Part 5
The industry knew that the old system had its flaws; the ‘lending’ of Air Operator’s certificates, and the ‘borrowing’ of instructors from other off-site flight-training organisations in adhoc scenarios, that, in reality, afforded both companies no real safety oversight. Operators did this because their organisation simply couldn’t afford or attract, or didn’t have the amount of work for, a full-time Chief Instructor, a full-time Safety Officer, or a designated administrator.
The current rules for flying school operations and the control of flying schools were hopelessly outdated and written before the advent of mobile phones and the internet. Quite simply the rules were decades behind the advances in technology. It was, for the most part, why CASA was changing them. And, they were wielding a big stick. Change to the new rules before 1 September 2017 or be forced into closure after that date.
Glen understood that CASA was driving change to address what it saw as a failure of the system. But he also believed that CASA had adopted a safety-at-ALL-cost attitude; a cost many organisations would not be able to afford. Glen sensed that the situation, however, had a potential win-win for the regulator and for the industry; a chance for organisations to operate in a way that made the previously adhoc system safer, more transparent, stable, collaborative and more efficient without the consequences of business-failures and their inevitable detrimental effects on the aviation ecosystem. Glen’s vision included businesses working as a team, collectively able to access the largest safety department of any flying school in Australia, all operating under a single CASA issued Air Operator Certificate (AOC)
So, as the saying goes, if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Glen contacted CASA and put forward his concept in June of 2016. CASA welcomed Glen’s model with open arms, even so far as to allocate many hundreds of hours of employee time assisting in its development. Around ten CASA employees, over the course of two years, were meaningfully involved. Back and forth between Glen and CASA went the model; information, advice, revisions, amendments, and paperwork for around 600 requirements, carefully working towards the definitive document (the Exposition) that would allow his new business to operate. Every one of the procedures was assessed by CASA personnel, signed off by CASA personnel, and peer reviewed by CASA personnel. In fact Glen had been operating in the same structure for six years prior, this was a significant investment in improving and upgrading what he had been doing with full CASA approval prior.
Given the business model was not too different from the current practices of larger flight training organisations, and what he was doing was simply formalising what many in the industry were already doing that CASA had previously tacitly sanctioned, Glen trusted the governing authority to act in good faith. Even to the extent of providing the regulator with commercial-in-confidence documents such as the proposed business contracts for alliance members. Glen was incredibly grateful for the professional assistance and advice of CASA in developing his Exposition.
With CASA well and truly on board, and after an investment of hundreds of thousands of dollars of his own money, Glen (and CASA) had built APTA; The Australian Pilot Training Alliance. CASA hadn’t simply been consulted, APTA had been built on approved CASA material, on hundreds of hours’ discussion and oversight, on good faith and mutual aims.
It is also well known that CASA has an active and eager legal department; Legal, International & Regulatory Affairs. CASA employees do not make big decisions autonomously and without context; there are implications to be considered, processes and approvals. When CASA makes a decision, it makes an informed decision. A very well-informed decision. It would be remiss to not stress this enough. CASA is an organisation of educated, well-informed, aviation and legal personnel whose ultimate objective is to ensure the safety of pilots and public. The organisation takes its responsibility to oversee safety in the aviation industry very seriously, and at whatever cost.
But CASA didn’t simply advise and consult and provide quality information through its wide-angle legal-context lens to Glen over those two years of development; CASA also recommended a number of rural and regional flight training organisations that would benefit from being a part of APTA, to Glen. Alliances were forged, organisations joined the cause, and with CASA appearing to be smiling down upon it all; APTA was set to be a working model. Five organisations, one administrative setup, expensive expert personnel employed to fulfil CASA’s new compliance and safety requirements, and a software system that provided 360-degree oversight of flight safety, all using CASA-provided manuals and compliance systems. Of note, is that the system was set up so that CASA could, at any point, log onto and be an active part of the system. CASA could see exactly what APTA was doing, whenever it liked, in relation to flight training; from flight and aircraft records to staff training, communications, and instruction delivery. A first for the flight training industry, providing total transparency and full oversight. And all with CASA’s blessing.
Too good to be true comes to mind.
In April 2017, CASA approved APTA. Four months before CASA’s September deadline for transition to the new rules.
Glen thought he was on a winner. The new rules hadn’t come into force for the industry yet. He was ahead of the game. In a field of what had been around 350 organisations, he now had a mere 12 competitors that were also approved. Ready to roll it all out, he had CASA on side and, significantly, assurances from the authority that they wouldn’t extend any deadline. So far ahead of the game, who wouldn’t want to be that business? Glen, and his alliance organisations, stepped fully into the gold-standard APTA.
Then, just weeks after certifying APTA as a fully-fledged flight training organisation under the new rules, CASA moved the goal posts. The storm had begun to brew.
Whereas it is said that all is fair in love and war, the same is not said for business. There are rules by which businesses must abide or face consequences. Both federal and state laws exist; fair trading, insider trading, trading whilst insolvent. CASA’s remit, however, is not the business of business, it is not concerned with competitive economics. It needed flight training organisations able to safely comply with the new rules, and safety, as always, was paramount. Faced with a tsunami of flight training organisations potentially in breach of the Act, CASA extended the ‘big stick’ date by a year. Glen was dismayed.
To be fair, CASA really had little option. Rightly or wrongly, in August 2017, the vast majority of flight training organisations were simply not ready.
But, in striving to be ahead of the game, Glen had employed the experts, setup the software, invested hundreds of thousands of dollars, and was working his expensive gold-standard new system. The two training organisations that made the business an alliance, Melbourne Flight Training and TVSA Pilot Training at Bacchus Marsh, approved as APTA bases by CASA, were also heavily invested. Working the new rules and operating a flight training curriculum that wasn’t required for another 12 months, however, was costly. Very costly for all involved. Except CASA that is. But then CASA is also not in the business of making money – and rightly so. But Glen’s business, before the real game had even started, was now operating under financial pressures not of its own, or even force majeure, creation.
Being on the back foot is never a good position for a business. The aim was always to grow, to offer others the opportunities of safety and the efficiencies that APTA presented. They say there is always opportunity in a crisis, so Glen sucked up the cost, borrowing heavily from his family, and got on with funding the associated salaries and procedures for the next 12 months whilst waiting for the postponed legislation to be introduced. He figured it would only be a matter of time before everyone caught up, therefore, best to stay on the front foot.