Sir Angus Houston Supports Government Policy
Thread Starter
Sir Angus Houston Supports Government Policy
In an interesting article by Paul Kelly headed, “Dick Smith is Wrong on Air Safety: Houston” in The Australian newspaper this morning, there is a fascinating statement by Angus Houston as follows:
I find this an extraordinary statement. I was completely fooled! I thought Sir Angus was, at the time, a strong supporter of moving to the US system. He mentioned a number of times how he had flown regularly in the system and I thought he really supported it. It appears that now he was only supporting it because it was Government policy.
I must also be mistaken – I thought it was the Aviation Reform Group who actually recommended the policy to the Minister, John Anderson and, of course, Angus Houston was a member of this Group. Once again, I thought Angus was a strong supporter.
I must admit that I believe that for general aviation and for airline traffic the North American airspace system as used in the USA and Canada is simply the best in the world. And why wouldn’t it be? These are wealthy societies which are also very litigious and which also have high mountain ranges and experience abysmal weather conditions. In this situation you end up evolving to a very safe and efficient system.
It’s interesting – a number of pilots disagreed with Sir Angus’ views in relation to ADS-B. Below is the complete article by Ean Higgins which appeared today next to the Paul Kelly article in The Australian referred to above.
Remember, the CASA Regulation Impact Statement talked about general aviation saving up to $20 million per year on fuel costs because it could do more direct tracking. Of course, what was forgotten was that 90% of GA flies in uncontrolled airspace and can go direct tracking anyway. In fact, the Regulation Impact Statement was a giant, fraudulent con in my view.
When I was chief of the air force I supported the implementation of the NAS a full 100 per cent. That’s because it was government policy and it was my job to implement government policy.
I must also be mistaken – I thought it was the Aviation Reform Group who actually recommended the policy to the Minister, John Anderson and, of course, Angus Houston was a member of this Group. Once again, I thought Angus was a strong supporter.
I must admit that I believe that for general aviation and for airline traffic the North American airspace system as used in the USA and Canada is simply the best in the world. And why wouldn’t it be? These are wealthy societies which are also very litigious and which also have high mountain ranges and experience abysmal weather conditions. In this situation you end up evolving to a very safe and efficient system.
It’s interesting – a number of pilots disagreed with Sir Angus’ views in relation to ADS-B. Below is the complete article by Ean Higgins which appeared today next to the Paul Kelly article in The Australian referred to above.
Remember, the CASA Regulation Impact Statement talked about general aviation saving up to $20 million per year on fuel costs because it could do more direct tracking. Of course, what was forgotten was that 90% of GA flies in uncontrolled airspace and can go direct tracking anyway. In fact, the Regulation Impact Statement was a giant, fraudulent con in my view.
NEW NAVIGATION SYSTEM OF LIMITED SAFETY USE, SAY CRITICS
by Ean Higgins
The Australian Newspaper, Friday 26 June 2015
A new air navigation system promoted by Airservices Australia chairman Angus Houston is imposing crippling expenses on aviation but fails to address key airspace safety issues, according to industry figures.
Sir Angus yesterday issued a statement hailing the GPS navigation system known as Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast as providing “enormous safety and service benefit”.
But aviators told The Australian — and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority confirmed — that ADS-B would not of its own lead to an extension of airspace under air traffic control, and would not provide any weather data, nor local air traffic information about the movements of smaller private aircraft that do not have to install it. Sir Angus’s statement was designed to counter attacks from businessman and aviator Dick Smith, who has renewed a campaign for reform of the nation’s airspace regulation along US lines.
Government-owned Airservices runs the nation’s air traffic control system as well as fire and rescue operations at bigger airports.
Mr Smith has called for an extension of controlled airspace along US lines, where all commercial aircraft are guided by air traffic controllers, compared Australia’s piecemeal system, where generally below 8500 feet, pilots are left to their own devices.
