group flight operations director Stuart Aggs said it was the first time in the history of the program that the advanced and ab initio cadetships had been done simultaneously. The ab initio cadets are due to graduate in November.

This, he said, was designed to widen opportunities for the cadetship program.

During the course, cadets had worked on aeroplane types including a Diamond DA40, Diamond DA42 Twinstar and Mudry CAP 10 aircraft.

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Qantas joins global hunt for pilots

Qantas Group has started a drive to recruit pilots amid a global scramble to secure pilots.

Amid expectations that hundreds of thousands of new pilots will be needed in the next two decades, Qantas says it is focused on building a long-term line-up for its airlines, which already employ 3500 pilots.

The move is the second external pilot recruitment campaign for Qantas in recent years.

Airlines within the Qantas Group have between them hired more than 600 new pilots in Australia since 2016, and want to recruit another 350 by the end of this year.

Airlines in the group, including QantasLink and Jetstar, are now taking applications, with roadshows due to be held across the country next month.

Qantas Group had started an internal recruitment drive for pilots wanting to move within the group before looking externally.

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