[Peetwo]

Boyd v Angus (day 3 of the campaign) - The tail wagging the dog.

What a difference 48 hrs makes after the Weekend Oz exposé, where the alliance was drawn up against aviation safety bureaucratic embuggerance, & was made public - i.e. the battlelines were drawn...

Today from that man again, plus some worthy comments/observations...

Pilots back reforms for air space overhaul  

• by: EAN HIGGINS
  
• From: The Australian
  
• July 13, 2015 12:00AM
  

Reporter
Sydney





The new chairman of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, Jeff Boyd. Picture: Ray Strange Source: News Corp Australia


The union representing pilots has thrown its weight behind an audacious move to transform management of the nation’s skies by adopting the safer US model ­extending air traffic control over more airspace, particularly in ­regional areas.  

The move also has the clear support of Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss, who as minister ­responsible for aviation will soon release a new airspace policy statement calling on aviation authorities to “adopt proven international best practice airspace systems adapted to benefit Australia’s ­aviation environment”.

But other aspects of the new ­direction unveiled last week by the new chairman of the Civil Avia­tion Safety Authority, Jeff Boyd, have run into immediate resistance. The government organisation which controls the ­nation’s air traffic, Airservices Australia, has reiterated its refusal to have the fire crews it employs at region­al airports man radios to provide ­pilots with potentially lifesaving local weather and air traffic inform­ation, defying moves by CASA to clear a regulatory path for them to do so.

The insistence of Airservices Australia chairman Angus Houston that his organisation’s fire and rescue officers will not provide the Unicom radio advice service, as their US firefighter counterparts do at many regional airports, could result in higher air ticket prices.

Regional airports such as ­Ballina on the NSW north coast which want to introduce a radio service will be forced, in the absenc­e of Airservices firefighters doing so, to hire retired air traffic controllers to perform the role, charging airlines the additional costs, which they will in turn pass on to passengers.

Sir Angus’s position pits him against Mr Boyd, who said he would sponsor a board directive aimed at freeing up the range of ­information that ground staff — ­including, potentially, fire fighters ­— can provide to pilots.

Airservices and the air traffic controllers union, Civil Air, are united on the firefighters issue, with the union insisting on no changes to the current regulations, which prohibit any person who has not held a controller’s licence in the past 10 years from providing air traffic and weather information.

As revealed by The Weekend Australian, CASA will progressively review airspace around the country with a view to extending control where radar or other surveilla­nce technologies permit.

Unlike the airspace system in the US and Canada, where commercial aircraft throughout the two countries are always directed by air traffic controllers ­almost to the runway, whether or not there is radar coverage, Australia has a patchwork system­.

Apart from the larger cities, controlled airspace generally only comes down to 8500 feet.
At this point controllers no longer direct aircraft and pilots are ­required to talk to each other over the radio to establish each other’s position and work out manoeuvres to avoid colliding with each other.

CASA is expected to first ­expand controlled airspace around Ballina, with a recom­mendation likely soon to lower the level above which controllers still direct traffic from 8500 feet to 5000 feet.

The president of the Australian Federation of Air Pilots, airline captain David Booth, said pilots heartily endorsed the move.

“We absolutely support that. It gives greater protection to air traffic,” Mr Booth said.
He also praised a report by US air traffic control expert Jeff ­Griffith, who was commissioned by The Australian last week to ­review Australian airspace, 11 years after the federal government brought him here to help introduce a US-style national airspace system.

“This has not happened, but I strongly support this objective even today,” Mr Griffith wrote in his report.

Civil Air president Daryl Hickey said he was unable to comment because the union had not seen the specifics of the proposed airspace changes.

The manager of Ballina Byron Gateway Airport, Neil Weatherson, has said he would prefer the 17 firefighters based at the airport in a new $13.5 million station with its own viewing tower, to provide the radio service, since they were there anyway and well placed to do so.

But he said last week that because Airservices leadership showed no sign of budging, he would instead hire retired air traffic controllers to provide the local weather and traffic advice to ­pilots.

This will require employing three or four new staff, at a cost Mr Weatherson said he would pass on to airlines as airport charge­s, to in turn be passed on to passengers.

An Airservices spokesman ­reiterated the view expressed by Sir Angus that its firefighters’ prime duty was to be always ready to deal quickly with emergencies.

“Our services include rapid ­response to any incident, anywhere on an airport, in less than three minutes,” Airservices said, adding that this included dealing with any medical incident.

The service made more than 6700 responses nationally last year, with 28 lives saved, the spokesman said.

Aviator and businessman Dick Smith, who has lobbied for firefighters to provide the radio service, described Airservices’ position as “outrageous’’.

“They have a monopoly on providing the fire service, so the airport can’t hire its own fire fighters and direct what duties they will perform, but Airservices won’t provide the radio service,’’ Mr Smith said.

 

Hastings Bob

2 hours ago

It looks like Civil Air, the union, wants more members and Angus Houston wants peace in his workplace. Does all this sound familiar. Hint, TURC.



Ted
1 hour ago

Looks again like the union tail is wagging the government employer dog.
The changes as proposed are sensible and have worked very well in the states for decades, but Civil Air and ASA keep up with the mantra of " worlds best practice", and keep pushing whats best for them and not the pilots or the flying public.

Always had a lot of regard for Sir Angas, but this anti progress attitude doesn't sit well.
Come on ASA , let common sense prevail. 

CJ

31 minutes ago

Once again obstructionist UNIONS!!!

So I wonder when Pinocchio, on (or not.. ) behalf of Skidmore, will either confirm or deny that the CASA Executive management team is currently operating in defiance of a CASA Board Directive... 

 "...But other aspects of the new ­direction unveiled last week by the new chairman of the Civil Avia­tion Safety Authority, Jeff Boyd, have run into immediate resistance..."

...with the goodwill & backing of the minister...

..The move also has the clear support of Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss, who as minister ­responsible for aviation will soon release a new airspace policy statement calling on aviation authorities to “adopt proven international best practice airspace systems adapted to benefit Australia’s ­aviation environment”...

Fascinating----

No doubt MTF..P2