Mr Smith wants the Airservices firefighters to be trained to man the Unicom radio service to provide basic local air traffic and weather information to pilots at regional airports which do not have air traffic control towers such as Ballina in NSW, Newman in Western Australian, and Gladstone in Queensland.
In his statement, Sir Angus said “the technology and global thinking in relation to air traffic management has shifted dramatically in the past two decades.
“Where once our systems relied on radar and pilots reporting their positions to ground operators, there is now a global shift to implementing satellite-based systems, such as ADS-B.”
In ADS-B, aircraft are equipped with sophisticated satellite GPS systems which determine their position, direction, speed and altitude with great precision. That information is relayed in real time to air traffic controllers via ground stations. Commercial aircraft are progressively being compulsorily fitted with ADS-B. The program is to be completed by 2017. But it will not address either of the issues raised by Mr Smith, who described the system as “a complete waste of money”.
A CASA spokesman said the introduction of ADS-B would not of its own lead to an extension of controlled airspace, saying that for airports in uncontrolled airspace like Ballina, “it would not be the single deciding factor although it would be a consideration”.
The spokesman confirmed that since smaller, private recreational aircraft which follow visual flight rules are exempted from having to install ADS-B, there would be no change to the system in which at airports like Ballina, pilots have to talk to each other over the radio to relay their positions in a bid to avoid crashing into each other.
The fact such aircraft not equipped with ADS-B would not be picked up by that system, and it is not a weather tool, mean what many pilots say is a need for radio operators at airports like Ballina, Gladstone and Newman to provide local weather and traffic information, is not obviated by ADS-B. The technical director of the Australian Federation of Air Pilots, airline captain Peter Gardiner, said that while the GPS component of ADS-B operates everywhere via satellite, it is of no value without ground stations to relay the information to controllers.
The number of ground stations remained relatively few, Captain Gardiner said, and over the vast majority of Australia there is no relay of ADS-B data at all but the highest altitudes.
Brad Edwards, the principal and chief pilot of Edwards Aviation which operates seven charter aircraft out of Armidale in NSW, said none of the promised operational benefits Airservices had promoted of ADS-B had eventuated, and the additional safety element was “zero”.
“There has been no perceived benefit in that regard for us,” Mr Edwards said.
He said Airservices’ eagerness to bring in ADS-B ahead of other countries meant for his bigger jets he could not buy off the shelf products and had to have equipment specially designed, which cost $120,000 per plane.
“For me as an operator, this has cost me a lot of money, all because of the egos at Airservices wanting to have this implemented five years ahead of the rest of the world,” he said.
by Ean Higgins
The Australian Newspaper, Friday 26 June 2015
A new air navigation system promoted by Airservices Australia chairman Angus Houston is imposing crippling expenses on aviation but fails to address key airspace safety issues, according to industry figures.
Sir Angus yesterday issued a statement hailing the GPS navigation system known as Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast as providing “enormous safety and service benefit”.
But aviators told The Australian — and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority confirmed — that ADS-B would not of its own lead to an extension of airspace under air traffic control, and would not provide any weather data, nor local air traffic information about the movements of smaller private aircraft that do not have to install it. Sir Angus’s statement was designed to counter attacks from businessman and aviator Dick Smith, who has renewed a campaign for reform of the nation’s airspace regulation along US lines.
Government-owned Airservices runs the nation’s air traffic control system as well as fire and rescue operations at bigger airports.
Mr Smith has called for an extension of controlled airspace along US lines, where all commercial aircraft are guided by air traffic controllers, compared Australia’s piecemeal system, where generally below 8500 feet, pilots are left to their own devices.
Mr Smith wants the Airservices firefighters to be trained to man the Unicom radio service to provide basic local air traffic and weather information to pilots at regional airports which do not have air traffic control towers such as Ballina in NSW, Newman in Western Australian, and Gladstone in Queensland.
In his statement, Sir Angus said “the technology and global thinking in relation to air traffic management has shifted dramatically in the past two decades.
