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Commercial Aviation Update is an official news medium for the General Aviation Association (GAA)
Commercial Aviation Update
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A Time of Change for Gaa
The General Aviation Association has turned around, no longer lost in the industry backwaters, no longer single minded, the Association is getting its act together under new leadership and there is more to come. Rob Baker the new Chief Executive is out and about and the Association’s presence is starting to be seen and heard.
One of the high priorities for Rob was to put an end to the apathy with which the Association was generally viewed and which consequently caused a major lack of faith from the membership. Rob is not afraid to tell industry people they have a responsibility to belong to the Association and thus support their industry through one consolidated voice.
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Rob is very critical of the fragmentation that has occurred in the industry ranks, “We have six or eight industry organisations all doing their own thing, but because of the individual organisations’ self interest, no one body is speaking for the industry and as a consequence they are not being heard at the levels they should be”, he says.
The Association is fast putting in place a new national structure to facilitate the communications necessary for information from the grassroots level to provide data for the Association Secretariat to take action, as well as keeping the membership informed of what is going on in the industry.
Branch units are being formed at all GA airports throughout Australia with a reporting process via State Regional Boards to the Secretariat.
Membership fee structures are being reviewed to allow for a more economical membership at all levels. Constitutional changes will be processed at the Association AGM in July, to enable even more progressive changes.
The Association were the conveners of an industry meeting in Canberra during the early part of May to address the problems associated with FAC and CAA charges as they affect GA. The upshot of the meetings was the forming of a steering committee to report to the eight organisations involved which met again in June to establish an industry council to progress matters of general concern to all industry participants. Hand in hand with this will go the establishing of a fund to finance research into and submission of these matters. If all goes as planned the Association will have achieved an important progressive step for the GA industry.
“One of the more urgent matters we need to resolve”, says Rob, “is achievement of Conference with the CAA and FAC, not ‘consultation’ as the departments see it, but intelligent discussion with sufficient lead time for industry input to be of some effect. I would much rather talk now of future problems, then fight about it when it’s a fait accompli, but if it’s fight we must, I am also prepared to do that, after all”, says Rob, ”the industry pays the salaries of its ‘minders’, we should have a proper say. “
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