Sled del,
CASA have no power to direct amendment to an AFM
Typical theoretical bureaucratic mumbo jumbo. Do you honestly think that CASA would allow changes to checklists if their own regulation prevented it?
Operators make changes to checklists for good reasons. Normally, it's because the procedures created in an office somewhere in the US or Toulouse can't and don't work in every possible operating scenario of the aircraft in the world. Besides, the AFM procedures are just that: procedures. They are not multi-crew checklists. Get into the real world, Sledled.
In fact, my Boeing's AFM says:
"these procedures are for guidance only in identifying acceptable operating procedures and are not to be considered mandatory or in any way construed as prohibiting an operator from developing their own equivalent procedures".
To say that one must follow the AFM verbatim regardless is ridiculous. Have your ever heard of the term "No Technical Objection"?
It is an entirely different issue that the JQ changes were not appropriate. That should have been picked up internally.