“Where once our systems relied on radar and pilots reporting their positions to ground operators, there is now a global shift to implementing satellite-based systems, such as ADS-B.”
In ADS-B, aircraft are equipped with sophisticated satellite GPS systems which determine their position, direction, speed and altitude with great precision. That information is relayed in real time to air traffic controllers via ground stations. Commercial aircraft are progressively being compulsorily fitted with ADS-B. The program is to be completed by 2017. But it will not address either of the issues raised by Mr Smith, who described the system as “a complete waste of money”.
A CASA spokesman said the introduction of ADS-B would not of its own lead to an extension of controlled airspace, saying that for airports in uncontrolled airspace like Ballina, “it would not be the single deciding factor although it would be a consideration”.
The spokesman confirmed that since smaller, private recreational aircraft which follow visual flight rules are exempted from having to install ADS-B, there would be no change to the system in which at airports like Ballina, pilots have to talk to each other over the radio to relay their positions in a bid to avoid crashing into each other.
The fact such aircraft not equipped with ADS-B would not be picked up by that system, and it is not a weather tool, mean what many pilots say is a need for radio operators at airports like Ballina, Gladstone and Newman to provide local weather and traffic information, is not obviated by ADS-B. The technical director of the Australian Federation of Air Pilots, airline captain Peter Gardiner, said that while the GPS component of ADS-B operates everywhere via satellite, it is of no value without ground stations to relay the information to controllers.
The number of ground stations remained relatively few, Captain Gardiner said, and over the vast majority of Australia there is no relay of ADS-B data at all but the highest altitudes.
Brad Edwards, the principal and chief pilot of Edwards Aviation which operates seven charter aircraft out of Armidale in NSW, said none of the promised operational benefits Airservices had promoted of ADS-B had eventuated, and the additional safety element was “zero”.
“There has been no perceived benefit in that regard for us,” Mr Edwards said.
He said Airservices’ eagerness to bring in ADS-B ahead of other countries meant for his bigger jets he could not buy off the shelf products and had to have equipment specially designed, which cost $120,000 per plane.
“For me as an operator, this has cost me a lot of money, all because of the egos at Airservices wanting to have this implemented five years ahead of the rest of the world,” he said.
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: dans un cercle dont le centre est eveywhere et circumfernce n'est nulle part
Posts: 2,606
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The military has an unambiguous duty to the elected government of the day. Huston is correct there. However his promotion into "general rank" is a consequence of the elected government of this day and is therefor subject to the scrutiny of those same electors if his policy is now at odds with the original and can make his title something of a fraud. When military officers leave "field rank" their promotions are at the behest of the government via their peers. It's then they loose objectivity and man management skills and become part of the "punch and judy show". They should be ignored as having any sensible input into any civilian problems. (Including looking for sunken aircraft).
The number of ground stations remained relatively few, Captain Gardiner said, and over the vast majority of Australia there is no relay of ADS-B data at all but the highest altitudes.
ADS-B coverage | Airservices
Sir As close connection to the head of ASA, who was his 2IC most of the way through the RAAF in my view means he has a personal conflict of interest on this matter.
In my view Sir A and his 2IC that now run ASA have a very poor understanding of air traffic management and technology. Not the right people to be driving national policy in the area.
In my view Sir A and his 2IC that now run ASA have a very poor understanding of air traffic management and technology. Not the right people to be driving national policy in the area.
Man Bilong Balus long PNG
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Looking forward to returning to Japan soon but in the meantime continuing the never ending search for a bad bottle of Red!
Age: 69
Posts: 2,976
Received 105 Likes
on
60 Posts
Well said Frank!
I think you made a very persuasive comment in the following;
If I may be permitted a fairly blunt observation; Could someone tell me just WTF Angus Houston would know about Civil Aviation?
