Problem is that although CASA is stressing that Fatigue Management is a joint responsibility there has been little input into the new FRMS regime by aircrew!
Having spoken to management at my own airline about this, the manager concerned took great pleasure in telling me that he thought that the new FRMS rules to be implemented by my airline were going to give greater productivity and flexibility. He said ' we are really looking forward to its introduction because if we can show CASA that rostering 5 night flights in a row is better for fatigue management than the current cap on night duty hours then they will let us do it!'.
Given CASA's past eagerness to grant concessions and exemptions whenever required I don't hold out much hope for the FRMS. A truly collaborative process were we are all jointly responsible would have involved a hell of a lot more consultation on what the final scheme would look like at each airline. Instead we have been told that the airline will design it, get it approved and we will get to look at it just prior to implementation.