A general concern

General Aviation – or GA – has become a common, convenient term to seemingly encompass any aspect of the industry beyond the scope of military, airline and large-scale freight operations. However, rarely can anything of substance be labelled satisfactorily by a few keystrokes or a couple of capital letters.

GA boasts a substantial history and the origins of flight could well be described as GA. Today, if one were to assign labels, Orville and Wilbur Wright may well fall under the ‘Experimental’ category and the efforts of Otto Lilienthal under gliding or sport aviation. There is no escaping the impact of GA, both then and now. It has always grown from the grass roots skyward and embodied the frailest fabric machines and swept wings in the stratosphere alike.

As we cast our eye about the industry in the present day, there are too many branches to name them all. General aviation hosts flight training, aeromedical operations, corporate aviation, aerial agriculture, survey and photographic tasks, scenic flights, regional freight, recreational flying and so very much more. A multitude of specialist needs are met by a multitude of small operators endeavouring to find their niche and eke out a living from their undertaking.

So much of GA ticks along beneath the surface without fanfare – seemingly stealthy operations serviced by anonymously painted aircraft operating at all hours of the day and night. And while their efforts may be significant and far-reaching, to the broader community they may as well be invisible. If there isn’t an advertisement or an online cheap airfare to the Gold Coast to be had, then GA is just one of those little aeroplanes waiting to fall from the sky.

But like so many thankless tasks they only come to light when the chips are down. The presence of firebombers might grab media attention as homes come under threat and a clip of a paramedic hanging beneath a helicopter may just be newsworthy. However, for every 30 seconds of footage, aeromedical aircraft are working around the clock saving lives, donor organs are being raced across the nation and cropdusters are protecting export dollars. Isolated remote communities live and die by their air service while the next generation of pilots who will fly those Gold Coast tourists are scattered among flying schools and aero clubs, while the next stage of the resources boom may be plotted on information gleaned from the air and true overnight express will always extend far beyond the capital cities.

What would happen in everyday life if that switch was flicked and GA ground to a halt? The critically ill would become vulnerable, crops and exports would be threatened and trucks and roads would buckle beneath the load of parcels that have to be delivered absolutely, positively overnight. Only then might those buzzing little machines register in the consciousness of the broader community.

“What would happen in everyday life if that switch was flicked and GA ground to a halt?”

A Way of Life.

For all of the good GA does, it is unfortunately plagued by underlying issues. For the varied specialist tasks it provides, as an industry it is a relatively small niche in the national marketplace. In the world of politics and punching power ‘niche’ can also be interpreted as ineffective. It is an industry without enough muscle to truly control its own destiny and with not enough votes for its protestations to register in the latest polls. It’s an unfair situation suffered by all of the smaller fish in the very big pond.

Increasing tariffs, regulation, legislation and even invasion of foreign industries on their airfields can be absorbed by larger parties with arguably less difficulty than a smaller operation. And here lies a core issue for the ongoing survival of GA – it has always been an industry of high costs and relatively low profits. Every time an additional cost is placed on the industry more operators shut their doors. The industry understands that some rises are necessary, but when commercial airport operators escalate leasing charges at astronomic rates and convert hangar sites to hardware megastores, it’s a bitter pill to swallow.

Time and again new operators start up where others have fallen by the wayside. Often with a love of the industry that outweighs economic logic, many operators hang on for as long as they can before their aircraft ultimately become weary and their bank accounts drained. And not all of the operators are scrupulous in such a competitive environment. There are those who will run down to the bare bones, pressuring pilots and operating aircraft that are in desperate need of attention. These operators are the reason CASA needs to maintain a strong presence and oversight in a way that respectable operators can find prohibitive. It’s a tough game.

One wonders if GA can survive, but then again people have been wondering the same thing for decades. Somehow the smell of an oily rag has actually been sufficient to sustain the industry in the face of ongoing adversity. Now as we embark on the 21st century there are even more challenges facing GA in Australia and perhaps, now more than ever, a new approach is being called for.

The Road Ahead.

The issues confronting GA are substantial ‘big ticket’ items. Obviously costs are increasing, but many industries can lay claim to that one. However, not every industry has its core tools of trade staring down the barrel of extinction. Across the country airfields are being reclaimed and subdivided to accommodate homes and factories where aircraft once took flight. In turn, many of the airfields that remain are finding greater returns are forthcoming from non-aviation related activities. Additionally, many of the fleets of GA aircraft are ageing significantly and registering airframe hours far beyond those the manufacturer ever imagined when the aircraft rolled out of the factory. For an industry already operating on threadbare margins, relocation and fleet recapitalisation are expensive spectres that won’t go away.

Further added to the mix are the lingering questions of the future of avgas, the very expensive access to many major city airports, rising fees, the ever-present element of the community protesting against noise, emissions and the perceived threat of light aircraft overhead. And every day it seems less young people enter the aviation world, drawn by industries offering greater return and certainty. They are major concerns that must occupy the mind of every operator as they contemplate solutions and scenarios. To survive, passion will not be enough.

For so many years genuine characters and enthusiasts have been found across the industry, but they have not necessarily been educated in the best means of managing a business. The new era calls for robust budgets and business plans rather than living week-to-week. The growth of light sports aircraft may provide answers to some corners of the industry where their current aircraft are on their last legs. However, there is a cost involved in revitalising a fleet with any new type. Unfortunately, the time is fast approaching when the older generation of aircraft will reach their ultimate use-by date and a failure to plan for replacement will prove terminal. Independent organisations may need to merge to reduce capital costs and make the most of purchasing power and economies of scale. In the brave new world these advantages stand to make the organisation more robust as a business. Old combatants may need to become allies in order to survive.

An aircraft can no longer be seen as a luxury item. Businesses need to speak to their non-operational staff in terms they understand. They need to provide timeframes for the return on investment and highlight their business advantages – both fiscal and otherwise. Even in the world of emergency helicopter operations there are examples of multiple independent entities combining under a common umbrella for a more holistic and efficient approach.

It’s a tough road ahead and at times the choices will be brutal. In the cold light of day sometimes the only option will be to close the doors. It is harsh, unfortunate, unfair, but at times it will be unavoidable. Just as when airborne, it is better to make a difficult early decision with a clear head rather than to have one’s hand forced. It would ultimately serve no-one to run down an operation beneath the burden of finances and compromise once-proud standards and a hard-earned reputation. For those who can find the answers to operate in the brave new world there will remain the opportunity to continue to fill that aviation niche the nation desperately requires without ever really appreciating it.

A General Concern.

A wise old aviator once told me that a GA operation was “born of dreams, run on enthusiasm and ultimately dies in despair”. They were harsh words that have been shown to be true time and again in the years since. It is a truism for many small businesses and yet there are those that defy the odds and survive and flourish.

One cannot help but think that GA is at another of the crossroads that have marked its long history. With ageing aircraft and disappearing places to land, its anonymous role in society is once again under threat and the community may well not know what it’s got until it’s gone. To overcome the road ahead new solutions need to be found to the age-old challenges for the industry as well as answers to the new threats. GA has to work as smart as it’s worked hard.

It is not a landscape without hope, but it is one that will demand the very best from all who live there. And it is not only those who earn their livelihood from the industry who should have reservations, for the role that GA plays across this nation is crucial on many levels. The challenges for the industry are not merely an issue for the few – they are of real consequence to the greater population, rural and urban. They are truly of general concern.