– Steve Hitchen
RAAus CEO Michael Linke is feeling very positive this week about their chances of getting the MTOW increase they're after. According to Linke, the project is progressing well and the only obstacle at the moment is CASR Part 149 on Approved Self-administering Aviation Organisations (ASAAO). That's due in March, and once that's down pat Linke expects it will clear the way for the weight increase so critical to RAAus' future plans. Initially, CASA will probably grant an increase to only 750 kg, but 1500 kg will likely follow if RAAus can prove to CASA that they can handle the higher weight with no safety issues. The idea behind the weight increase is so home-builders can be more robust in their construction and still opt for RAAus administration if they want it. However, although the home-builders are being called, will they come?
After the victory over parking charges at Wagga Wagga Airport, regional airport users around Australia are responding to a call to arms and have formed the Regional Airport Users Action Group (RAUAG). Initially when I heard about this I thought we needed another lobby group like we need heavier fuel, but that was until I understood the didactic nature of RAUAG. This group is based around gathering stats and data from regional airports around the country to show local councils what can be done, speaking to them in the language of numbers that they understand. How many? How much? When, how, why? This is a good approach, and certainly a better one than simply creating another association to talk about problems. If they can show the councillors a new way to look at their airport we may have a chance at retaining some of those landing grounds that are under constant pressure. It's very easy to kill an airport, and very hard to keep one alive, so if RUAUG can actively do something about it, the better off general aviation is going to be.
Piper Aircraft is a happy company this week after taking the largest fleet order they've ever had: 152 aircraft for China. The order for Fanmei Aviation Technologies is for 100 Archer TX, 50 Seminoles, a Seneca and a Piper M350. Fanmei has been appointed as a representative for Piper in the region, so we can probably expect these aircraft to be distributed around the many flying schools emerging all over China. This is yet another indicator of the way the general aviation industry in China is bubbling along at the moment. It does make you wonder, though: if all these trainers are going to be used in China, will China need Australia as a training base for very much longer?
Bright Events has made a brilliant strategic move by shifting Aviatex to Bankstown as a stand-alone event. With the backing of Sydney Metro Airports, Aviatex 2018 looks to be a much bolder event than those held in conjunction with Wings over Illawarra. The layout is planning for more exhibitors than they've had in the past, and is expected to incorporate seminars and a career showcase. Make no bones: this is ambitious and somewhat ground-breaking. Aviation expos in Australia are traditionally coupled with crowd-attracting air displays, but Aviatex 2018 will be going it alone; surviving on its own merit. It is encouraging that Bright Events saw enough in Aviatex to adopt a "go hard or go home" approach, and the support of Sydney Metro seems to back-up their confidence that the event will be the success the GA industry needs it to be. At Bankstown, it's also going to attract a lot of general public thanks to the massive population base in which the airport sits.
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What was I saying last week about the 2018 Red Bull Air Race championship? Any one can win? Out of the blue skies of Abu Dhabi comes Mike Goulian, who hasn't won a race since his maiden win in 2009, and takes the chocolates away from a very impressive field of pilots. To illustrate how competitve this series has become, more than half the field have race wins against their names, and 10 of the 14 pilots have been on the podium before. Although Yoshi Muroya and Martin Sonka have started 2018 off in the same barnstorming fashion in which they dominated the series last year, it is clear they are not going to have the season all their own way. And of course twice series runner-up Matt Hall is not writing himself out of the competition, so I suspect we shouldn't do so either.
May your gauges always be in the green,
Hitch