I don’t have a good track record with posting links, so can someone who is a little more tech savvy help out?

Despite stating in the previous press release that there would be no further comment, there is now a 2nd, two page release up on the REX website.

According to the release, there is absolutely “Nothing to see here”.

Happy days!

Thanks Cap’

I agree with you to a point.

The REX engineering and Safety Management systems are mature and well organised. Your assertion of “the one single engineer” however, either tells me you are a company mole, or you really don’t understand the current problem. Firstly this is not a case of an isolated “disgruntled employee”. This isn’t even a case of rust on propellor shafts. It is about the integrity of the system as a whole.

I know of at least two incidents where Pilots, not Engineers were “councilled” for discovering rust on a propeller shaft. In one case a Senior REX manager demanded to know from a Captain, where in the Flight Crew Operating Manual does it tell you to look there! Additionally the press are reporting the ALAEA have detailed 8 instances of unreported defects. Doesn’t sound like an act of a single disgruntled engineer to me.

The real elephant in the room is just how many defects were not reported, and why? Just one case of non reporting is serious. Multiple cases suggest some sort of systemic problem. This has the potential to undermine the entire Safety Management System. If found to be true, the root cause must be identified, and those responsible held to account.

Originality posted by Rudder:

“The idea that you use the SMS...as a weapon in a personal dispute breaks down the whole purpose of an SMS.”

Mate, you have no idea how ironic that statement is!

If the last para is true then time to get the AFP involved ASAP.

AFP are about as useful as your local council. Get serious.

If not rust Arnold, what is it? C’mon, don’t be shy.

Well if that’s the case, this whole “rust” thing on the shaft must be just a furphy. Makes you you wonder about the allegations of staff being pressured not to write it up?

Which if true of course, is the real issue.

So let’s get this straight Ladloy, this whole thing is about nothing more than a single disgruntled engineer sanctioned for taxiing an aircraft into a skip bin?

Better let CASA, the ALAEA, and the travelling public know. It would seem a whole stack of people are on the wrong track!

First off can I just say everyone loves to pile on Rex when the opportunity presents itself! Pprune, newspapers, Facebook etc I am yet to come across many (if any) comments supporting Rex. Each to their own, but tell me a company in Australia that doesn’t have similar issues from time to time!

I’ll be the first to admit I never initially applied to Rex because of their reputation for playing hard ball during eba’s and plenty of rumours of crew being thrown under a bus for minor issues. So I wasn’t happy when I ended up working there when my previous employer went bankrupt.

BUT!

I’ll admit I never encountered any pressure from management, if I didn’t like it I told them where to go (as a captain). Any incidents I reported were treated well and as you’d expect from a mature safety system. The CP and HOFO were good guys and I found them to be very reasonable to deal with. Management above this was the problem. CEO and of course the well known views of certain owners are an issue. However you have to admit they know how to run an airline and make money. We might not all agree on their methods but they have been profitable, the staff are paid a reasonable wage, the aircraft are well looked after and they are successful.

The recent media reports and the he said she said rubbish between CASA, Rex and the union is all a bit messy. I find it very hard to believe the ‘ground the entire Rex fleet’ claim WASN’T made to grab a headline. If that was written in the union document to CASA as well, it can only be to grab attention. But when taken to the media, they combine it with the propeller falling off and the age of the Saab’s and you have an instant really bad story about the company. Of course management released an aggressive media release in response! This could have a significant effect on the company and as of yet, none of the allegations are proven!!! Once a statement like ‘ground the company’ is out in the open, it’s very hard to get it back if eventually unproven.

Now I’m not saying Rex is perfect and free of blame, I’m not saying the union is right either. But how about we all just sit back and have a bit of sympathy for the guys and girls that work there while the investigation takes place. They are the ones all this is going to affect in the medium term.

An extensive audit every three and a half months? Does CASA even have the resources to achieve that? If they do why were the resources being diverted from other audit tasks?

The only way I can see someone at CASA becoming motivated enough to leak info is if they had audited the company and been concerned with what they had found and then had to stand by while a letter that said

was issued.

Really?! Poor comparison I’d argue. You want to compare an Australian airline to an incident relating to a manufacturer fault plus Lion Air of all companies?! Lion Air have regular well documented safety issues clearly visible to the public, to put Rex in the same boat is a long bow to draw....

I never said they were perfect, but the fact is most of us on here (Pprune) have NO IDEA if the allegations are true. I was merely commenting on the ‘pile on’ about Rex and your post proves my point. No ‘skin in the game’ but that’s the comparison you choose to make.

We are talking about the same CASA that most people on here complain about aren’t we? That issues 100’s of NCN’s and drives businesses to the wall with ridiculous requirements. That goes after pilot medicals. Maybe there is something to the allegations and Rex maintenance practices deserve to be improved. But the original union document submitted to CASA was designed to be explosive and grab attention if anyone in the media got their hands on it. To deny that is just ignorant, the union and this engineer also have an agenda.

There’s probably four sides to this story and I’ll go out on a limb and say none of us on here have the full story...

Relationships are very important. Do the people at the top of Rex have long established relationships with individuals at the top of CASA?

You mean a previous Minister for Transport JS, pulling strings inside the department to get his way? With a career bureaucrat who proudly tells everyone he has no aviation experience, in charge of the regulator? Who’s looking for his next step up in the department? Nah, nothing there

It’s all okay. Nothing found move along.

https://www.portlincolntimes.com.au/...safety-claims/

Claims of unsafe practices by Regional Express (REX) were at the centre of an intensive two-day audit conducted by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA).


Even though a final report has not been finished, CASA has confirmed it had no current issues with the safety of REX aircraft.

The investigation came after a report by the Australian Licenced Aircraft Engineers' Association was lodged with CASA in May in which there were a number of claims of a poor safety culture within the company.

Last week CASA spokesperson Peter Gibson said a 17-page document was lodged by a former engineer with the company and his union at the end of May, and the authority had been analysing the claims.



"If there are any safety issues identified, we will make sure that's addressed properly, but we haven't identified any to date," he said.


On Saturday, July 6, CASA release a statement that it had confirmed it had no issues with the airline's safety after conducting an audit at the REX Wagga maintenance facility as part of the safety assurance review.

The audit focussed on the airlines safety management system and the processes of reporting concerns.


In the statement CASA reported that REX staff and management were interviewed and found to be cooperative and confident in the airline's safety reporting systems.

In a media release, a REX spokesperson said the organisation was grateful the investigation had been conducted responsibly.

"CASA conducted their investigations in a prompt, comprehensive and responsible manner that should leave no doubt with regard to the safety of Rex flights in the minds of regional passengers, many of whom depend exclusively on Rex for their medical, educational and professional travelling needs," they stated.


"Rex has nothing but contempt for the efforts of some media outlets to generate more sales through malicious attacks on its airline safety record based on biased and anecdotal accusations by anonymous disgruntled staff.


"Not only could such disgraceful acts be capable of seriously damaging Rex but it could also result in, if Rex had been forced to cease flying, many remote and rural regional communities permanently losing air services that are critical for their socio-economic needs.

A final CASA report usually takes up to 21 days to complete but the REX findings will be expedited so the matter can be finalised quickly.

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

Edmund Burke.

Who set the scope and who did they send?
https://images.app.goo.gl/FEc7am6TEnjyUMNK6