CASA is a joke!
 

Having startes flying relatively recently (2004) and hearing a lot back then about how woefully inadequate CASA are, I decided to come into aviation with an open mind and make my own decisions about them. This past year though, as I have been forced to deal with them more and more I have begun to realise how woeful they really are, and if the general public knew the things that went on if they would continue to believe the PR crap that CASA spurts out.

Here are my dealings with CASA this year, (Most relate to VERY shoddy administration)

1. CPL passed February 17, Licence received second week of APRIL. (Luckily i had no jobs lined up, how many other wannabe's have had to be kept waiting while they get their bit of paper to start working) (9 weeks wait)

2. ASIC applied for in August 2005, received the day before the deadline March 30th. I won't go into the farce that was the "distribution" as most of you are well aware of all that. Needless to say any old Terrorist could have picked up my card. (30 weeks wait)

3. NVFR rating passed 1st August, Paid $130 "admin fee" (for what service!?) Updated Licence received- Last week of October. (13 weeks wait)

4. Class 1 medical 'passed' August 25, received the "you need to pay us $130 for us to consider your medical" letter on October 20th. Paid said fee the next week. received Medical certificate 3rd November (after it had expired for nearly 2 weeks)

5. The one that tops it all off- Yesterday I received a letter from CASA. " Thank you for your payment of $130.00. CASA will now consider your medical certificate application." Riiiiiiight, you have already issued me my medical on the 3rd, and now on the 22nd I get this letter. Makes sense. :ugh:


I seriously cannot belive the level of incompetancy within CLARC in particular. Don't get me started on the call centre.

/end rant

yeah, so whats the problem? i applied for my ASIC in Feb 06, in September, still no asic, then recieved a phone call from CASA asking for me to Re-apply as they have lost my details... i told them not im not going to bother.....

when all this ASIC and medical fee farce is over i will apply for whats needed, till then its RA-Aus all the way.

I think if someone got a quality, prompt response about anything from CASA, I should probalby have heart failure. But that aside, it is quite diabolical, and Ra-Aus is probably, or rather, definately the way to go for anyone who wants to fly recreationally. I can't see CASA getting it's act together anytime soon. It took about 3 months for my medical to go through, and when I rang them for the umpteenth time, they said, "oh, your doctor hasn't sent the ECG results only the echocardio results...blah blah." so I asked the doctor and he sent it off and it took another 2 months for them to send the certificate out to me, four months since the application was received by them. Plus the certificate was backdated to some date in July about 2 weeks BEFORE I went to the doctor to do the test. Go figure.

A couple of weeks ago i needed a permit to fly an aircraft on an expired MR asap. Was airborne @ 7am the next day, permit in hand. Cost $200 of course. Mr CASA was more than helpful and made every effort to get me airborne.

Basically i've found that if you're dealing with a person directly about an issue then all is well, but if you're dealing with the 'system'......well.....forget it. No really, FORGET it and go fly RAA.

Got my tax invoice for the ASIC... November 2006... after requesting one well before end of financial year... :hmm:

Charged my credit card twice for the ASIC fee :hmm:

Now I've heard it all
 

To take money out of your credit card twice.......can they sink any lower in ineptitude? Makes me wanna puke:*

Tip for dealing with CASA
 

One small trick I have learnt is to contact your ATO to follow up with CASA on any paperwork they have signed off on.

If you have exhausted all your avenues of calling CASA direct a call from an ATO *seems* like it can make a difference ... worth a try anyway.

Not sure about medicals though - that seems to be totally random.

Medical Woes
 

A while back, my medical was shortened due to a medical condition, Class 1 still 1 year, but class 2 only 2 years. Had medical done again at start of this year, my medical condition has not changed whatsoever and is no threat at all to my flying safety, yet for no reason both my class 1 AND 2 are now only valid for one year.

What's the chances of me getting a medical through before mid Jan if i sit it next week? I just need the class 2 as im meatbombing but want the class 1 anyway, oh yeah the DAME can't sign it off, has to be renewed by casa.

Nice dilemma eh?

CASA is trying to deal with people who are working in industry first before dealing with people gaining their licence, resources are not unlimited.

As an ATPL holder I have received a prompt response for licence reissue, medicals, and ASIC.

Unfortunately they are giving people who are starting out in the industry a very poor display in customer service.

Sounds to me like you don’t meet the prescribed standard, and after review by CASA they have granted a medical. This is basically an exemption, which only CASA should have the option of renewing.

