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CASA media release - Monday, 26 June 2006
More time to comment on medicals paper

Pilots are being given an extra month to provide comment on a set of proposals to overhaul the way private and student pilot medical certificates are processed.

This follows a strong response by pilots to the class 2 medical certificate discussion paper issued by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority in early June.

Already more than 400 people and organisations have provided feedback on the options paper.

CASA has extended the comment period until Friday 28 July to given as many people as possible the chance to put their views.

The class 2 medical discussion paper puts forward a number of options for changing the way certificates are processed.

These range from introducing fees based on the actual time taken to assess each medical application, to a new system delegating private pilot medicals to properly qualified doctors who are Designated Aviation Medical Examiners.

The aim of any changes will be to eliminate unnecessary administrative costs currently borne by private and student pilots.

There is no proposal to change the way medical certificates for professional pilots are managed.

All pilots are required to undergo regular medical checks to ensure they are fit to fly, with more frequent and rigorous checks for commercial and air transport pilots.

Read the discussion paper and access the on-line comment form at: http://www.casa.gov.au/class2avmed

Media contact:
Peter Gibson
mobile 0419 296 446
Ref: MR0635