The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) released today a timeline that shows it intends to complete all regulation reform before 2020, which means the total process will have taken 32 years.
According to the timeline, there are still 20 CASR parts to be done, with the final suite, Part 139 - Aerodromes, to become effective in November 2020.
CASA Director of Aviation Safety Mark Skidmore said the new timetable takes into account the aviation community’s capacity to cope with regulatory changes.
“Our main aim is to avoid placing any unnecessary burdens on aviation organisations or individuals during the process of developing and implementing new and improved regulations,” he said.
“CASA has allowed plenty of time for consultation on the development of new regulations so we can listen to feedback and respond to the views of the aviation community.
“The timetable has realistic transition periods to give everyone adequate time to move across to the new regulations."
The regulation reform program has been underway since 1988, with several initiatives designed to bring the process to an end seemingly producing no results.
In September last year, Skidmore told CASA staff he would prefer to miss the government's deadline if it meant getting new regulations right first time.
Skidmore stated that the timeline to complete reforms reflects a new approach to implementing new regulations.
“CASA has learnt from past mistakes made during the development and introduction of regulatory changes such as the flight crew licensing suite.
“Consultation processes are being improved, regulations will be tested with the aviation community before introduction and information will be presented clearly and provided consistently.
“Our new approach to regulatory reform is consistent with the Federal Government’s response to the Aviation Safety Regulation Review, which stated time was needed for the aviation community and CASA to adjust to and successfully implement regulatory changes.”
The whole timeline can be read on the CASA website.