CASA, Qantas and unanswered safety allegations

In the spirit of brave rather than ‘cowardly’ criticism, when will CASA deal with a series of allegations about unsafe practices by Qantas last year raised by the licensed engineers union?

Not deal with, as in, have a spokesman dismiss them as immaterial or industrially motivated.

But deal with, as in investigate and publish detailed findings, and then enforce the rules if the laws or regulations have been broken or offended.

There is a thread on the topic of CASA CEO John McCormick’s criticism of criticism at a Senate Estimates Committee hearing on Pprune.org, the ‘professional pilots rumour network’, which is a site that will scare the hell out of travellers if they conclude that most of the posters really are at the controls of their flights.

Of particular interest is this comment from Steve Purvinas, the federal secretary of the licensed engineers’ union, not made under ‘cowardly’ anonymity.

Blind Freddy knows the ALAEA has an agenda to further its member’s interests. It’s the union’s job. Just as CASA has an obligation to uphold the law and investigate safety allegations. And just because a union refers a matter to the safety regulator doesn’t invalidate the matter.

CASA has demonstrated its incompetency in relation to Qantas. Is it not time for the new CEO John McCormick to address the regulator’s lack of effective oversight and deal in detail with the ALAEA claims?

These claims might be bullsh*t. They might be true. We need to know.