I am sure there will be two sides to this story but Part 115 has been coming for a long time.
I have to wonder when some of these operators actually got serious about getting their applications in. Others in the industry are well used to the Rules and the various Parts.
Is this a case of just last minute rush or have the CAA been slowing the process down ?
We should all know by now that any air operators certificate is not going to be just handed over until you have dotted the 'i's etc. That is at the very least.
8 out of 23 does seem like a small number.....
I have been involved in setting up several Part 145 hangars. I found the easiest method was to get the operation going along the new requirements first. Once it all seems to be working you can fine tune the exposition to what you are actually doing. Any problem areas are obvious at that point.
This is well before the exposition even looks like getting submitted.