Story ID: 
CASA Begins Maintenance and Operations Rulemaking
By: Gordon Gilbert
Caption: Two deal with the operations of private and commercial air transportation in small and large aircraft, and the third covers maintenance for GA aircraft.
Word Count: 230
Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) is seeking comments on three new proposed rules. Two similar ones deal with the operations of private and commercial air transportation in small and large aircraft, and the third covers maintenance tailored to small private and commercial general aviation aircraft.

According to CASA, the proposed operational rules aim to “improve safety and consolidate requirements to make them more operationally focused and easier to use.” In particular, the proposals aim to “reduce the safety differential between charter and regular public transport operations through common rules that apply to all air transport operations but are scaled for size and/or complexity.”

The operational rules are divided into those applying to larger aircraft (mtow exceeding 18,999 pounds or a maximum passenger capacity of more than nine seats) and smaller aircraft (mtow of less than 19,000 pounds and nine or fewer passenger seats). Comments on both are due by September 2.

Its proposed maintenance regulations “aim to minimize the regulatory burden on general aviation, keep compliance costs as low as possible, and be based on the best practices of other leading aviation nations.” As such, CASA officials are particularly interested in the GA community sharing “its views on current challenges and opportunities, and providing feedback on existing regulations in the U.S., New Zealand, Europe, and Canada.” Comments are due by August 28.