Interesting, Mr. McCormick's claims, and distancing himself.
I wonder if he was aware of his own Office of Airspace Regulation, and what their regulatory responsibilities are?
Role of the OAR
The role of the OAR is to regulate Australian airspace in accordance with the Airspace Act 2007 and the Airspace Regulations 2007, and to meet the Australian Government commitment expressed in the Australian Airspace Policy Statement 2012 to:
- ensure that Australian airspace is administered and used safely, taking into account:
- protection of the environment,
- efficient use of that airspace,
- equitable access to that airspace for all users of that airspace,
national security; and
- continue the reform of Australia's airspace and move towards closer alignment with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) system and adoption of proven international best practice.
The administration of Australian airspace as a national resource shall:
- consider safety of Passenger Transport Services as the first priority;
- be in the best interests of Australia;
- consider the current and future needs of the Australian aviation industry;
- adopt proven international best practice airspace systems adapted to benefit Australia's aviation environment; and
- take advantage of advances in technology wherever practicable.
To meet the requirements and guidance, the OAR undertakes the following activities: - assessing and managing Airspace Change Proposals (ACPs),
- consulting with industry on airspace matters,
- reviews of the airspace classification and designation to ensure that the airspace is fit for purpose, and
- participating in future strategic airspace planning.
In short, it is CASA OAR's role to assess the environment at locations and make a determination as to whether the existing airspace classification and services are adequate or not.
CASA OAR have conducted aeronautical studies since 2007 and have only on rare occasions found that the existing airspace classifications or services were inadequate and required upgrading e.g. Broome Karratha Avalon.
Given that for those locations Towers had to be built from scratch or refurbished, links installed and staff recruited, relocated and trained, airspace designed and published via a chart release, one would think 12 months to implement not unreasonable. And if OAR had determined that more urgent implementation was required, they could have - but didn't.