I think you made a very persuasive comment in the following;
When military officers leave "field rank" their promotions are at the behest of the government via their peers. It's then they lose objectivity and man management skills and become part of the "punch and judy show". They should be ignored as having any sensible input into any civilian problems. (Including looking for sunken aircraft).
No, he's wrong. He claims:
and the maps dispute that. There is quite extensive coverage from A100 up and not unexpected useful coverage at 5000.
Coverage at 1500FT would clearly only be close to each site, same as VHF coverage.
Those who operate in the in the W.A. goldfields and Pilbara, and the central region of S.A. would disagree.
and over the vast majority of Australia there is no relay of ADS-B data at all but the highest altitudes
Coverage at 1500FT would clearly only be close to each site, same as VHF coverage.
Brad Edwards, the principal and chief pilot of Edwards Aviation which operates seven charter aircraft out of Armidale in NSW, said none of the promised operational benefits Airservices had promoted of ADS-B had eventuated, and the additional safety element was “zero”.
The truth is out there...
Here's the Paul Kelly article:
An excellent article that puts a completely different light on the rantings and ravings of the recent articles in The Australian.
Re Capt Gardiner, I wonder if that's all he said?
A number? What, 2?
Sir Angus has more credibility that most of you put together.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. ADS-B is the greatest thing since sliced bread.
Dick Smith is wrong on air safety: Houston
The Australian, 26 June 2015
The chairman of Airservices Australia and former Defence Force Chief, Angus Houston. has repudiated the multiple attacks on him, his management and the nation's air control system mounted in a sustained campaign by prominent aviator and activist, Dick Smith.
This row is now on the desk of Tony Abbott.
In addition to calling for a range of air control changes. Mr Smith has lodged a series of unusual complaints about the way he has been treated stretching back to 2002. He admits to having a grudge against Sir Angus. In interviews with The Australian. Mr Smith says Sir Angus has failed to implement superior elements of the US system. that our air traffic control system is dangerously inadequate, that firefighters should be deployed to assist pilots by radio. that the aviation bureaucracy operates at cost to safety and that as chairman, Sir Angus must take part responsibility for excessive remuneration at his organisation.
Sir Angus told The Australian the decision to modify adoption of the US system arose from government policy beginning in 2006. It was not his decision. He said, contrary to Mr Smith's claims, Australia had a "state of the art" satellite-based control system that was the "envy" of other nations, that safety was the priority and that executive remuneration at Airservices Australia was restrained and closely monitored.
''This started when l was overseas and l am disappointed about it," Sir Angus said of the Smith campaign. "But at the end of the day this is not about me. I have full confidence in Airservices. We put safety first. We are more than comparable with world's best practice.
"Dick has strong views and his views have been around for many years. By his own admission to The Australian. Mr Smith carries some resentment towards me but I will let Mr Smith's words and actions speak for themselves. People can form their own views on those matters.
"The rest of the world looks on us as the leader in implementation of the global navigation system. Australia was actually the first to see the full potential of this system. Frankly, it is exciting stuff. We can now provide for 100 per cent surveillance coverage of the Australian continent but the system is more accurate than conventional radar. It means Airservices can now see every equipped aircraft at high altitude that is in our air space."
In response to Mr Smith's critique of safety in the system, Sir Angus said all passenger aircraft in controlled air space were "controlled every inch to the ground".
In relation to lower classification airspace, he said "air traffic control provides pilots of instrument flight rules (IFR) aircraft with known traffic information in relation to other IFR aircraft".
Instrument flight rules are used to guide aircraft when visibility is poor.
"The way the air space is kept safe is by the regulator, CASA, doing regular studies in each location," Sir Angus said. An imminent CASA report on Ballina airport is expected to lead to new arrangements there. A former C130 Hercules pilot, Sir Angus said the current air control system was "a significant safety enhancement on what was previously a very safe air traffic system".
In Mr Smith's campaign against defects in the air control system and Houston 11 stories and more than 8000 words have been published in The Australian over the past month.
