The CASA Briefing
Your monthly CASA update

 Civil Aviation Safety Authority

August 2008

From CEO Bruce Byron

CEO Bruce Byron

I will be stepping down as chief executive officer of CASA at the end of November this year. At this time my five year contract runs out and it has always been my intention not to seek an extension of that contract. I had a view when I took over the job in December 2003 that five years would be sufficient time to make significant and lasting improvements to way CASA operates and I see no reason to change that thinking. Over the last five years we have made sweeping reforms to CASA, from the bottom right to the top of the organisation. While I know that not everyone in the aviation industry agrees with every aspect of the changes we have made, I am certain that the vast majority of people acknowledge CASA is a better regulator today than we were five years ago. While I do hear the view that more needs to be changed, I don't hear an argument that CASA should have been left to keep going as it had been in the past.

My term as CEO began just after the last board had been abolished and a range of amendments had been made to the Civil Aviation Act. When I started I could see that CASA could fulfil its potential to make a greater contribution to aviation safety, but it needed to better harness its potential. I made it my job to drive change by providing strategic direction, clear goals, safety priorities and stated policies. The result is CASA now has a structure that better aligns with the aviation industry, has introduced vastly improved processes and is more responsive to industry, while retaining a healthy distance. Most importantly, we now do more surveillance of passenger carrying operations than ever before, using a greater mix of aviation skills. I have been strongly supported in this work by a new and dynamic senior management team and a revitalised workforce across all parts of the organisation.

The process of recruiting a new CEO has now commenced. Advertisements have appeared in various papers and journals and, on behalf of the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government has engaged the services of an executive search firm.

A win for small charter operators

CASA has moved to give small aircraft charter operators more flexibility in varying their aircraft fleet, while cutting costs and paper work. From the next issue of their Air Operator's Certificate, charter operators who fly single-engine piston-powered aeroplanes will not have to apply to CASA when adding new aircraft types. This applies as long as the aircraft type is under 5700 kilograms maximum take-off weight and is single-engine and piston-powered. There will be no need to seek a variation of the Air Operator's Certificate from CASA, unless the aircraft is equipped for float plane operations. The initiative makes it simpler and quicker for small charter operators to add new aircraft to their fleet and the usual fees that apply to variations to Air Operator's Certificates will not have to be paid.

The change is being implemented by adding a generic statement to the Air Operator's Certificates for these charter operators. It reads:

"The following Australian registered aircraft are authorised to conduct charter operations in Australian Territory: Single engine piston powered land aeroplanes not exceeding 5700kg maximum take-off weight other than amateur built or kit-built aeroplanes, unless permitted by the Civil Aviation Regulations 1988 or the Civil Aviation Safety Regulations (CASRs) 1988."

The new statement will be added to the certificates of existing operators when they are renewed or a variation is requested. Naturally, charter operators will still have to update their manuals when adding new aircraft types and make other procedural changes.

Find out more about this initiative.

Flight training office swings into action

Work to set up CASA's new Flight Training and Testing office is nearing completion, with a team of flight training examiners now appointed. Five fixed wing examiners have been selected to form the core of the new Training and Testing office. CASA CEO Bruce Byron announced last year the office would be established to continue to improve the standards of flight testing and approved testing officers across Australia. A Flight Training and Approved Testing Officer Management Program is being implemented, which includes providing professional development support for approved testing officers. A total of 17 two-day professional development programs are being held at different locations over the next 10 months, with the first completed in Sydney in late August.

CASA's Roger Weeks, who manages the new Flight Training and Testing Office from its base at Bankstown Airport, said working closely with people in the flying training industry is a priority. "The programs will provide an excellent opportunity for interaction between approved testing officers and CASA with the main aim of achieving standardisation in the conduct of flight tests," Roger said. "We will cover flight testing philosophy and explore the standards that are required to be assessed and looked at for each type of flight test in detail. The office has already started conducting industry flight tests with the first round of initial issue Flight Instructor Rating tests carried out towards the end of June and early July. More tests are scheduled over the coming months and the next steps will be to refine entry control processes for approved testing officers and conduct comprehensive surveillance of approved testing officer activity."

Find out more about CASA support for flying training.

North Australia safety sweep completed

CASA completed its first ever 'safety sweep' of Northern Australia last month and found strong support for the activity from a broad cross section of people in the aviation industry. Two teams of CASA people travelled across Northern Australia – a helicopter operating from East to West from Cairns and a fixed wing aircraft operating from West to East, starting in the Kimberly. The safety sweep focused on general aviation operations, carrying out ramp checks, checking on air operators and maintenance organisations and talking to pilots. A key element of the exercise was providing expert advice on safety issues, with CASA aviation safety advisors part of the team. Ramp checks and surveillance were carried out in many remote locations where aviation people do not often see CASA's operational presence, as well as in the larger regional centres. Areas covered include the Kimberly, the Top End of the Northern Territory, North West Queensland, the Torres Strait and Cape York.

