Shoreham disaster: Regulator throws out suggested safety measures (From The Argus)
THE families of the victims of the Shoreham Airshow disaster will fight to see safety measures introduced after the regulator rejected almost half the recommendations made. A lawyer representing relatives of the 11 men who died on August 22, 2015, said they will continue to campaign to see safety rules introduced to prevent another tragedy.
The news comes as The Argus can exclusively reveal the industry regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), rejected nine out of 21 safety recommendations proposed by the Air Accident Investigations Branch (AAIB) in the wake of the crash.........
An AAIB report said the CAA had not adequately addressed 10 of its safety recommendations having rejected nine and is yet to complete another.
The regulator rejected advice on the distance between crowds and flying displays, requests to force organisers to demand a break-down of manoeuvres before a pilot takes to the sky, stricter risk assessment rules and changes to the way flying permits are issued. The CAA argued some rules already in place adequately addressed the concerns and in other cases said the responsibility lied with airshow organisers instead.
Five recommendations were adequately addressed and the regulator went some way to act on four more but “further action” was required. One of the recommendations was superceded by others so was no longer necessary, the AAIB said.
The body can only recommend the changes and does not have the power to force them to be introduced........
A CAA spokesman said it was “inappropriate” to comment in more detail while an investigation was ongoing but said it was common for the status of recommendations to change before a final report is published. He added: “We continue to work with the AAIB.”........