Every story has mentioned Mr Smith and his views. He is still focused on events 13 years ago, telling this paper that in 2002 Sir Angus vetoed his participation in the implementation team for the new air control system, called the National Airspace System (NAS).
In reply, Sir Angus merely said: "Dick says that I vetoed him from the implementation committee. But I wasn't running this committee and I didn't have the power to veto him."
In an extraordinary assertion Mr Smith, thinking he was indispensable, said that without his involvement the new system would not be introduced.
Sir Angus rejects outright the repeated attacks on Airservices Australia chief executive Margaret Staib over her alleged excessive salary and excessive pay rises.
The chief executive is on a salary of $501,864 compared with $488,333 in late 2012. In addition, there is a $100,373 bonus compared with $97,667 in late 2012.
Sir Angus said: "What does the CEO do? The CEO runs an organisation of more than 4000 people most highly skilled and responsible for 11 per cent of air space over the globe.
The organisation has safety responsibility covering 4 million flights each year and 90 million passengers.
"In my view, $600,000 is reasonable for this task and the safety responsibility it involves.
"When I joined the board in late 2011, I was on the remuneration committee.
"We felt at that point the need to tighten up executive remuneration. Since then we have been all over the executive remuneration issue and ensuring it is benchmarked against appropriate standards."
Sir Angus said that in setting the salary, a number of public sector benchmarks were assessed. The decision was taken to align the CEO with the level 2, departmental NAS in favour of "the need for a global, seamless, safe and efficient system for air secretary salary".
"I don't believe any of those secretaries has an accountability for safety to the extent that our CEO does," Sir Angus said.
"It is important to remember that the CEO is an executive director with fiduciary responsibilities which are very different to the responsibilities of a departmental secretary."
Sir Angus issued a remuneration analysis showing that the CEO's total pay increase, including salary and performance bonus, was 2.77 per cent since late 2012. This was significantly below the benchmark comparison over the same time of a 13 per cent average increase for the level 2, departmental secretaries.
Given the extent of the criticism he said: "All executive remuneration goes through the board. I can assure you, there are no issues there. As an organisation we are audited each year by the Australian National Audit Office or one of its subcontractors. Our policy has been to constrain executive remuneration."
The average remuneration package for executives over 2012-13 to 2013-14 was 2.25 per cent. There is, in effect, an executive pay freeze over the 2014-15 to 2015-16 period.
Mr Smith seems to blame Sir Angus for the failure over the years to fully implement the NAS air traffic control system, to which he is deeply attached. It is a bizarre position.
Sir Angus says that in 2006, the Howard government made a policy decision outlined by transport minister Warren Truss that modified the commitment to navigation based upon global navigation satellite systems.
This was cognisant of revolutionary changes in aviation technology. Sir Angus said the basic policy decision to which Mr Smith seems to object was a government decision. It was not Sir Angus's decision.
"The Howard government policy statement acknowledged the world was changing and there was a need to modify the NAS implementation approach."
This has been a bipartisan position under Coalition and Labor.
Sir Angus said: "When I was chief of the air force I supported the implementation of the NAS a full 100 per cent. That's because it was government policy and it was my job to implement government policy.
"I was on a committee headed by Ken Matthews, the secretary of the department of infrastructure and transport at the time. The purpose of this committee was to work out the best way to implement the NAS and oversight its implementation."
Sir Angus said, in relation to the 2002 meeting that Mr Smith complains about, that he recollects the meeting and the discussion.
"My recall is that it was with other people involved in the NAS implementation," Sir Angus said. "My view and the view of others was that it was not appropriate for Dick to lead this implementation team. We felt he should be involved at a higher oversight level with the freedom to assist the implementation team when required. This is what happened."
Reviewing Dick Smith's media and political campaign, Houston said: "It's been 11 years since Mr Smith resigned from the Aviation Reform Group supervising the implementation of the NAS. The technology and global thinking in relation to air traffic management has shifted dramatically in the past decade.
