Fire & Ag

The independent review of aviation regulation by Mr Forsyth and his very experienced international colleagues was a process and not an outcome in itself. The Australian Aviation Association Forum recently published a revised ‘scorecard’ on Forsyth implementation which is available from the AAAA website.

Similarly, the announcement of an independent review into the problematic CAO 48.1 on fatigue management is only a process – one barely commenced. The only outcome worth looking for will be the repeal of the current nonsense and its replacement with a more workable, flexible regime that focuses on safety and sensible regulation.

The winding-up of the CASA Part 61 Taskforce is another example of a process being treated as an outcome in some circles. The unfinished work on Parts 61, 141, 142 includes a first-principles review that hacks away the 1400 pages of regulation and MOS that is actually damaging industry by increasing costs and complexity for no positive outcome.

At the recent Roundtable convened by Minister Chester at Avalon Airshow, industry proposed a number of outcomes – including opening up the HECS scheme to pilots undertaking training at CASA approved schools, reinvesting the Air Services annual dividend into aviation initiatives and doing something to improve communication between existing airspace users and drone users before there is a major incident.

Perhaps one of the reasons the major political parties are in the doldrums is because they have forgotten how to create outcomes that are clearly better for industry, the travelling public and the taxpayer. ‘Win-win’ appears to be a foreign language.

Recent media coverage of problems with airport monopolies and a courageous proposal from the ACCC that they be empowered to provide the missing regulatory oversight resulting from poorly conducted privatisation makes the point.

‘Win-win’ appears to be a foreign language.

You don’t always need an inquiry or review to act on the bleeding obvious.

TAAAF provided government, opposition and the cross-benches with 60 pages of detailed and fully-funded policy recommendations for direct outcomes to power the aviation industry to a new future. The silence from elected representatives is embarrassing, as is the lack of engagement with a multi-billion dollar industry which, on all assessments, has the potential to drive jobs and economic growth.

If politicians are still wondering why the community seems to be disengaging from the political process – and more importantly, them – then perhaps they should look at getting back into the ‘outcomes’ business.

Of course, good processes are likely to lead to better outcomes, especially if the timeframes do not extend to the next millennia. This is a similar principle to the way a pilot or company with a good system and an eye on continuous improvement is more likely to get a good outcome.

From an aviation perspective, process and outcomes are often closely coupled – but not always. Just because you ‘got way with it’ for the last umpteen times does not, of itself, make it safe. You may have just been lucky.

But outcomes are seldom far away in aviation. The next landing, the next paddock to be treated, the next powerline to be managed – practitioners seldom have the luxury of allowing processes to meander on without the rude interruption of an outcome needing to be delivered.

Perhaps that is why the aviation industry continues to be frustrated at the glacial pace of repair and reform and the seeming inability of government to provide timely outcomes and insightful interventions.

AAAA Convention – Fire and Ag

AAAA will be incorporating a firefighting element into its annual convention on the 31st of May, 1st and 2nd of June in Adelaide at the Stamford Grand Hotel in Glenelg, Adelaide.

Registration forms and draft program are available on the AAAA website for this premier annual event featuring a full trade show, great speakers and preceding training days.

Col Pay Scholarship

The 2017 Col Pay Scholarship applications are now available from the AAAA website. Created with the generous support of the Pay family, the scholarship aims to encourage new pilots into the aerial application industry.