Sort of on topic.... If I apply for my medical (Class 1) Renewal and it doesn't return before the old one expires, can I charge CASA for loss of work? After all they have the Monoploy on the whole thing. If I fly after it expires then im breaking the law and they can fine me.

You think this little list constitutes CASA incompetence?

You have got to be joking:ugh:

This is just normal public service clerical lazyness.:rolleyes:

Laziness implys that they can do the job, but choose not to.

The best word would be incompetence, the just can't do the job properly.

But it is true that in other sectors of public service there is just as much incompetence, it's just that there is moreso in CASA.

Your post raises some questions.

1. If they lost your details, how did they know to call you...?

2. An ASIC is still required for security controlled airports - how will you legally get into those?

3. RA-Aus has the following limitations:
- 1 passenger only
- Weight limited to 544 or 600kg's
- No night flying
- No IFR
- No Aerobatics

I know what I'm sticking with!

Most recreational flyers only really fly in conditions that apply to the Ra-Aus requirements anyway and so wouldn't have much problem with having these restrictions.

Definatley Ra-Aus is not the bet option for some people, those who need more flexiblity in thier flying, but there is a large precentage of people who only fly on weekends with good weather and locally, and it's these peopel who Ra-Aus is best suited for. For those who need to fly at night and in bad weather, then CASA regulated GA is the best way.

One of the biggest jokes is the way they administer airworthiness standards. They have a thing called schedule 5 which has apparently been widely misinterpreted by LAME's for many years. (CASA put out an airworthiness bulletin in June 06 to 'clarify' it all.) Now it seems that many light aircraft that have Schedule 5 on their Maintenance Releases do not comply with minmum standards and the owners are in for a big shock when they next go for 100hrly because many of the 'lifed' components will need replacement or overhaul. Apparently, the situation has always been the same and schedule 5 does NOT mean anything different to the maunfacturers recomendations unless the maunfacturers recommendations are inadequate! Why have so many Certificate of Registration holders and LAME's been under miapprehensions about Schedule 5 for so long and nothing has been done until now? Beware if you buy an aircraft with Schedule 5 on its log book statement. You may well cop a big bill - or worse! They just have not taken responsibility for implementing minmmum airworthiness standards and if you end up in court as C of R holder, even with a current MR and signed off log book, its your problem!

This week
 

Is that what it means this week?

Bushy, Its all on the CASA website see Airworthiness Bulletin 02-003 Issue 2 22-6-06. It says all registered operators of Australian registered aircraft should read it. Cannot understand why they did not send it to all of 'em - or maybe they did? Or maybe someone does not want to publicise it or maybe there is another clarification on the way? Let's hope so!

Yes I would agree CASA is hopeless 9 times out of 10.

My most memorable incident of CASA stupidity was asking a regulatory question to one of the managers at the CASA office in brisbane. I wanted to know if companies that do the traffic reporting flights on the radio need an AOC as they are getting their revenue from the sale of advertising at the end of the traffic report, not the actual flying. The CASA employee told me it was a 'grey area' and I would need to seek my own legal advise from a lawyer to get the answer. How rediculous is that? You make the rules, then you don't want to explain them?

Casa Airworthiness ???
 

I had an issue about 3 years ago where I reported an illegal and totally non aviation standard repair to an autopilot wiring and took photos and gave a detailed Defect Report and to this day have not had any feedback or has anything been done to the company or anyone in it

I applied for my Licence Renewal recently and received it back with several Groups omitted the printing had squewed so the printing had run off the edge of the page
I wrote an email back and complained about how they demand all the i's dotted and t's crossed but they turn out shoddy work
I received a curt email back that said I could expect my licence in the mail suitably amended
When it arrived it was in an envelope that was too big and so when I opened it it was all scrinched up
NO APOLOGY NO Anything
They should all be fired and a new group of people hired who can do the job without the arrogance
I am sick of it :rolleyes:

I like the way you can hand in a valid ASIC card from an old employer. Then apply the NEXT DAY for your new employer and still wait 6 weeks before they say something like "oh you lived in Timbuktoo for 12 months and we need them to give you a police clearence. Then when you get that police clearence which takes 2 months, they lose the whole lot and you start again. All the while wearing that yellow visitors pass and having to be escorted about by a valid ASIC holder in case the security dude spots you. This is particularly annoying when you did the same thing 18 months prior. Don't they keep records?

It's also pretty cool they way they say it's being held up by "another agency".