Too late for anyone hoping for a smooth pathway for CASA reform. I will explain at the end.
My comment on the committee hearing: the problems of CASA, as demonstrated by the good Senators and Pip Spences valiant efforts to answer the unanswerable are that firstly, her senior executive team set her up to fail and secondly, it is impossible to codify "safety" in a set of legalities. if you try, the regulations you write will just get more and more complex as you try and cater for new eventualities.
For example take the questions raised by the Senators about single engined rescue helicopters in SA and fire fighting Blackhawk passenger carrying; can anyone NOT see that the solution to those matters will be another ten pages of regulations and exemptions? Furthermore those regulations will only be written after direct pressure from the Senators.
Of course what SHOULD happen when an issue like this surfaces is reference back to first principles that should be contained in the preamble and wording of the Aviation Act, but our Aviation Act is rotten and offers no guidance, so instead we rely on pitiful legal bullshit that poor Pip has to try and justify but can't.
....And all of that is without allowing for the personal vendettas and corruption embedded in CASA as exemplified in the opening questions.
As for CASA reform it is now a question of whose metaphorical blood is going to be on the floor in Six months time. It is now too late for any reform before the federal election.
If the coalition win and the Nationals numbers don't collapse then Joyces SoE stands, we then have no choice but to get rid of CASA senior management and start again - this is the "quick and dirty" reform option. The slow and clean option is out as CASA senior management won't change. They have to go and quickly and with them, the old Aviation Act. That means management metaphorical blood on the floor.
if labor wins, then there will be no reform. GA and recreational flying will be sacrificed as petrol guzzling dinosaurs to the green voters - they hate farmers and regional Australia anyway. Senior Management will remain, take revenge on their critics and preside over the end of most GA and recreational flying. Labor has already said as much if you can read the code.
My comment on the committee hearing: the problems of CASA, as demonstrated by the good Senators and Pip Spences valiant efforts to answer the unanswerable are that firstly, her senior executive team set her up to fail and secondly, it is impossible to codify "safety" in a set of legalities. if you try, the regulations you write will just get more and more complex as you try and cater for new eventualities.
For example take the questions raised by the Senators about single engined rescue helicopters in SA and fire fighting Blackhawk passenger carrying; can anyone NOT see that the solution to those matters will be another ten pages of regulations and exemptions? Furthermore those regulations will only be written after direct pressure from the Senators.
Of course what SHOULD happen when an issue like this surfaces is reference back to first principles that should be contained in the preamble and wording of the Aviation Act, but our Aviation Act is rotten and offers no guidance, so instead we rely on pitiful legal bullshit that poor Pip has to try and justify but can't.
....And all of that is without allowing for the personal vendettas and corruption embedded in CASA as exemplified in the opening questions.
As for CASA reform it is now a question of whose metaphorical blood is going to be on the floor in Six months time. It is now too late for any reform before the federal election.
If the coalition win and the Nationals numbers don't collapse then Joyces SoE stands, we then have no choice but to get rid of CASA senior management and start again - this is the "quick and dirty" reform option. The slow and clean option is out as CASA senior management won't change. They have to go and quickly and with them, the old Aviation Act. That means management metaphorical blood on the floor.
if labor wins, then there will be no reform. GA and recreational flying will be sacrificed as petrol guzzling dinosaurs to the green voters - they hate farmers and regional Australia anyway. Senior Management will remain, take revenge on their critics and preside over the end of most GA and recreational flying. Labor has already said as much if you can read the code.