Rustle, MRCross, from what I read it sounds like one more step in the right direction. Thanks once again for all the efforts you have both put in to achieving this. I was also pleased to note that representatives from a number of other organisations, including AOPA, were present at the meeting.
Hopefully the CAA's efforts will encourage the results we are all looking for.
Rustle and Mike added in their commentary that:
We are also not convinced that NATS as an organisation is sufficiently committed to improvement. NATS have suggested a timescale of up to 12 months for the provision of downloadable raw data, however Thales have not been asked to provide an estimate. This figure therefore seems to confirm NATS lack of commitment to meeting users needs.
As a NATS user, I have to agree with this completely. I can only hope that making such a comment in the public domain will encourage the subject of the comment (i.e. NATS) to make strenuous efforts to prove that the problems prompting the comment were a one-off and will be rectified quickly.
Although the notes are generally quite encouraging, it is still sad to see that yet more time will pass before the issues are resolved. Most of the comments demand action before "the new GA flying season", despite the fact that GA activity only slows down during the winter - it does not stop completely. Nearly four months after the initial launch of ADIMS, GA pilots are being asked to wait up to another four months for reliable, useable, safety critical information.
The CAA comments also include a worthwhile and timely reminder to GA pilots that they must make every effort to self-brief for every flight. This has to include obtaining, reading and digesting the NOTAMs, and just because it is harder than it should be at the moment, the obligation is still there. Hopefully we have now seen the end of the "missing NOTAM" disaster (for those who haven't spotted it earlier in this thread, the trick for narrow route briefs is to make sure the departure and destination airfields are different - i.e. don't produce "circular" routes. Thanks to Mike Cross for spotting this one) however it is worth cross-checking against known events (such as airshows) as published in magazines and on websites just in case.
As I said at the start, it is a credit to all involved both that the GA community has found a voice and that the authorities are listening. As a result we now have one more significant step in the right direction - may it be followed by many more.
MD
[Edited to correct a misunderstanding on my part as pointed out to me by Mike]