Chair Report

Over the past year RAAus has dealt with the challenges that almost every other organisation and individual has faced – COVID19. It has been the dominant headline of news outlets not only in Australia but across the world and it has certainly hampered our ability to engage in the past time that we so passionately enjoy. Having said this, your organisation has weathered to storm quite well.

The pandemic has caused a slight shift in focus in terms of the way we do what we do, however, we have not wavered in terms of the value we add to the industry. During the 2020/21 financial year we have continued to deliver the same services to our members and the broader industry that we have always delivered. Our advocacy efforts, member services and engagement activities have all changed in the sense that we do things more remotely but we continue to do them nonetheless. I’d like to use this opportunity to reflect on the efforts of the team that run your organisation. Like many people who have been directly affected by COVID19 they have had to make adjustments to their daily lives and the conduct of their work duties. To this end, our team has remained not only flexible but also motivated and whilst we may be adversely affected in the ways that people can reach out to us, we have remained contactable for most people. This is a testament to the dedication of our team and we, as a membership, I feel owe them a debt of gratitude for their efforts. This being said, we also should reflect on the challenges faced by members. Some parts of Australia have faced the longest lockdowns in the world which has seriously affected the ability of people to work, play and socialise. All of these things have taken their toll on members and I would like to extend a warm thank you to those people for staying the course and remaining members. I can only imagine the individual pressures facing members from all walks of life and to remain as strong as we are reflects the quality of our members. Thank you. Internally we have been busy despite the abovementioned challenges. New regulations coming from CASA have taken a great deal of our time in terms of influencing the final rules and advocating on behalf of members. Much attention has been given to parts 149 and 103 over the past 12 months and we also have the revised flying ops regulations going live on 2 December 2021 which has required some serious analysis. Along the way we have also engaged with industry on topics such as airspace, airport access, new technologies and a host of other topics. RAAus is always actively engaged in forums such as the Aviation Safety Advisory Panel and its related technical working groups, The General Aviation Advisory Network, the National Emerging Aviation

Technologies Consultative Committee and more. We are constantly striving to remain up to date and educated on emerging topics and developments within the industry. Looking forward to the next 12 months ahead and even beyond, we continue to fight for members rights. We will be pushing for more evidence and outcome based policy making in place of prescriptive regulations from the past. The developments from overseas, notably the US, in the space of LSA policies will be closely followed and we will work tirelessly on issues such as the Western Sydney Airport impacts and the sharing of airspace with unmanned vehicles. We view these, and other topics, as being of paramount importance when it comes to protecting our ability to operate with the freedoms we enjoy in Australia. At a board level, your directors are constantly working to improve the governance of your organisation. Some people would argue that an organisation with around $3m revenue and a modest surplus, such as that which we have experienced this year, is small fry and perhaps they are right. This aside, despite our relatively small turnover we have incredibly important responsibilities when it comes to administering the small piece of the aviation sector that we are responsible for. With this in mind, we often find ourselves questioning things and asking if there is a better way to protect members interests and move the organisation forward. This extends to dry topics such as risk, financial management and governance and means that flying and maintenance of aircraft is only a piece of the puzzle. It is always important that the board requires a sound understanding of the industry yet we cannot afford to take our eye off of these equally important topics. In the past we have faced notable difficulties in terms of meeting our regulatory obligations which has threatened the very existence of RAAus. To this end, the current board is working to remember the lessons from the past and bit by bit tweak the way we do things to ensure we don’t inadvertently repeat history.

“The industry as a whole faces an exciting decade ahead and RAAus is well placed to play a pivotal role in shaping the future.”

The challenges of the past year have been significant and the challenges we face going forward will be no less significant. I sincerely hope that they are very different challenges but we will face them with the same steady approach that we have used in recent years. The world has changed around us but our one constant is that our organisation remains strong and focussed.

Michael Monck Chair