What appears to be totally missing in relationships between CASA and operators, by all accounts, is one essential ingredient that I have been trying to remember, but has just only sunk in.
That is the concept of
Good Faith:
Good faith, or in Latin bona fides (bona fide means "in good faith"), is sincere, honest intention (even if producing unfortunate results) or belief. In law, it is the mental and moral state of honesty, conviction as to the truth or falsehood of a proposition or body of opinion, or as to the rectitude or depravity of a line of conduct. This concept is important in law, especially equitable matters.[1][2]
In contemporary English, "bona fides" is sometimes used as a synonym for credentials, background, or documentation of a person's identity. "Show me your bona fides" can mean: Why should I trust you (your good faith in this matter)? Tell me who you are. In this sense, the phrase is sometimes used in job advertisements, and should not be confused with the bona fide occupational qualifications or the employer's good faith effort, as described below.[3]
I think adherence to this concept is missing from the actions of some operators and, if allegations are true, also from the actions of some people in CASA.
For example, if the allegations made by Butson in the matter of Polar Aviation are true, then the actions taken against Butson do not seem to me to have been taken in good faith.
Similarly the actions in support of safety, of the operator whose AOC was cancelled in Sydney after a crash, as revealed by the AAT, do not seem to have been in good faith attempts to comply with regulation either.
If "Good Faith" is missing in relationships between regulated and regulators then God help all of us, because at some stage this lack of good faith is going to become known to the general public and then all of us, including CASA will suffer accordingly.
It was Thorn birds post that finally made me remember this little concept:
Distrust!!!..good grief where are you from??. Anyone who talks to CASA without their lawyer present is a fool. CASA is now so endemically corrupt that any trust has long gone. Until CASA's charter is changed to reflect, as the FAA's does, that its decisions MUST consider the economic impact and well being of the industry it supposedly regulates then there will continue to be a total disconnect between the industry and the regulator.
These are not people with "Probity" we are dealing with, they are misfits and incompetents.
While my own very limited dealings with CASA have always been satisfactory, I have yet to meet anyone in Aviation who has ever referred me to CASA as a source of advice, nor who have had a good word to say about them. While that is "negative evidence" it leaves open the possibility that CASA has a problem.
Furthermore, you don't get to jettison "Good Faith" on the grounds of "Safety" and protecting the general public. Anyone who thinks about the matter will quickly realise that a lack of good faith is counter-productive to safety, as I am sadly concerned that the public is going to learn the hard way.