"Where once our systems relied on radar and pilots reporting their positions to ground operators, there's now a global shift to implementing satellite-based systems, such as Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast. Australia is a world leader in the implementation of this technology because it provides enormous safety and service benefit in our environment. But there's no room to stand still on matters of safety- we're constantly working to improve the system and this approach is widely supported by the industry from our airline customers to recreational flyers, airports and the regulator.
"I note that 30 of the 47 characteristics of the NAS have been implemented. However, in some areas, government policy and regulations have moved on to reflect progress in aviation. I would welcome Dick making positive contribution to the public debate that recognises the technologies and capabilities of today and the future."
Dick Smith has created a huge fuss over the need for ground staff such as firefighters at regional airports to be trained to operate the Unicorn radio to provide pilots with weather conditions.
Sir Angus said: "This issue has been looked at over the years. The regulator (CASA) has decided that, if anybody is to provide air traffic information to pilots in a regional context, they must be suitably qualified people. Our firefighters are not trained in that way. Moreover, we want our firefighters ready to respond to any incident or rescue requirement, not handling the radio."
In relation to the accusation that he lacked the stomach to challenge the air traffic controllers union, Sir Angus said: "Our position had nothing whatsoever to do with the air traffic controllers union. It is the regulator that has put these arrangements in place."
The Australian, 26 June 2015
The chairman of Airservices Australia and former Defence Force Chief, Angus Houston. has repudiated the multiple attacks on him, his management and the nation's air control system mounted in a sustained campaign by prominent aviator and activist, Dick Smith.
This row is now on the desk of Tony Abbott.
In addition to calling for a range of air control changes. Mr Smith has lodged a series of unusual complaints about the way he has been treated stretching back to 2002. He admits to having a grudge against Sir Angus. In interviews with The Australian. Mr Smith says Sir Angus has failed to implement superior elements of the US system. that our air traffic control system is dangerously inadequate, that firefighters should be deployed to assist pilots by radio. that the aviation bureaucracy operates at cost to safety and that as chairman, Sir Angus must take part responsibility for excessive remuneration at his organisation.
Sir Angus told The Australian the decision to modify adoption of the US system arose from government policy beginning in 2006. It was not his decision. He said, contrary to Mr Smith's claims, Australia had a "state of the art" satellite-based control system that was the "envy" of other nations, that safety was the priority and that executive remuneration at Airservices Australia was restrained and closely monitored.
''This started when l was overseas and l am disappointed about it," Sir Angus said of the Smith campaign. "But at the end of the day this is not about me. I have full confidence in Airservices. We put safety first. We are more than comparable with world's best practice.
"Dick has strong views and his views have been around for many years. By his own admission to The Australian. Mr Smith carries some resentment towards me but I will let Mr Smith's words and actions speak for themselves. People can form their own views on those matters.
"The rest of the world looks on us as the leader in implementation of the global navigation system. Australia was actually the first to see the full potential of this system. Frankly, it is exciting stuff. We can now provide for 100 per cent surveillance coverage of the Australian continent but the system is more accurate than conventional radar. It means Airservices can now see every equipped aircraft at high altitude that is in our air space."
In response to Mr Smith's critique of safety in the system, Sir Angus said all passenger aircraft in controlled air space were "controlled every inch to the ground".
In relation to lower classification airspace, he said "air traffic control provides pilots of instrument flight rules (IFR) aircraft with known traffic information in relation to other IFR aircraft".
Instrument flight rules are used to guide aircraft when visibility is poor.
"The way the air space is kept safe is by the regulator, CASA, doing regular studies in each location," Sir Angus said. An imminent CASA report on Ballina airport is expected to lead to new arrangements there. A former C130 Hercules pilot, Sir Angus said the current air control system was "a significant safety enhancement on what was previously a very safe air traffic system".
