Originally Posted by
Sunfish
I respectfully suggest that this is a major safety issue. If pilots cannot avail themselves of effective and reasonable remedies for mental health issues, including leaving the industry with a payout,, then isn’t there a danger they may not self report? Doesn’t that set Virgin up for a Germanwings type tragedy? Especially in what could be a very demanding post covid world? Who wants to fly with a pilot who isn’t happy but can’t leave?
On page 100 of the official final report in relation to Germanwings 9525 it states the following which I have copied below directly from the report:
4.3 Mitigation of the consequences of loss of licence The co-pilot was aware of the decrease in his own medical fitness and of the potential impact of his medication. However, he did not seek any advice from an AME, nor did he inform his employer. One of the explanations lays in the financial consequences he would have faced in case of the loss of his licence.
It then goes on to say:
Organisations, especially airlines, can reinforce self-declaration of a decrease in medical fitness of their staff, by acting on some of the consequences of unfitness, by offering motivating alternative positions and by limiting the financial consequences of a loss of licence, for example through extending loss of licence coverage.
I sometimes wonder how many people within CASA (especially AMEs/DAMEs/Av Med etc etc) even take the time to read and consider these reports carefully and make sure that any gap in current legislation is amended in order to make sure a situation like this can never happen in Australia! Is that not meant to be the job of the safety regulator? Or maybe I am just naive....