History - for future reference.
Old Nostradamus fancied himself a 'seer' of the future; too airy-fairy and ambiguous for my taste and nowhere near as acute as 'Fearless Phelan' when it came to prediction and far sighted comment. The remarkable thing how is not how applicable the articles were at the time of writing; but how very apt they remain in today's world. One could take any one of Paul's comments, cut, paste and re date it, today - and it would stand as fair comment of the situation aviation has been trapped in for over a decade (or two). Find a coffee and a comfy seat, take a journey back in time and consider how very applicable the writings are today; still after all this time. It is truly remarkable how little 'progress' has been made in real reform of anything that matters; in fact there is evidence of a very real regression from 'reform' of regulation or regulator behaviour. Anyone who has to deal or negotiate with CASA should study the recent history; it may not help but at least forearmed is forewarned;
Stunned Silence.
Phelan: - "Aviation Industry “disappointment” is quickly morphing into outrage over what many stakeholders now see as the government’s lethargic reaction to the “Forsyth Review” which has clearly ex-posed a need for major organisational changes to various aspects of the way the regulator goes about its business.
They are alarmed at the lack of any visible response from Deputy PM and Infrastructure Minister Warren Truss who although he has acknowledged the Air Safety Regulation Review’s (ASRR) recommendations, does not appear to have set out an urgent plan of action for their adoption. There also hasn’t been any visible response from CASA or Mr Truss’s Department. The Australian Aviation Associations Forum, representing several major and diverse industry groups, has been seeking a meeting with the Minister for several days but without success.
The situation has created a perceived void of policy that is now affecting the futures of individuals, manufacturers, AOC holders and MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) certificate holders alike.
Change:
Phelan - The Civil Aviation Safety Authority’s handling of its enforcement responsibilities has already seriously degraded Australia’s air safety climate by generating mounting mutual distrust and antipathy between industry and regulator. There is now more confrontation, and less mutual respect and cooperation, than has ever existed between the regulatory body and an industry which now considers itself to be under siege from its own regulator.
Trust
Phelan - But sixteen months after the release of the ASRR in May 2014, the issues around mutual trust still hadn’t been acknowledged in any public statements from CASA or the Department. Industry watched cynically as hopes for any appreciable change appeared to be fading in the way that had dogged so many earlier attempts at reform. Exasperation was heightened by (then) CASA director John McCormick’s public statements blaming industry’s alleged unpreparedness for endless delays in implementation. More than a year after those insulting and misleading assertions were first made, adoption of the “Part 61” licensing regulations was still delayed by CASA’s failure to complete and publish the micromanagement-laden regulatory guidance material with which industry was expected to comply fully by the end of August 2017.
and no - 'you can't roller skate in a Buffalo heard'.
Old Nostradamus fancied himself a 'seer' of the future; too airy-fairy and ambiguous for my taste and nowhere near as acute as 'Fearless Phelan' when it came to prediction and far sighted comment. The remarkable thing how is not how applicable the articles were at the time of writing; but how very apt they remain in today's world. One could take any one of Paul's comments, cut, paste and re date it, today - and it would stand as fair comment of the situation aviation has been trapped in for over a decade (or two). Find a coffee and a comfy seat, take a journey back in time and consider how very applicable the writings are today; still after all this time. It is truly remarkable how little 'progress' has been made in real reform of anything that matters; in fact there is evidence of a very real regression from 'reform' of regulation or regulator behaviour. Anyone who has to deal or negotiate with CASA should study the recent history; it may not help but at least forearmed is forewarned;
Stunned Silence.
Phelan: - "Aviation Industry “disappointment” is quickly morphing into outrage over what many stakeholders now see as the government’s lethargic reaction to the “Forsyth Review” which has clearly ex-posed a need for major organisational changes to various aspects of the way the regulator goes about its business.
They are alarmed at the lack of any visible response from Deputy PM and Infrastructure Minister Warren Truss who although he has acknowledged the Air Safety Regulation Review’s (ASRR) recommendations, does not appear to have set out an urgent plan of action for their adoption. There also hasn’t been any visible response from CASA or Mr Truss’s Department. The Australian Aviation Associations Forum, representing several major and diverse industry groups, has been seeking a meeting with the Minister for several days but without success.
The situation has created a perceived void of policy that is now affecting the futures of individuals, manufacturers, AOC holders and MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) certificate holders alike.
Change:
Phelan - The Civil Aviation Safety Authority’s handling of its enforcement responsibilities has already seriously degraded Australia’s air safety climate by generating mounting mutual distrust and antipathy between industry and regulator. There is now more confrontation, and less mutual respect and cooperation, than has ever existed between the regulatory body and an industry which now considers itself to be under siege from its own regulator.
- Every certificate holder is continually faced with the threat that it can be shut down almost at the whim of a single CASA decision maker through the continued exploitation of apparently unintended provisions of the Civil Aviation Act and Regulations – some would describe these as loopholes:
Trust
Phelan - But sixteen months after the release of the ASRR in May 2014, the issues around mutual trust still hadn’t been acknowledged in any public statements from CASA or the Department. Industry watched cynically as hopes for any appreciable change appeared to be fading in the way that had dogged so many earlier attempts at reform. Exasperation was heightened by (then) CASA director John McCormick’s public statements blaming industry’s alleged unpreparedness for endless delays in implementation. More than a year after those insulting and misleading assertions were first made, adoption of the “Part 61” licensing regulations was still delayed by CASA’s failure to complete and publish the micromanagement-laden regulatory guidance material with which industry was expected to comply fully by the end of August 2017.
and no - 'you can't roller skate in a Buffalo heard'.