CAGRS now established at BNK
Is it true that rather than it being a zero cost Unicom operated by the existing fire service as it is in the USA and Canada it costs over $100,000 per year giving ATCs retirement jobs?
YEP..!! You possibly get a ex 'FSO' for less...
Luvly Ballina....
Surfing in the morning....eaten by sharks by lunchtime...
p.s. thanx for ......
Luvly Ballina....
Surfing in the morning....eaten by sharks by lunchtime...
p.s. thanx for ......
Ballinas ""Fact Sheet" says the service is to provide traffic blah blah for RPT ops and will typically operate 0800-1700 Their own published schedules show 1st op is at 0630, and last is at 2020, so either they won't provide coverage for all RPT movements (will CASA allow that), or the hours will be longer. So say 0600-2100. That would usually need 2 operators in 2 shifts daily, so probably at least 5 in total to give 7 day coverage and leave coverage. You won't get that for anywhere near just $100k. If the charge is added to the RPT pax head tax, GA in Ballina has just had a huge win for nothing. (along with the Fire Service they don't pay for) Nice one Dick But if it's on the landing and movement charges for all now, oops Dick, all that agitating in the media 
(for 12 RPT Movements a day - less than 1 an hour if they are open for all the RPTs)
But if it's on the landing and movement charges for all now, oops Dick, all that agitating in the media (for 12 RPT Movements a day - less than 1 an hour if they are open for all the RPTs)
Curiously, even taking into account HDS, the RFF hours of operation are significantly different:
B3/17 REVIEW B2/17
CERTIFIED AIR/GROUND RADIO SERVICE (CA/GRS) OPR
HR 2200-0700 UTC DAILY (1HR EARLIER HDS)
FREQ 124.2 D CALL SIGN 'BALLINA RADIO'
CHANGES TO HR WILL BE ADVISED ON AAIS
AAIS AND AWIS AVBL VIA FREQ 134.8
FROM 03 030455 TO 05 260600 EST
C20/17 REVIEW C294/16
FIRE AND RESCUE CAT 6 OPR HOURS
MON 1915 - 1015
TUE 1915 - 1015
WED 1915 - 1015
THU 1915 - 1015
FRI 1915 - 1015
SAT 1915 - 0820
SUN 2045 - 1015
FROM 03 080000 TO 04 010820 EST
CERTIFIED AIR/GROUND RADIO SERVICE (CA/GRS) OPR
HR 2200-0700 UTC DAILY (1HR EARLIER HDS)
FREQ 124.2 D CALL SIGN 'BALLINA RADIO'
CHANGES TO HR WILL BE ADVISED ON AAIS
AAIS AND AWIS AVBL VIA FREQ 134.8
FROM 03 030455 TO 05 260600 EST
C20/17 REVIEW C294/16
FIRE AND RESCUE CAT 6 OPR HOURS
MON 1915 - 1015
TUE 1915 - 1015
WED 1915 - 1015
THU 1915 - 1015
FRI 1915 - 1015
SAT 1915 - 0820
SUN 2045 - 1015
FROM 03 080000 TO 04 010820 EST
ARFF would be mandated to cover RPT (although curious close time since last REX arrival is sked 2020L) while CA/GRS must be whatever you want to pay for.
Clearly sending our industry into bankruptcy. Unicoms in the USA and Canada have no cost. They use an available person at the airport. We were to copy that but the decision was hi jacked .
But it's not NO cost. That available person is not there to do Unicom. They are there doing something for and being paid for by someone else. It's like free wifi and free healthcare and free education. Its only free to the end user, the costs are absorbed by someone else. Clearly, no one wants to absorb the costs of a Unicom, because hardly any one provides one.
I don't know how Ballina is funding its CAGRS, but lets say, like the Fire Service, its via an RPT pax head tax. Say it costs $400k to provide, BNK was forecast to have around 400k pax through its terminals these days, so that's a $1 on each ticket. Hardly bank breaking. So that means each and every other user of BNK gets a professional, certified, trained service, paid for by someone else. Just like the firies are. So that's a bit better than a half arsed guess by some random baggie who happens to be walking past the radio when you call.
So when you drop in in your C172, you get a dedicated Fire service, and (maybe) a dedicated traffic and weather service, for free! (Well, at least for you).
I don't know how Ballina is funding its CAGRS, but lets say, like the Fire Service, its via an RPT pax head tax. Say it costs $400k to provide, BNK was forecast to have around 400k pax through its terminals these days, so that's a $1 on each ticket. Hardly bank breaking. So that means each and every other user of BNK gets a professional, certified, trained service, paid for by someone else. Just like the firies are. So that's a bit better than a half arsed guess by some random baggie who happens to be walking past the radio when you call.
So when you drop in in your C172, you get a dedicated Fire service, and (maybe) a dedicated traffic and weather service, for free! (Well, at least for you).
So when you drop in in your C172, you get a dedicated Fire service, and (maybe) a dedicated traffic and weather service, for free! (Well, at least for you).
The person who drops in is taxpayer. The amount of tax that person pays is more than it should be, as a consequence of the number of bloated leaches at executive level in Airservices who are diverting the amount of money that would otherwise be returned to government (probably to be sucked up by other bloated leaches anyway...). And the last time I looked, one or more of the RPT operators were enjoying a reduced or nil airways charges (but I confess that I haven't checked the current arrangements).
'User pays' is a scam, and the suggestion that users who are not paying a direct fee are not paying is inaccurate: They pay indirectly.
The discrepancy between RPT arrivals and RFFS hours will be explicable on the basis of some safety-irrelevant issue.
Sensible decision to delet those posts, Bloggs.
But I have copies of them...
But I have copies of them...
Last edited by Lead Balloon; 13th Mar 2017 at 10:40.
Unicoms............have no cost.
the suggestion that users who are not paying a direct fee are not paying is inaccurate: They pay indirectly.
No. Not forgotten. You did a wonderful job and very much missed.
And there was no extra charge for the service.
If the existing RFFS provided the Unicom at Ballina there would be no measurable extra cost.
What is the rumoured cost of the new cagro at Ballina?
Clive Wilson still wants to provide a no charge unicom at Lord Howe but CASA will not give approval in writing .
And there was no extra charge for the service.
If the existing RFFS provided the Unicom at Ballina there would be no measurable extra cost.
What is the rumoured cost of the new cagro at Ballina?
Clive Wilson still wants to provide a no charge unicom at Lord Howe but CASA will not give approval in writing .
Dick, isn't Clive Wilson also busy providing accurate forecasts and weather advice to pilots because of the BOM reduced the staff and their hours on YLHI.
*BoM celebrating another year of inaccurate aviation forecasting, while providing 7 day weather forecasts for one horse towns in the back of beyond.
*BoM celebrating another year of inaccurate aviation forecasting, while providing 7 day weather forecasts for one horse towns in the back of beyond.
So what is stopping him? I didn't think a Unicom needed CASA approval. Or is still a case that he is providing information that he is not legally qualified to provide. If he were to stick to that which a Unicom is authorized to provide I would imagine he would have no issues. You hint at a ASA/CASA conspiracy, ie details deleted from ERSA etc, but in truth it seems it is more local politics at play out there. Info in ERSA is provided by the AD OPR (and that is who removed his details) so obviously they don't want his services associated with the airport.
And he wouldn't be provided forecasts. Unless he is an Accredited Met Observer, the weather advice he can legally offer to pilots is extremely limited.
And he wouldn't be provided forecasts. Unless he is an Accredited Met Observer, the weather advice he can legally offer to pilots is extremely limited.