Originally Posted by
Monty Niveau
Finally, the ludicrous process of categorisation needs to stop. The award of an aerodrome licence should mean that the aerodrome is a fit place to operate subject to published provisions. Having literally been woken in the night to write a categorisation and special brief for a place I’ve never heard of before ‘because we’ve just sold a charter’, and then searched Jeppesen and their competitors, google earth, AIPs and so on, and our oppositions’ out-of-date OM(C)s trying to write something effective, makes a mockery of the licensing system. Another consequence is that many operators down-categorise for commercial reasons. Sion, Category B, anybody?
Agreed. But as everything these days, its ass covering 101. Put everything on the operator and as a authority, nobody can question you. OTOH the same authorities do - where they can - make airfields special training/permission etc field that don´t "deserve" that. My homebase (EDFM) is a perfect example for using this method and utterly wrong in doing it.
But I guess its a futile exercise to fight this sh!t, in Europe we overregulate until the horse is dead. Which might happen quicker than we all will like...