Haa Torque

The year started off with the RotorTech conference, which was held at Darling Harbour in January. In February the President of the HAA resigned and a new Board was formed. It was a turbulent beginning to say the least, but with a lot of work, good sound input from the HAA members and a Board all working in the same direction, the HAA has finished the year 2006 off on a very positive note.

The board of the HAA has had many meetings with its members. There have been many meetings with the regulator, other associations and supporters of the helicopter industry of Australasia. Meetings also between the Board itself have been regular and this will continue throughout 2007. We feel that communication with each other is what is going to keep the HAA focused.

One of our critical issues is membership, which we can very proudly say, is on the increase. The only true way to increase the membership base is to show people of the industry that the HAA is truly a representative body for the helicopter industry and its needs. The more voices we have the more this will lead to the power and political punch we need to give our members the level of representation they need and deserve.

Sponsorship is also a big issue. We have been fortunate to have AirBP back on line and sponsoring our membership cards. The Shepherd Group was very generous in firstly donating a booth at the Heli-Pacific Conference and also presenting a cheque for $5000. We have received sponsorship from CASA, from our insurance industry, from Avis and many other areas of the industry, but of course we need more to keep the HAA going forward.

The HAA moved into a new office on the Gold Coast Airport in April. This allows people to fly directly to or from us to major cities of Australia and New Zealand. The office is also an area where we have had sponsorship from members in the way of furniture and fittings. The office also provides the HAA with a professional and business identity.

One of the milestones we have achieved during the year has been in the area of forming relationships with other associations with a view to sharing common problems and solutions. One of the areas we have been working in very closely with other associations is the issue of “Tools for Trade”’ which also leads to many engineering issues that require addressing from all areas of the industry. Still more is being done on this issue with another meeting due to be held in Sydney on February 2 between industry and the Department of Employment and Workplace relations.

Our first ever Non-Pilot Multi Crew meeting was being held on January 31.

After speaking with our vice president and many crew members, it was established that the crewies have many issues which need addressing by the HAA. We have had a very good response to the meeting and have people attending from all over Australia and New Zealand.

We are working on the issue of authorised landing areas. As is so widely known within the helicopter industry, our landing areas are slowly and sometimes not so slowly being eroded away from underneath us. Pilots are being hit with on the spot fines of up to $1500.

The Helicopter Flight Instructors Manual was a huge achievement for the industry and CASA.

Self administration is an issue that seems to be coming across my desk more and more. I have been to meetings where Self Administration has been the focus with only one direction being expected, that is that the recognised associations will become responsible for their own industries and that all issues, problems, etc will need to be channelled through these associations directly to CASA The resolution of using nigh vision goggles has been a little bit slower but it is still moving forward and everyone expects an industry positive result, which will take us into the future. The industry and CASA met on January 16 and 17 in the CASA head office Canberra.

Two days of very good constructive talks took place.

Over the next 12 months the trial implementation of CAO 82. 6 will take place with the industry and CASA monitoring its progress.

The Heli-Pacific conference held at Royal Pines on the Gold Coast was fabulous with a very positive and beneficial result for the HAA. The next Heli-Pacific is being held at the same venue in 2008.

The strategic plan is being worked on as we speak and should also up on the HAA website very soon. This of course is a very valuable tool needed for our constant review and attention to keep focused on our direction.

The website has been upgraded but of course is still a work in progress. We have had some wonderful assistance with this project and expect for it to become better and better. I would like to encourage members to contribute to the web site with stories and piccies. It is also a very quick efficient way to renew memberships or to encourage new members to use.

The insurance plan is still a work in progress which we will keep working on until a result is achieved. Again, we are very fortunate in having a member in Perth representing the HAA and liaising with the insurance broker on the formation of the insurance plan.

From the board of the HAA, we look forward to yet another constructive and productive year for all. Once again we keep the objectives of the HAA to the fore. o Australian Aviation is proud to be an official supporting journal of the Helicopter Association of Australasia. The views in this column are those of the HAA, and not necessarily Australian Aviation’s.