– Steve Hitchen
CASA's Your Safety is in Your Hands campaign is one of the best things the regulator has done over the past 10 years. Not only is it well structured to create awareness of basic principles of safe aviation, but also demonstrates that CASA understands safety is much, much more than regulation. Safety is an attitude, and campaigns like this have more chance of influencing that attitude than a string of legal documents that always end in the level of punishment to be meted out should you transgress. Getting associations and organisations like RAAus and AHIA involved is also a brilliant idea; the membership will buy in once the leadership gets on board. Some of the material could do with some polishing (talking-head seminars are not really attention-grabbing), but in general the messages are directed in the right places and at the right people. The Pilot Safety Hub is well worth exploring when you get the chance, and I am looking forward to this platform being expanded to cover other topics.
CASA's expanded privileges for Grade 1 flying instructors is intended to encourage Grade 2 instructors to upskill, thereby increasing the pool of Grade 1s needed for CFI/HOO roles. The most important part of this proposal is not the proposal itself, but rather that CASA recognises the problem and has shown they are prepared to roll-back bits of CASR Part 61 to fix the problem. But will it? There are more than enough Grade 1 flying instructors in Australia to fill the need many times over, it's just that the airlines have them and are regularly raiding the flying schools to spirit away more. This is causing the scarcity of Grade 1s more than a lack of incentive for Grade 2s to step up the rung. It may be that if the expanded privileges actually work and more Grade 1s are created, it may do nothing more than enlarge the pond the airlines can fish in. CASA, however, can do nothing about this, it's an industry problem. What is needed is incentive for Grade 1s to stay in the training industry; retention is easier than replacement. That may be higher rates of pay, or it may be relaxed bureaucratic demands from CASA that allow CFIs to actually do some flying rather than spending a lot of their working time on desk-bound tasks.
If you haven't noticed, the Federal Government's VFR ADS-B rebate scheme is now open for applications. This scheme will allocate $30 million to owners of VFR aircraft to adopt ADS-B technology through either an avionics upgrade or a portable electronic conspicuity (EC) device such as the SkyEcho 2. But it's not open slather; the scheme will fund 50% of the upgrade costs up to $5000, which means owners will still have to kick in some of their own hard-earned. Even so, this is an opportunity too good to turn down and one that was never offered to owners of IFR aircraft. The scheme is not limited to VH-registered aircraft and is open to all RAAus members as well as almost any aircraft operated under an ASAO. It shows that both CASA and the ATSB are serious about using ADS-B as an aid to see-and-avoid. The funds are there until the $30 million is spent or until 31 May next year. Given the lead times on most aircraft components nowadays, you're better off getting on this now rather than procrastinating for a few weeks. Check out the Federal Government's business website to see if you're eligible and the conditions surrouding the rebate.
Dads, sometimes you have to make things easy for your children even if they are adults. Right now they're probably worrying about what to get you for Father's Day, so the best thing to do is just tell them you want a 12-month subscription to Australian Flying. To help out, we've slashed the price of a print and digital subscription by 25%. That means you'll get a hard-copy magazine mailed to you six times a year and you'll have access to a digital version via Zinio for only $40.00. It's a great read, will keep you entertained and relieve a bit of the kids' stress as well. Send them to the Great Magazines website to take advantage whilst it's in the offing. And if you're also into fishing, bike riding, photography, walking, sport shooting or woodworking, you might find some good deals on some of Australian Flying's sister titles as well.
May your gauges always be in the green,
Hitch