Under new management - CASA takes an enormous step forward – seeks feedback from aircrew individuals!
Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority’s Director of Aviation Safety, Mark Skidmore, has set in motion a most welcome consultation process not seen before in the global aviation industry. Only recently appointed to the job, Mark noted the industry has been struggling to accommodate the change to the EASA based Civil Aviation Safety Regulations. In particular, CASR Part 61 – Flight Crew Licensing, has had a unhappy reception.
So Mark has “bit the bullet” and written to all pilots seeking their feedback. The magnitude of this task was enormous because at 30 June 204 there were around 26,600 aeroplane pilots which included 7,496 ATPL (A); CPL (A) 3,849 and PPL (A) 12,437.
Helicopter numbers were around 3,300 of which 845 were ATPL (H), 1,667 CPL (H) and 802 private.
For our international readers, Australia has 23 million people, and a little over 15,000 aircraft of which are 2,100 are helicopters.
Mark’s letter was dated 23 April 2015 and states:
Update on new flight crew licensing regulations
I am writing to you about the new flight crew licensing suite of regulations that took effect in September 2014.
Following the introduction of the regulations, CASA became aware a number of people and organisations had concerns about some of the new requirements. To address these issues a special forum with representatives of the aviation community was held in December 2014. The forum was extremely valuable in providing CASA with first-hand experience and feedback on key issues. As a result of this feedback CASA has made adjustments to the way some aspects of the new rules are being implemented, as well as some changes to the regulatory requirements themselves. Where requirements have been changed this has been done by way of instruments and exemptions. Some of the changes already made relate to check pilots conducting proficiency checks, low level rating and aerial mustering training and flight testing, fire fighting operations, aerial application proficiency checks and R22 and R44 helicopter ratings.
Many of the issues identified to date relate to some of the transition arrangements for the new rules and I accept CASA has to do better in this area. The changes being made now by way of instruments and exemptions will be incorporated into a revised rule set at a later date.
Good progress is also being made on a range of other issues that need to be addressed. These include the student pilot dual check period, the low-level rating flight review period, updates to the Part 61 Manual of Standards, English language proficiency, flight examiner ratings and flight testing. We are also developing further guidance and information material to help everyone understand the new rules.
Already more than 10,600 new Part 61 licences have been issued, even though the transition period for pilots runs until September 2018. The fact that we are adjusting the new rules and the way they are applied shows we are committed to continuous improvement. Aviation safety standards are not intended to be static as they must adapt to reflect the real world environment.
To that end, I need your feedback. While consultation takes place as rules are being developed, inevitably there are issues or unintended consequences that need to be addressed. We need feedback from individuals and organisations about what is working well and what is not. I give my personal assurance that all comments, feedback and criticism will be looked at carefully and given full consideration. Of course this does not mean CASA can accept every suggestion or agree with every viewpoint, but we will listen and where legitimate issues or problems are identified we will respond.
If you have a contribution you wish to make to the review of the new flight crew licensing suite of regulations please send them to:
[email protected]
I thank everyone for their patience and valued contributions as we collectively work to bed down the new licensing regulations and stress again that I want open and honest feedback on what is working and what is not. By co-operating we will get the right safety outcomes from regulations that support a vibrant and strong Australian aviation community.
You can find detailed information on the licensing suite of regulations on CASA’s web site:
Civil Aviation Safety Authority - Licensing regulations.
Safe flying
Mark Skidmore AM
Director of Aviation Safety