[Peetwo]

Clinton McKenzie Addendum

Ref:

Popinjay flips the bird (again) at RAAus Pilot fatal -   

Via the other Aunty:

Pilot in fatal Nullarbor plane crash was 43-year-old Perth father-of-two Michael Hebbard

ABC Goldfields / By Jarrod Lucas
Posted Yesterday at 3:08pm


Michael Hebbard was the only person on board the light plane which crashed on the Nullarbor shortly after take off.  (Supplied: gofundme.com)

The pilot in last Friday's fatal plane crash on the Nullarbor has been identified as 43-year-old Perth father-of-two Michael Hebbard, described as a "loving partner" and "doting dad". 

Key points:

• Michael Hebbard, 43, of Perth, was killed in a light plane crash on the Nullarbor on December 16
  
• The crash occurred shortly after take-off from the remote Caiguna airstrip and was reported about 9:30am
  
• WA Police will prepare a report for the Coroner
  

Some comments in reply, via AOPA Oz Facebook page:

Dennis Hill

Under the Chicago Convention, all aircraft accidents are meant to be investigated. The problem is the ATSB just don't seem to have the budget to do so.

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Gregg Bisset

Really sad. Lack of investigation ATSB should mean the end of RAAUS and CASA arrangements to increase weights as this could lead to a significant number of accidents not investigated and could in time have an impact on insurers. Michael's family deserve closure.

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Ian Mooney

Yet they are able to investigate a Cessna 182 GA accident west of Bris. Why is 1 worthy of investigation while another is not?

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Shannon Baker

Time to FOI ATSB finances and where the money goes. Oh boy imagine that can of worms.

Author

Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Australia

Shannon Baker exactly. I am already speaking with Senators with respect to having this issue raised during the RRAT Hearings.

Via the AOPA OZ Facebook:

Clinton McKenzie

There are nuances to the answer to the question as to what accidents/incidents ATSB has power to investigate in law. That’s a different question to the one as to what accidents/incidents ATSB chooses to investigate or not. The latter are necessarily a subset of the former.

Complex issues affect the ATSB’s jurisdiction to investigate an RAAus aircraft accident. They’re not VH-registered - and that’s one of the links to the ICAO convention obligation on Australia (from which obligation Australia has already filed a difference to the effect that Australia can choose not to investigate some accidents, anyway). RAAus aircraft are often owned by individuals (rather than constitutional corporations) often engaged in purely intra-state flights and usually engaged in purely private flights, all of which issues are relevant to the scope of ATSB’s jurisdiction.

Here’s what s 11 of the TSI Act says on this:

“11 Constitutional limitations on powers and functions

Aircraft
(1) The powers in this Act, so far as they relate to aircraft and air navigation, can only be exercised in relation to:
(a) air navigation conducted in the course of trade or commerce with other countries or among the States; or
(b) air navigation:
(i) outside Australia; or
(ii) within a Territory, or to or from a Territory; or
(iii) within a Commonwealth place, or to or from a Commonwealth place; or
(iv) on aircraft owned or operated by a constitutional corporation or Commonwealth entity; or
(v) in respect of which a State referral of power is in operation; or
(vi) in relation to any other matter with respect to which the Parliament has power to make laws; or
© giving effect to an international agreement; or
(d) matters of international concern.”

The mid-air at Gympie involved at least one VH-registered aircraft.

The 182 accident west of Brisbane was a commercial operation involving pax. The aircraft was Vh-registered and owned/operated by a constitutional corporation.

MTF...P2