CASA CEO and Director of Aviation Safety Shane Carmody today promised that CASA would resolve aviation medical reform by the end of 2017.
In his November CASA Briefing newsletter, Carmody said that CASA would detail their proposed reform following strong responses to their discussion paper released last year.
"I know there is keen interest in the reform of aviation medicine," Carmody said, "with 164 responses submitted to our discussion paper on the topic. After carefully looking at the responses we are close to finalising positions on a range of aviation medical changes, including streamlining the medical process for private pilots.
"Much of this work is based on the latest assessment of medical risks, along with a goal of removing unnecessary red tape where this is possible without impacting safety outcomes. I believe the aviation community accepts the need for medical standards and assessments in key operational positions, as long as the requirements are proportional to the risks.
"Of course risks are never static, so we do need to review our requirements when appropriate, which is exactly what we are doing. I expect to announce proposed medical changes before the close of 2017."
Published responses to the medical discussion paper indicate an overwhelming preference for CASA to adopt a self-certifying regime for Class 2 aviation medicals such as those recently adopted in both the UK and the USA.