TGIF on the AP Forum: 9/06/23

First from this week’s #SBG: “Alice: Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?“

Bloody good question that one; and pertinent in so many ways. We, in aviation land are beset by many ‘puzzles’; indeed there is a long (long) list of such things – all begging intelligent, clearly articulated answers of the ‘cash and no bull-shit’ type. – Alas.

“Then we got into a labyrinth, and, when we thought we were at the end,came out again at the beginning, having still to see as much as ever.”

Much like Plato – we seem to amble endlessly through an intricate maze; seeking only the exit into sunshine and fresh air with some of our questions answered; tough gig. It seems not to matter which entrance one takes to the maze. Go through the ‘engineering portal’ guided by an equally confounded ‘master’ of that game and whilst he is not totally lost and knows exactly where the ‘exit’ is – he still runs into mirages and thick, cloying cobwebs of ignorance, deception and hidden locked doors. It is quite a journey when taken with master Cannane; and, he does know the pathways. There is a map – the AMROBA newsletter and massive efforts behind the scenes seem to at least be bringing some ‘clarity’ to those in the DoIT who purport to be ‘the’ experts’ in formulating Australia’s way out of the engineering conundrum.

“…to no one did it occur the book and the maze were one and the same thing.”

Another seemingly innocuous portal is the aviation medical certification one; a good companion to have before daring to enter this dark realm is ‘Lead Balloon‘ who has ventured many times into this swampy, misty realm where nothing seems to be exactly what it appears to be. You could be forgiven for thinking the CVD pilot’s battles were over; many approved to be ‘operational’ – ‘living the dream’ only to discover that yet again, the goal posts have been shifted at half time. This applies to many other ‘matters’ which conflict with accredited ‘expert’ specialist advice; which standing alone is a step to take; but, when it comes to adopting world best practice? Well, the resident experts in what seems to every field of ‘medicine’ seem to be a little gun shy. A tricky, subjective labyrinth this one, expert opinion nil; secret meeting cohort ahead – by simply disregarding anything which dares disagree with their ‘opinion’.

“It is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.”

Of course, to penetrate the mysteries of Avmad; one must gain entry to the ‘Doors of Durin’ – “speak friend and enter”.

Much like Gandalf and his crew gaining entrance through the use of the ‘Elvish’ word for ‘friend’ was only the start of a a whole load of troubles they could have happily done without. For lurking within this sinister maze are creatures unimaginable, all with an ‘agenda’.To transit this particular maze, one needs not only nerves of steel, big reserves, minister supported (no matter what) and an indefatigable bucket of self righteousness. Hard to beat. The only way to escape from the deep dark halls is acquiescence. Coulson a stellar example of ‘go along to get along’. Happily making coin off a ‘foreign air operator certificate’ (FAOC) – USA crew all fully immersed in the FAA way of doing ‘stuff’, trained and fostered in the US of A. It is a great puzzle – why; in the name of operational clarity would you decide to adopt the CASA ‘way’ of operating against a world of experience under sensible rules. Why? Then there is the nagging ‘operational’ questions which would normally have CASA in conniptions – a constant flow of ‘heads’ of whatever; the Martin/ CASA connection, the speed of approvals – etc. All passing strange – very, very peculiar. No matter – P2 is on the ‘bins’ and there will be much more to follow (MTF) – there is most definitely something ‘not quite kosher’ here; it all just ‘feels’ somehow wrong. MTF a racing certainty…

“No great discovery was ever made without a bold guess.”

No ‘bold guesses’ required to exit the swampy maze of the great ASA FUBAR; at least they are travelling ‘in company with’. They seem to be equally as lost as the rest of us; with NDI of how to escape the labyrinth they, all by themselves, have created for us all to wander about in. Ever doomed to wonder how the Hell we get out of this swamp? When you remember back to the sterling work and benefit of BASI and the peerless ‘traffic’ service aviation used to get before ‘profit’ and KPI bonus kicked in; not to mention MH 370 or the Mangalore mid -air; or the Essendon DFO or the Tasmanian debacle or the Darwin award for traffic separation or even the humble bird strike ledger. It is more than reasonable to ask the keepers of the exit key – “have you got any idea where the exit is?” –

“A capacity, and taste, for reading, gives access to whatever has already been discovered by others. It is the key, or one of the keys, to the already solved problems. And not only so. It gives a relish, and facility, for successfully pursuing the [yet] unsolved ones.”

But; I ramble, so many rabbit holes, so many tunnels; all leading to the same place dear Alice found herself when she fell into the rabbit hole – and whether that tale is ‘fact’ or a fanciful fiction is seriously brought into doubt by the visible, articulated, clearly dysfunctional, complete failure of ALBO’s vision splendid – that draped in green and white paper – the stuff strangling what should be a thriving, world class aviation nation. It ain’t – not by a long shot it ain’t. So, where’s the duckling exit?/?/?……..

A few years ago, Science endeavoured to show that it was not inconsistent with the bible. The tables have been turned, and now, Religion is endeavouring to prove that the bible is not inconsistent with Science. The standard has been changed.”

Aye; no matter eh? What is important is the moisture content in my fine timber- ever so slowly it acclimatises to the workshop and ‘relaxes’. Too dry – a mess – too wet a disaster – all the hand cut joints need to be made and fettled at a point where expansion and contraction due moisture are taken out of the equation (+/-). ‘Twist’ is a problem; I can cure it – but – doing so reduces stock size by thousands of an inch, which leads to problems later on. Not to worry- the Mog has taken ownership; I even got bitten for daring to ask HRH to move over while I check the lumber. Aye well; there’s time for an Ale (maybe even two) before we venture out into a cloudy night.

“What can poor mortals say about clouds?”

Selah, – (and may your gods go with you).

Next from KC and the AMROBA thread: AMROBA Breaking News – Connecting AQF Quals to CASA Licences – 2023