Aviation Cutbacks Alarm Ex-chief

Sydney Morning Herald

Thursday April 1, 1993

By ANNE DAVIES

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced sweeping reforms yesterday to the management of Australia's airspace which will save the industry $50 million and cost 870 jobs.

However, the radical plan, which includes the scrapping of flight services(which are complementary to air traffic control) at country airports, has come under fire from a former CAA chairman, Mr Dick Smith, who says the plan involves "unnecessary risks" to safety.

Mr Smith said that under the original plan drawn up when he was CAA chairman, air traffic control would have taken over the functions of flight services at busier country airports, such as Yulara (Ayers Rock) and Cooma.

This would have ensured air traffic control down to ground level at these airports.

Instead, the new plan requires aircraft in what is known as Class G airspace (below 5,000 feet ) to maintain radio contact with each other directly, rather than contacting air traffic control.

This means that airline aircraft at medium-sized airports will be required to maintain separations without reference to anyone on the ground. At present, the flight services division uses the flight plans filed by aircraft, as well as direct radio contact, to advise aircraft in the area.

"It's all because there's pressure from the airlines to try and save money," Mr Smith said.

"The CAA is bringing in procedures that have never, as far as I am aware, been used for airline aircraft anywhere else. We should, at least, have a very careful study."

However, the CAA has dismissed Mr Smith's concerns, saying the new arrangements make Australia's skies even safer than they were.

The general manager of air traffic services for the CAA, Mr Buck Brooksbank, said: "The board has taken safety and industry needs into account, and decided this structure best suits Australia's needs."

Savings would be made by having air traffic controllers take over the responsibility of en route control from flight services staff, Mr Brooksbank said.

He estimated that the flight services division would lose 1,400 jobs - 871 of them from the changes announced yesterday - while CAA jobs overall would fall from 7,000 to 3,500.

Other changes include streamlining of other classes of airspace in line with international recommendations, greater use of radar technology where applicable and closure of towers at smaller airports. Towers would be closed at Proserpine and Mount Isa in Queensland, Karratha in Western Australia and Avalon in Victoria.