Sunfish,
I have spoken to you before about my private strip north of Melbourne.
In a previous life I was involved in the management of a private aerodrome and accumulated some knowledge about airfield requirements from the local council, CASA and Pprune!
I believed someone who told me that no one can stop you landing your own private plane on your own private property -there is a distinction here between an airfield for yourself only (or maybe the odd visitor) and an aerodrome open to anyone. The aerodrome requires council approval which, in my area, can take two years. So I mowed and smoothed an area on my farm, bought an appropriate aircraft and landed it there. Didn't ask anyone - just did it.
Turns out that one of my neighbours, who I had seen watching me prepare the strip, reported me to the police who arrived two hours after my landing. They told me that there had been a complaint and they were checking to see if I had broken the law. I told them that I hadn't and that they could check with CASA.
CASA told the police that there is something in the constitution which allows me to do what I did. The police told that to the whinging neighbour who then complained to CASA directly and also to the council. CASA sent me a nice email telling me about the complaint and that they would be taking no action unless I was doing something dangerous. The council enforcement department sent two heavies who accused me of excavating without a planning permit. I asked them if you needed a permit to plough - they declined to answer and left.
My strip is a long way off complying with the CAAP but my aircraft is specifically designed to operate from a strip like mine and I only fly once or twice per fortnight.
The police recommended that I visit all of the neighbours in the area to tell them what I was doing and, without exception, they embraced it and encouraged me to enjoy myself. I have taken some of them for a ride.
Of course, I didn't visit the whinger.
Last edited by uncle8; 27th Feb 2015 at 12:19.