Fifty Four managers I counted on that organisation chart that are your problem.
Even with the best will in the world, each one of them will have a thirty page justification at to why their job needs to exist, why their powers should be increased, why they are critical to success, what sections of the Aviation Act and enabling legislation makes their role necessary, yadda, yadda, yadda. Not one of these managers is in favour of changing the status quo as it affects them.
Lead Balloon,
With respect, Sunny is on to the structure of the "iron ring", the custodians of the CASA Kultcha, the "true believers" that they, and only they, can "manage" air safety in Australia ---- bathed in the "mystique of air safety".
What you very accurately describe is “the other big problem”.
Quite some time ago, I had a very interesting few hours with a very senior (Labor) staffer discussing what was a clearly understood problem, those hours were spent discussing whether any reform was possible , without “blowing the place up” (probably not a description you would use in the present day and age). The conclusion was that what frightened his boss was how you handled the “day to day” of CASA while you rebuilt the whole place from the ground up.
John Anderson, as Minister, came to the same conclusion, that only wholesale change would work, but he got “blown up” instead, when his plans for radical change were blocked stone cold by PM&C.
It is pretty clear that neither side of politics has any real interest in taking on "air safety", short of a catastrophe of some kind that can be sheeted home to CASA.
The not so slow demise of Australian aviation is the result of the timidity of the industry and the politicians, to tackle a (let's be honest) obvious problem.
Tootle pip!!