I was fascinated to see the following letter which was placed in the Fraser Coast Chronical on Tuesday 9 June… see
HERE and below. Note in particular the comment I have highlighted:
DICK Smith's claim that if CASA doesn't allow ground staff to notify planes about obstacles or weather conditions at the airport then there will be people dying at Hervey Bay is rich in rhetoric but a bit short on fact.
The idea of allowing unqualified staff to give operational information to pilots is fraught with peril.
Incorrect, out of date or limited information provided on an ad-hoc basis is far more dangerous than no information at all.
What if the person involved is busy doing their primary job and is unaware of an aerodrome obstruction and then tells the inbound aircraft that all is well?
But the biggest risk to aircraft at Hervey Bay, or indeed any aerodrome where there is a high density of aircraft of varying performance and pilots of vastly different skill levels, is in the sky - not on the ground.
In 2009 Airservices Australia conducted a trial of Unicom at Hervey Bay.
This was in response to a high number of reported breakdowns in separation between aircraft (or "near misses" as some in the media would have it).
The trial, importantly, included a directed traffic information service, updates on weather and operational information.
Its hours of operation were based on the arrival and departure of RPT (airlines) aircraft.
It was conducted by three highly experienced aviation personnel (of which I was one), and all had the necessary CASA approvals to provide the service.
The Unicom staff were able to monitor the local airport radio frequency, note the aircraft positions, levels and intentions and then use this information to provide the traffic information service.
The carriage and use of radio is mandatory in the Hervey Bay/Maryborough areas, but this frequency is not monitored by Airservices Australia staff in Brisbane.
The trial was a resounding success, proving that the service was cost effective, needed and well received by the aviation industry.
Although the service had been proven, the arrival of the GFC and CASA failing to mandate it meant it was never implemented.
A Unicom service is needed now more than ever, but it needs to be a stand-alone service, preferably managed and provided by Airservices Australia using experienced, qualified and rated personal.
Mr Smith's wish that commercial jets using Hervey Bay be radar-controlled from Brisbane is impossible.
Due to the type of radar now used, not all aircraft are visible to the controller and the radio frequency in use cannot be monitored, so it cannot be known what other aircraft are there, what height they are at or what their intentions are.
Re the statement
It was conducted by three highly experienced aviation personnel ... and all had the necessary CASA approvals to provide the service.
Can anyone advise what approvals were required? Was it to have previously held an Air Traffic Controller Flight Service licence? And what was the cost of running this service per week, particularly noting the comment
Although the service had been proven, the arrival of the GFC and CASA failing to mandate it meant it was never implemented.
Of course, all of the Unicoms I have seen in the USA have no measurable cost – they use existing people at the airport.