Act on radar safety or I’ll sue: Dick Smith warns Civil Aviation Safety Authority

Millionaire entrepreneur and aviator Dick Smith has threatened the board of the government’s aviation safety body with legal action for failing to implement a ministerial directive on radar protocol.

Mr Smith, a former chairman of the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and renowned civilian pilot, has warned Airservices Australia board members, including its chairman, former commander of the Defense Forces Angus Houston, they face personal legal responsibility for not implementing a 2004 ministerial safety directive relating to radar at 10 airports.

“The failure by AA to take meaningful steps to fulfill its binding statutory duty to comply with a ministerial direction, made over 10 years ago, is extraordinary. It gives rise to real safety concerns,” the legal advice says.

It says there has been a failure to provide the correct level of radar control services at Albury, Alice Springs, Coffs Harbour, Hamilton Island, Hobart, Launceston, Mackay, Maroochydore, Rockhampton and Tamworth.

But AA says “technology has moved on” from 2004 and all “air-traffic control operations throughout Australia, including in the regional airports identified in the ministerial direction, are safe”.

In 2004 the then transport minister John Anderson issued a directive for a change of radar classification at the airports which could have prompted costs of tens of millions of dollars in equipment and services.

Mr Smith, who was the chairman of CASA at the time, disagreed with the decision but now has warned Airservices Australia board members they may be personally legally responsible for any incidents resulting from the directive not being implemented.

But the Airservices Australia chairman, Air Chief Marshal Houston, told The Australian technology had moved on from 2004.

“Airservices has continued to progress technological and operational changes to enhance the safety of our services in regional Australia,” he said.

“ ... there are now advanced technologies which in the near ­future will, to a large extent, replace radar surveillance.”

In September 2011, the Department of Transport told the then transport minister, Labor’s Anthony Albanese, a plan was in place for “enhanced traffic services at regional airports over the next few years”. “In developing the final implementation plan, we have prioritized the enhancement of regional air traffic services and surveillance having regard to the availability and quality of existing services and infrastructure, current and forecast passenger traffic growth and industry comments,’’ the department told Mr Albanese.

In August last year, before the change of government, the department told Mr Albanese the “milestones have been met”, including services outside normal traffic-control hours for airports in Tasmania.

Air Chief Marshal Houston said: “Airservices has reported openly and transparently to successive governments in relation to our plan to deliver improvements to safety and service delivery, and all have endorsed the approach and actions we have undertaken to address the ministerial direction.”

- Source:  http://www.theaustralian.com.au