Looks very much like some back pedaling to me.

Maybe a "little" bit of back pedalling but still making sure we all know who's in charge.

The Director is ruling by decree in a pond where he has zero experience but wants to be seen to be doing something. The shenanigans will continue ...

Interesting
 

Unhinged, interesting quote
Now perhaps The Screaming Skull has more experience within the big end of the skies rather than with the smaller birds and airports,but what experience do people like Politicians,even Alabanese have ??
In general, Politicians suck, kiss and lick their way into that field of employment,with no skill other than having been born with a silver spoon in their mouths and the even better skill of being able to lie and spread BS without flinching,then they score a portfolio which revolves around a particular arena that they normally have never even stepped in.
I would imagine that The Skull would not be acting on his own,rather he would be listening to his senior managers of which some do have a background which included GA etc.True,that doesnt neccesarily mean the correct processes have been adopted, but I have of late become physically ill at the sight and sound of Politicians speaking about things such as aviation, economy, employemnt, environment to name a few, when their overarching knowledge of the subject matter is zero..
(My apologies for the 'thread drift' and slight deflection, I have been watching too many political spin doctors on the news lately ).

Albanese's lack of experience in the things that his portfolio controls doesn't excuse the Director's behaviour. Oh to have a Minister who had ever set foot in a charter operation or flying school, quietly as a student or ordinary customer, rather than as a publicity opportunity. But, because the politicians usually know little useful about the operational side of their responsibilities, they employ people who can relate to pollies on one side, and the real world on the other. To interpret, advocate, guide, and direct. And so, the Director is sandwiched in that confined space between operational issues and political masters. It is the same for all organisations, especially large ones.

The line which all people in the Director's position walk is complex, but many carry such a position with aplomb. He does not. Feeling the need to do something, he does it. CASA Instrument 597/09 plainly acknowleges that he has acted without sufficient input from appropriate sources.

Referring to the previous Instrument setting out GAAP changes (6 aircraft circuit limit, Class D, etc), it says "This instrument is a remake of a previous instrument. When that instrument was done, the Office of Best Practice Regulation did not require a Regulation Impact Statement because a preliminarly assessment of the Business Compliance Costs indicated that the instrument would have only a low impact on business"

"Low impact on business" ? The restriction to 6 circuit aircraft had a large, measurable, and entirely predictable impact on business. Staffing Camden Tower 7 days a week will have a large, measurable and entirely predictable impact on business. Either the advice was wrong, or the people it came from were the wrong people to ask. Or both. In either case, he should have applied more wisdom in acting on it, and he is responsible for that.

No-one expects The Director to know everything about aviation, and he is naturally obliged to get assistance in areas where he has limited expertise. He needs to get the right advice from the appropriate people and implement it in an effective way. Shotgun out, management in.

Unhinged - well said mate.

I wonder if humble pie was on the menu for xmas lunch at the director's place?

SayAgainSlowly,
The Humble Pie was for desert, the main course was a s*#t sandwich !!

too late in the evening to go searching the thread to see if this has been posted previously- but a little bird whispered that the GAAP CAP could well have been as a result of an unsettling experience for the CEO during a weekend expedition at Archerfield early in 2009. apparently not amoured of the traffic behaviour (or numbers), the 'lack' of radio discipline etc:hmm:
guess it was just not the same as operating into an international location in a CX bird:{

What concerns me is that the original instruction did not appear to be based on much more than a wild @ssed guess.

Clearly, going from Six to Eight aircraft is a 33% workload increase.....or is it?

What appears to me to be missing from consideration is the "meta message" (the message being sent when you don't think you are sending a message) that is constantly being transmitted by ATC, taxiing aircraft, Circuit aircraft and arriving and departing aircraft.

The "meta message" is contained in voice procedure, standard of English, circuit behaviour and taxiing behaviour. As a YMMB flier who does the odd circuit to keep their hand in, it's pretty bloody obvious when things are getting too busy.

That is when I land and go home, not wishing to contribute any further to the confusion of kids who don't understand taxiing instructions, joining instructions, and whose wide circuits take them into the next state, and yes, we all started like that, but was the circuit always full of complete beginners?

To put it another way, if one of those sausage machine training courses is just starting, even Six in the circuit is going to be a handful, but come back Three weeks later and Eight or more plus arrivals and departures may well be doable for all I know.

You're right Sunfish.

YMMB is nowhere near its 1989 peak.

The other sign is the traffic on final.

Regardless, making regulation decisions from the hip is dangerous, just look at the increase in density at the entry points, and there's no tower control out there to assist with separation.

Safe Skulls For All
 

tubby one -
I know there are 'for and against' in regard to the GAAP shennanigans, but perhaps tubby one has unveiled a nugget here? Perhaps when decisions or changes are being considered in regards to aviation,regulations and procedures - the Regulator must personally experience the current rule set within a flying environment before the changes are implemented ? It certainly is a different environment out there amongst the action compared to signing papers in an airconditioned office.
Just a thought.

...or going through airline pilots' files to select those to be terminated 'for no particular reason'.

ATC training? ATC recruitment? Pilot education?

Not going well methinks, CASA is still thinking about the fine details - so as widely predicted delays will occur.

Best guess from CASA right now? JMcC reckons "It is anticipated Class D airspace will take effect from 3 June 2010." Notice the "anticipated" - there's another get out clause if it all proves too hard!!!

Knee-jerk reaction? Yep, followed by a right royal stuff-up.