CASA's inspectors and advisors who took part in the exercise said they were generally impressed with the professionalism of the pilots and other aviation people they encountered. Many of the younger pilots welcomed being ramp checked by CASA for the first time as they were keen to see the regulator at work. While stories of 'cowboy' activities in remote parts of Australia are legendary, on the whole there was limited evidence of this behaviour. Naturally, where CASA found activities that fell below acceptable safety standards appropriate action was taken.

Multi-crew pilot licence proposals released

Proposals for the introduction of an Australian multi-crew pilot licence have been set out by CASA. A notice of proposed rule making has been issued providing the broad framework for the new category of licence, which was established by the International Civil Aviation Organization in late 2006. The multi-crew pilot licence offers a new way of training people to become co-pilots in large aircraft operations with at least two pilots. It was established because there was an international recognition that current training requiring a large number of solo flying hours on smaller aircraft is not the most efficient and safe way to train jet aircraft co-pilots. Training organisations and airlines also wanted a greater use of modern training techniques such as flight simulators.

Key proposals put forward by CASA include: the minimum aeronautical knowledge requirements should be the same as the requirements for obtaining an air transport pilot licence and the instrument rating; the minimum flying experience should be the hours specified by ICAO as long as the training course, assessments and flight tests are based on the competency standards specified by ICAO; an MPL candidate will have demonstrated competency acting as pilot flying and as pilot monitoring a multi-crew multi-engine turbine powered aeroplane; a newly qualified MPL pilot should be limited initially to flying aircraft of the same type that was used in the final phase of the MPL course and with the airline associated with the MPL course; induction training and continuity experience requirements should apply to airlines using MPL pilots; the recent experience requirements for the MPL should be the same as the requirements for an air transport pilot licence.

Read the MPL notice of proposed rule making.

TAFE offers new training for engineers

Australia's new internationally recognised training for apprentice aircraft engineers has moved into the TAFE system. The South Western Sydney Institute is the first Australian TAFE to receive approval to operate under the new maintenance engineering training standards. The new training standards are closely aligned with best-practice European standards. CASA introduced the maintenance training and licensing standards in 2007 to allow the aviation industry the opportunity to become more competitive in the international aviation market. Maintenance training organisations have the choice of continuing to operate under the existing standards or can move to the new standards by complying with the requirements of Civil Aviation Order 100.66.

CASA chief executive officer, Bruce Byron, said the approval given to TAFE NSW is a significant step forward for the Australian aviation industry, which can now access a wider choice of training providers. The acting NSW Minister for Education, John Hatzistergos, said it was a tremendous honour for TAFE NSW to be the first to receive certification to deliver training to aircraft maintenance engineers. "For industry, the certification means that NSW companies will be better able to compete for and win maintenance contracts for offshore carriers, using TAFE graduates. And for the graduates themselves, it means that they will be able to compete for employment in a global market."

Find out more about the EASA equivalent maintenance authorities.

Do the alcohol and drug on-line quiz

The start of the aviation industry's alcohol and other drugs program is getting closer, so now is the time to learn all about this important subject. To help everyone in aviation understand the issues behind the alcohol and other drugs program CASA has set up a special website full of essential information. One of the features of the web site is an interactive quiz on the substances that will be subject to testing. You can choose to learn more about alcohol, depressants such as cannabis, stimulants such as speed or hallucinogens such as LSD. The quiz asks a series of questions about the various drugs to test knowledge and provide information. Solid knowledge of the effects and risks associated with drugs will be important for everyone in aviation once random and workplace testing begins later this year. Organisations will be required to develop drug and alcohol management plans for their workplaces, which will include testing, while CASA will be managing a random testing program for the whole aviation industry.

Do the alcohol and other drugs quiz now.

New standards for satellite aircraft separation

Australia is moving to create new standards for the separation of aircraft by air traffic control when utilising global navigation satellite system (GNSS) positions. Currently two aircraft on the same cruising level must be a minimum of 29 nautical miles apart in lateral separation. This is considered to be quite conservative and the International Civil Aviation Organization is in the process of revising the standard. Research in Australia and overseas has shown that reducing the circular tolerance area around aircraft using GNSS by half will still maintain appropriate levels of safety. Consultations at an international level are underway to make the change, although it is expected to be at least two years until ICAO introduces the new standard.

