The Flight Manual fiasco descends into farce - but good farce (for us) !

On 10th September 2002 the Minister for Transport, John Anderson, suddenly published yet another set of changes, the main one of which is a completely new regulation, CAR 55A.

CAR 55A clearly says that an aircraft owner may apply to CASA to have his new Flight Manual changed so that it becomes the same as his previous TAFM (Traditional Australian Flight Manual). CASA then MAY (not "MUST") approve the change, but if CASA refuses to do so then the owner may appeal to the AAT.

That is a reasonable and sensible approach to the problem. It ensures that there will not be very many TAFMs because most people will not wish to go through the hassle, but it offers an escape route for a person who is disadvantaged by the new Flight Manual or who simply does not wish to change. Members of AIR SAFETY AUSTRALIA therefore wrote to their MPs congratulating them on this sensible, reasonable, approach.

And at dawn on 12th September (the day CAR 55A came into effect), AIR SAFETY AUSTRALIA sprang into action applying for the appropriate change to Flight Manuals on behalf of those members who had asked us to do so.

Then out of the blue we received a letter from Mick Toller, Director of CASA, saying that was not the intent of the new regulation. After careful consideration of this letter, and further study of the regulations, we responded saying that it's not what the regulation was intended to mean but what it says that counts. Click here to see the correspondence between AIR SAFETY AUSTRALIA and CASA.

AIR SAFETY AUSTRALIA continued sending in applications for change on behalf of every member who requested us to, and by stumps on 13th September CASA had received more than 50 such applications. This shows just how flawed the proposal to outlaw the TAFM really was.