Could it be that we aviators often repeat the mistakes of others because up until that time we just haven't related to what happened? You know ... the old "it'll never happen to me" attitude? Reading the ATSB report into an accidental VFR into IMC incident near Latrobe Valley took me back to my first ever solo nav, when I did exactly the same thing over exactly the same range! All good, clear, fat, dumb and happy I blundered into cloud thanks to a total failure to make a decision not to. Fortunately for me, the God who looks after student pilots showed me a hole in the cloud and through that cloud was a town. Target fixation on that town got me out of the trouble I got myself into. Then I had to report my diversion to Flight Service with all my estimates for new waypoints as I scampered home with my empennage between my legs. What did I learn? I learned that it can happen to me, because it did! Kudos to the pilot in this incident; his position was way scarier than mine and he still kept his head.
Normally dark clouds are not something we like to see in aviation, but there is a storm coming that could be of significant benefit. Aviation lobby groups are starting to smell the blood oozing from a wounded government that is staring down an unfriendly federal election, and they're taking advantage of it. AOPA's Project Eureka papers were released during the week following several meetings between the industry and the Department of Infrastructure and Transport. Then, with only three days' notice, a meeting was held in Tamworth attended by Dick Smith, AOPA reps, former New England MP Tony Windsor, general aviation people and Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce via telephone. Now we hear that The Australian Aviation Associations Forum (TAAAF) is due to release a new policy paper on 28 April. All of this equates to a demand not only to be heard, but to be heeded. Naturally all of this need to be taken in context with the impeding election. Promises are easy before a poll, but apparently so hard to keep afterward.
CASA's move to mandate fuel reserves is both logical and perplexing at the same time. GA industry practise for years has been to plan for a 45-minute reserve, with the understanding that if need be you can dip into that to get home if the winds aren't what the BOM says they will be, or you need to divert for any number of reasons. That's what fuel reserves are for, aren't they? Now CASA is moving to make that reserve compulsory, which at first seems to make no difference to good practice. But, they say the devil is in the detail, and CASA is saying that the regulations will include actions a pilot needs to take once the reserve level is hit. So what actions could a pilot take that would relieve the situation? There is only one I can think of: land and refuel immediately. I sincerely hope this is not what CASA is thinking. If we have to land to refuel when what was already on board would have gotten us home is a burden of insane proportions. It could delay an arrival until after last light, divert us miles away to the nearest bowser (the number of which is shrinking) and cause us to carry a secondary reserve to make sure we never hit our mandatory reserve. This could easily become Frankenlegislation if CASA is not logical and reasonable about it. CASA, here's your legislation in one sentence: all flights must plan to carry reserve fuel, which is available for use in flight if unforseen factors cause the flight time to be extended involuntarily. Full bloody stop. You can use my wording if you want.
It's great to see the NSW Scout Air Activity Centre in Camden still doing fantastic work to introduce young people to the joys of aviation. One of the factors we need to improve for our industry in the future is the number of people getting involved at a younger age. We, the great grey-hairs, won't be around forever, but the stats show there are so many of us in the older category and so few in the younger category. The Scouts, like the Australian Air League, is constantly working to correct this. I would like one day to get a count of how many people got a start in aviation because of the Scouts and the generous nature of the volunteer instructors. I can name one: me. I got my wings through the Vic Scouts Air Activity Centre in 1988, and here I am still playing the game. The Scouts enhanced my life by giving me aviation, and I often wonder if I've ever thanked them enough for doing so.
May your gauges always be in the green,
Hitch