Independent Senator Nick Xenophon managed to have the Manual of Standards for the new Part 145 maintenance regulations disallowed in the senate last Wednesday night. Xenophon convinced 33 other senators that the new rules would reduce safety by allowing specialist maintenance staff to certify the airworthiness of an aeroplane, something normally done by a LAME. Xenophon's motion was carried by four votes. This suite of regulations has been under constant barrage from the industry from the moment someone in Canberra first breathed the words "Part 145". With so much of the industry against it from the start, we all have to shake our heads in wonder that it ever got as far as the senate. Of course, there is much more to the issue than we heard about in Xenophon's motion; Part 145 is a very complex set of rules. It will be back.
Perhaps the most vocal opponent of all the new CASR maintenance regs has been the Aviation Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Business Association (AMROBA). So far this year, this very hard-working group has issued three proposals to help revitalise the general aviation sector. The second one proposes that we simply adopt the FAA's methods of maintaining aircraft, which AMROBA says will increase safety levels. There have been many calls over the past decade for Australia to simply abandon its own CASRs and adopt systems in place overseas; if it's not the FAA systems then we seem to want the NZ rules. It's probably about time we in the industry accepted that CASA's role is to develop safety regulations, and they are going to do that. There is merit in a lot of the overseas rules, but there is also a lot of merit in our own, and DAS Mark Skidmore is not the sort of person to hand-off his responsibilities to other national authorities. Perhaps it's time we accepted that.
The Australian Airports Association has expressed disappointment over the NSW government's response to the report into regional aviation services in that state. Less than half the recommendations have been supported, which is not a very good hit rate at all. There is little as frustrating as watching a government spend money on commissioning reports then ignore most of what they say. The responses also smell a bit wishy-washy, which has led the AAA to complain of a lack of commitment. It does look like the NSW goverment would rather handball the hard stuff to Canberra.
Just when the old girl thought she was retired, she's sent straight back to work! Qantas B747 VH-OJA is now permanently parked at the Historical Aircraft Restoration Society at Wollongong, but it has a future, it would appear, as a movie set! With the number of in-plane drama movies around, there might be plenty of work for her too. Perhaps we'll see Samuel L Jackson here to do Snakes on a Plane II? Personally the only snakes I like to see on a plane come in plastic packets with "Allen's" written on the side.
May your gauges always be in the green,
Hitch