In Mr Smith's campaign against defects in the air control system and Houston 11 stories and more than 8000 words have been published in The Australian over the past month.
Every story has mentioned Mr Smith and his views. He is still focused on events 13 years ago, telling this paper that in 2002 Sir Angus vetoed his participation in the implementation team for the new air control system, called the National Airspace System (NAS).
In reply, Sir Angus merely said: "Dick says that I vetoed him from the implementation committee. But I wasn't running this committee and I didn't have the power to veto him."
In an extraordinary assertion Mr Smith, thinking he was indispensable, said that without his involvement the new system would not be introduced.
Sir Angus rejects outright the repeated attacks on Airservices Australia chief executive Margaret Staib over her alleged excessive salary and excessive pay rises.
The chief executive is on a salary of $501,864 compared with $488,333 in late 2012. In addition, there is a $100,373 bonus compared with $97,667 in late 2012.
Sir Angus said: "What does the CEO do? The CEO runs an organisation of more than 4000 people most highly skilled and responsible for 11 per cent of air space over the globe.
The organisation has safety responsibility covering 4 million flights each year and 90 million passengers.
"In my view, $600,000 is reasonable for this task and the safety responsibility it involves.
"When I joined the board in late 2011, I was on the remuneration committee.
"We felt at that point the need to tighten up executive remuneration. Since then we have been all over the executive remuneration issue and ensuring it is benchmarked against appropriate standards."
Sir Angus said that in setting the salary, a number of public sector benchmarks were assessed. The decision was taken to align the CEO with the level 2, departmental NAS in favour of "the need for a global, seamless, safe and efficient system for air secretary salary".
"I don't believe any of those secretaries has an accountability for safety to the extent that our CEO does," Sir Angus said.
"It is important to remember that the CEO is an executive director with fiduciary responsibilities which are very different to the responsibilities of a departmental secretary."
Sir Angus issued a remuneration analysis showing that the CEO's total pay increase, including salary and performance bonus, was 2.77 per cent since late 2012. This was significantly below the benchmark comparison over the same time of a 13 per cent average increase for the level 2, departmental secretaries.
Given the extent of the criticism he said: "All executive remuneration goes through the board. I can assure you, there are no issues there. As an organisation we are audited each year by the Australian National Audit Office or one of its subcontractors. Our policy has been to constrain executive remuneration."
The average remuneration package for executives over 2012-13 to 2013-14 was 2.25 per cent. There is, in effect, an executive pay freeze over the 2014-15 to 2015-16 period.
Mr Smith seems to blame Sir Angus for the failure over the years to fully implement the NAS air traffic control system, to which he is deeply attached. It is a bizarre position.
Sir Angus says that in 2006, the Howard government made a policy decision outlined by transport minister Warren Truss that modified the commitment to navigation based upon global navigation satellite systems.
This was cognisant of revolutionary changes in aviation technology. Sir Angus said the basic policy decision to which Mr Smith seems to object was a government decision. It was not Sir Angus's decision.
"The Howard government policy statement acknowledged the world was changing and there was a need to modify the NAS implementation approach."
This has been a bipartisan position under Coalition and Labor.
Sir Angus said: "When I was chief of the air force I supported the implementation of the NAS a full 100 per cent. That's because it was government policy and it was my job to implement government policy.
"I was on a committee headed by Ken Matthews, the secretary of the department of infrastructure and transport at the time. The purpose of this committee was to work out the best way to implement the NAS and oversight its implementation."
Sir Angus said, in relation to the 2002 meeting that Mr Smith complains about, that he recollects the meeting and the discussion.
"My recall is that it was with other people involved in the NAS implementation," Sir Angus said. "My view and the view of others was that it was not appropriate for Dick to lead this implementation team. We felt he should be involved at a higher oversight level with the freedom to assist the implementation team when required. This is what happened."