This delay has led Australia to look at revising the standard through amendments to the manual of standards covering air traffic service providers – Civil Aviation Safety Regulations Part 172. A CASA project has been set up look at the comprehensive risk assessments already completed by Airservices Australia and the consultation with industry. By establishing the new standard more efficient and fail-tolerant air routes can be established between airports in Australia, particularly in remote areas and those outside radar coverage.

Read the details of the GNSS separation project.

Have your say on low visibility operations

The aviation industry is being asked to comment on proposals for changes to the regulations and procedures covering low visibility operations. This covers flights where visibility is less than 800 metres. A discussion paper has been issued by CASA which looks at the safety issues related to low visibility operations and the proposed changes. Currently Australia only has regulatory standards covering precision approach category I, which is in general use. However, some aerodrome operators have decided to upgrade aerodrome facilities to support precision approach category II or III operations, creating a need for appropriate regulatory standards. In addition, there is concern that existing regulatory requirements are not clear.

Three options for reviewing the current situation are proposed in the discussion paper, with CASA supporting one which would see a three year time frame for aerodrome operators to achieve compliance with standards for operations in visibility of less than 550 metres but not less than 330 metres. This would involve improvements to the provision of information on airport infrastructure; changes to take-off visibility criteria for non-controlled airports, the introduction of appropriate standards covering precision approach category II and III operations and the introduction of an 'approach ban,' applicable to precision approaches and approach procedures with vertical guidance.

Read the low visibility discussion paper.

Cherokee still needs inspections

Owners, operators and maintainers of Piper Cherokee aircraft have been reminded that a range of inspections may be needed on their aircraft. CASA issued the recommendation to continue the inspections after it was decided to cancel three previous airworthiness directives which specified routine maintenance tasks. The directives were cancelled because they were unique to Australia and could no longer be justified. However, an airworthiness bulletin issue by CASA says the inspections should be considered carefully when planning maintenance on PA-28 aircraft. They include inspections of the aileron spar and doubler for cracking near the hinges, inspection of the trim rudder arm for cracking near the rudder bar attachment bolt, aileron balance weight arms and attachments and inspection of the aileron and stabilator balance weight assembly and rudder horn assembly. Some of these inspections apply to particular models or serial numbers.

Read the full airworthiness bulletin.

Study looks at parachute risks

Australian parachute operators have the chance to take part in a risk-profiling study being conducted by CASA in conjunction with the Australian Parachute Federation and the Australian Skydiving Association. The aim of the activity is to identify the risks unique to this sector of the aviation industry as it continues to grow. This is in keeping with CASA's risk-based approach to safety oversight and evaluation. The results of the profile will help CASA, the Australian Parachute Federation and the Australian Skydiving Association assess the suitability of the current self-administration regime and determine whether enhancements to the existing self-administration model and framework are required. All Australian parachute operators are being called on to participate in the study.

To take part in parachute risk-profiling contact either CASA's Rob Glenn or the Australian Parachute Federation's Brad Turner.

Corrosion warning for Cirrus

Surface corrosion has been found on the flap hinge arms in Cirrus SR20 and SR22 aircraft. If left undetected the corrosion can cause irreparable damage to the flap hinge arms and possible failure. CASA has recommended operators and maintainers of the Cirrus aircraft have the flap arm hinges inspected as soon as possible for the presence of surface corrosion. Any sign of missing paint is cause for further investigation, which may require removal of the hinge arms and removal of the surface coatings. All corrosion should be removed by an approved repair scheme and corrosion preventative coatings in accordance with approved procedures should be applied. The steps set out in a Cirrus service bulletin should be taken to protect the hinge arms. All instances of corrosion should be reported to CASA through the Service Difficulty Reporting System.

Read the Cirrus airworthiness bulletin.

GA report paints a mixed picture

A special report into the general aviation industry paints a picture of an industry in transition, according to the Federal Infrastructure and Transport Minister Anthony Albanese. Mr Albanese said: "While parts of the industry are growing and prospering, some smaller operators are struggling to remain viable. The commercialisation of general aviation airports; skill shortages; a complex regulatory environment; and the ageing of the small aircraft fleet have all created a challenging operating environment. The report clearly highlights some of the problems that have developed in the absence of a long term, coordinated strategic plan from the national government. In part that's why I recently announced the Government would develop Australia's first-ever Aviation White Paper to guide the industry's growth over the next decade and beyond."

The report puts forward 18 recommendations covering the need for improved marketing of aviation professional careers, improved awareness of general aviation in existing government business assistance programs, establishing targets for growth for exporting aviation services and more effective communication between the states and the Commonwealth on general aviation issues. In the area of regulation, the report found the industry broadly supportive of CASA's efforts to become a more effective and efficient regulator. It also found little support for self regulation and a high priority placed on completion of CASA's regulatory reform program.

Read the full GA industry report.