Originally Posted by
Sunfish
and class D at Ballina creates one more effing East Coast road block for Recreational aircraft.
I don't think it'd be a huge issue. The Class C step is 8500, so they'd 'probably' install E between the two, which you could transit, same as Camden (though that'd G/D, not E/D, admittedly...). Realistically though, the only destination you wouldn't be able to fly to would be the Gold Coast, but if you're going north in anything
sans VH- on the side, you're going to hit the Gold Coast C steps 20NM after Ballina
anyway. If you're going
beyond the GC, then you'll need to be inland and that'll take you clear of any Class D at Ballina.
I don't have an easy answer, but See and Avoid, even
Alerted See and Avoid, is fraught with danger when you have sufficiently different performance classes in the same airspace. About the only thing I could think of in the short term would be to mandate every aircraft in the BA be fitted not only with radio, but ADS-B or the EC-device equivalent. They're small & cheap enough now there's not really any excuse for anyone
not to have one, IMHO, no matter where they fly.