Reviewing Dick Smith's media and political campaign, Houston said: "It's been 11 years since Mr Smith resigned from the Aviation Reform Group supervising the implementation of the NAS. The technology and global thinking in relation to air traffic management has shifted dramatically in the past decade.
"Where once our systems relied on radar and pilots reporting their positions to ground operators, there's now a global shift to implementing satellite-based systems, such as Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast. Australia is a world leader in the implementation of this technology because it provides enormous safety and service benefit in our environment. But there's no room to stand still on matters of safety- we're constantly working to improve the system and this approach is widely supported by the industry from our airline customers to recreational flyers, airports and the regulator.
"I note that 30 of the 47 characteristics of the NAS have been implemented. However, in some areas, government policy and regulations have moved on to reflect progress in aviation. I would welcome Dick making positive contribution to the public debate that recognises the technologies and capabilities of today and the future."
Dick Smith has created a huge fuss over the need for ground staff such as firefighters at regional airports to be trained to operate the Unicorn radio to provide pilots with weather conditions.
Sir Angus said: "This issue has been looked at over the years. The regulator (CASA) has decided that, if anybody is to provide air traffic information to pilots in a regional context, they must be suitably qualified people. Our firefighters are not trained in that way. Moreover, we want our firefighters ready to respond to any incident or rescue requirement, not handling the radio."
In relation to the accusation that he lacked the stomach to challenge the air traffic controllers union, Sir Angus said: "Our position had nothing whatsoever to do with the air traffic controllers union. It is the regulator that has put these arrangements in place."
Re Capt Gardiner, I wonder if that's all he said?
Originally Posted by Dick Smith
It’s interesting – a number of pilots disagreed with Sir Angus’ views in relation to ADS-B.
Sir Angus has more credibility that most of you put together.
I've said it before and I'll say it again. ADS-B is the greatest thing since sliced bread.
In response to Mr Smith's critique of safety in the system, Sir Angus said all passenger aircraft in controlled air space were "controlled every inch to the ground".
Come on, SWH, read/quote the whole text:
It seems that he has a very good understanding...
In relation to lower classification airspace, he said "air traffic control provides pilots of instrument flight rules (IFR) aircraft with known traffic information in relation to other IFR aircraft".
Originally Posted by SWH
In my view Sir A and his 2IC that now run ASA have a very poor understanding of air traffic management and technology.
Man Bilong Balus long PNG
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Looking forward to returning to Japan soon but in the meantime continuing the never ending search for a bad bottle of Red!
Age: 69
Posts: 2,976
Received 105 Likes
on
60 Posts
Jeez, take it easy Frank! You are one voice of reason I do not wish to see banned from the forums because of personal abuse!!
Originally Posted by Some Drongo
It seems that he has a very good understanding...
The you have airports like Avalon that have had arrivals when its non controlled, when when ML radar could provide that ability.
I used to get traffic on other IFR aircraft well before ADSB, and even before alphabet airspace, nothing has changed.
Those Aus coverage charts are somewhat dated BTW - coverage is better than shown as there are more ground stations.
Suggestion to Frank …
If you wish to retain credibility don’t comment on things you obviously do not know anything about.
Y2K is an old story now, but to anyone who does know, it was a very serious threat that was (mostly) very well managed and dealt with so that most people didn’t need to know.
cheers
layman
Y2K is an old story now, but to anyone who does know, it was a very serious threat that was (mostly) very well managed and dealt with so that most people didn’t need to know.
cheers
layman
Could someone tell me just WTF Angus Houston would know about Civil Aviation?
The argument that military guys don't know anything about civil operations is wrong - same airspace, essentially same rules, working under the same broadcast obligations.
The differences with respect to actually getting the aeroplane or helicopter in the air and paying for it are obviously huge when it comes to comparison of the sectors, but there's a hell of a lot of GA pilots out there whose knowledge of the regs and procedures is lacking far worse than many military people who fly in Aussie airspace.
I don't say this to insult anyone, but to put the quoted comment in perspective.