CASA has released a handbook for sport aviation self-administration organisations.
The handbook provides sport aviation bodies with a thorough guide to the CASA requirements and expectations for the sport aviation sector and includes detailed information on governance and performance standards, as well as a checklist for board members of sport aviation organisations.
Issues covered include risk management, safety management systems, just culture principles, enforcement, organisational control and surveillance.
Launching the new handbook at a recent meeting of the Sport Aviation Forum, CASA’s Director of Aviation Safety, John McCormick, said the regulator wants to see a successful sport aviation sector, so long as it operates safely. He said the recreational aviation organisations that operate under self-administration must oversight sport activities and assure CASA they are conducted safely.
“CASA needs to be fully confident that recreational aviation organisations have the capacity to provide the required safety outcomes,” McCormick said. “If organisations cannot assure CASA of this, then CASA cannot allow the organisation to continue to administer the activities of its members who presently take the benefit of the exemption in the Civil Aviation Orders.
“However, CASA provides considerable assistance to help recreational aviation organisations meet this expectation. We have also established a Sport Aviation Office. The Sport Aviation Office applies a risk-based assurance model to oversight of sport aviation and the recreational aviation administration organisations. A key part of this is undertaking corporate and functional audits of the recreational aviation administration organisations – which we will be increasing. In addition, the Sport Aviation Office acts as a focal point for contact between the sector and CASA.”
With many recreational aviation pilots pushing to increase the various boundaries and restrictions that they fly within under the regulations of the RA-Aus, CASA seems to be getting on the front foot here to circumvent possible future incidents while also reminding those that fly under the auspices of recreational aviation of the differences between CASA- and self-admistrated regulation.
The Jabiru J230D. (Jabiru)
