– Steve Hitchen
CASA's AWB on unleaded avgas is one to store away for the future. Although an STC is available, the actual fuel is unlikely to find its way into the Australian market for some time. The EPA in the USA has applied pressure to the GA market over there and some airports owners–particularly in California–have banned the sale of leaded avgas. That has created a rush demand for fuel that is yet to be produced in the volumes needed to fulfil this new need. Australia is just a drop in the Pacific compared to the US market, so it will be some time before any arrives on our shores. The AWB, although containing recommendations, sound more like a warning that adopting unleaded avgas is not going to be so straightforward anyway, despite the FAA approval and the STC. The impact of this is still a few years away because fuel producers in the USA won't be shutting down their 100LL plants whilst the demand is still so high. That demand will stay high until unleaded avgas can start to shoulder more of the load, so Australia has no immediate fear of 100LL supplies drying up. For now. The future is a different place.
Although commenting on only the white paper Terms of Reference (ToR), the RAAA submission has made some salient points that can't be stated too often at the moment. Firstly, the ALP government needs a greater understanding of aviation–GA in particular–in order for it to have any chance of developing a worthwhile plan for the future; and secondly, so much of what they seek to know is already in existing documents. I have been down this path before, banging on about the value of the work done by the previous government in the Aviation Recovery Framework and how the incumbents in the department could do us all a favour by taking some of that on board. It's not new, but it keeps being brought up time and time again in submissions and conversations, echoing one of the greatest reservations the aviation community has about the white paper. We fear that no matter what input we have, the white paper will contain what the ALP wants it to, and by tradition that usually includes very little of what the Coalition wants ... except when it comes to submarines. The Aviation Recovery Framework was touted as the best document for the future of aviation ever written; there was daylight between it and the ALP's previous white paper. Part of the reason why the old white paper was of such little value is that it demonstrated a lack of understanding about the GA industry and therefore could never have presented any meaningful initiatives. This, despite a high level of aviation community feedback to the green paper that preceded it. The challenge for the incumbents is not to emulate the previous ALP white paper, but rather to create one that is everything the last one should have been.
Avalon was the best show ever and the numbers back that up. A bold statement that lends itself to scrutiny from many quarters, but it also has many friends to defend it. In terms of overall attendances, exhibitor numbers and delegations, Avalon 2023 set new marks. The commercial side of it also backs up that this years was the best of the best. But, I have to say that I was somewhat uninspired by the GA sports area set up to the south. First let me say that I understand that AMDA Foundation under-writes this zone, and without that we'd probably have no GA zone at all. I will applaud AMDA perennially for doing that. The problem was that traffic was largely only GA traffic leaving us to preach to the converted moreso that attract new disciples. Even though AMDA set up a second entry that fed the public straight into the GA zone, the idea was trampled in the stampede of people rushing to the fenceline and seeing nothing either side of them. We weren't shiny enough. Big white tents with a few flags are underwhelming when it comes to competing with the loud, exciting and raucous displays happening over on the runway. This is not to say it was a complete loss; there was some good traffic at times, but I can't help but feel GA didn't take full advantage of the opportunity AMDA presented to us. For 2025, perhaps GA needs to polish its shoes a bit more.
May your gauges always be in the green,
Hitch