15 August 2014

CEO Update

Dear Colleagues,

Partnerships and collaboration is our theme this week.

We have been working alongside NZTE to make sure aviation gets a fair slice of the action when major events come to NZ, such as the Cricket World Cup, FIFA Under 20 World Cup, Volvo Ocean Yacht Race, to name a few. We’re looking at opportunities to promote NZ companies and our capabilities to decision-makers at the hub in Auckland, more on this soon.

Federated Farmers are very interested in AIRCARE™ and the other good work of our NZ AAA and we have been telling them more about it at their national policy conference in Wellington this week link

Today we went along to the CAA Funding Review Roadshow in Wellington and made it clear we don’t support a fuel levy. Don't forget to have your say link

Of course, our most important partners are those we share our lives with. Our sympathies to the Biel family on the passing of Billie Biel. Our thoughts are with you.

Index

Internal News

Federated Farmers and NZAAA New

This week NZAAA presented the AIRCARE™ Programme to the Policy Team at Federated Farmers. The Feds' mission statement and NZAAA's are very much aligned, both stating they exist to help ensure the sustainability of their members. Even though the size of Ag Aviation is quite small, its importance to the Rural sector is very significant.

John Sinclair told these policy people about the recently completed Sustainable Farming Fund Project and how the outcomes from that project will benefit farmers and aviators for many years to come. Ag aviation is arguably at far more risk of being "picked off" by regulators than any other sector of aviation. By encouraging Regional Regulators to require best practice of Ag Aviators means that the sustainability of both Ag Aviation and farming is better assured. And AIRCARE™ delivers best practice.

The Feds were also told about the Down To The Wire campaign, the issues with substandard airstrips and facilities and the questionable viability of some operators through low pricing.

Should CAA decide to pursue its funding model by introducing a fuel tax, Federated Farmers will be a very powerful ally to support our opposition.

Council and Divisional Meetings

Mon 8 Sep	Av NZ Council meeting starting approx. 10.30am. Late afternoon, RNZAF site visits (along with any Divisional attendees who wish to attend):
Tue 9 Sep	Divisions meet 0830 – 1630 (HA will be meeting 20 August in Wellington instead).
Wed 10 Sep	Conclusion of divisional meetings.

Farewell from Faisal Shahim New

It is with a very heavy heart that I say goodbye to Wellington & New Zealand at the end of this week. It has been a great learning experience for me to be part of the Aviation New Zealand team and having the opportunity to interact with many different aviation stakeholders over the last 10 weeks. I can’t believe time has flown so quickly as I have really started to love the coolest little capital in the world.

I really enjoyed the 2014 Aviation Leadership Summit and met some amazing people there such as Mr. Gordon, David Morgan and many others. I would like to thank everyone for their hospitality and kindness.

Working as an intern at Aviation New Zealand has given me the opportunity to use the skills I have acquired over the past few years as an undergrad in Aviation Management and in my current major of Industrial Engineering. Thank you to everyone who helped make my experience memorable and meaningful and especially to Samantha, John, Andrew, Sarah, and Heather. Hopefully, I can come back to Wellington soon.

Domestic News

CAA Funding Review

As directed by Cabinet in August 2012, the Authority is expected to provide advice on any recommended changes to existing fees, charges, and levies to the Minister of Transport by 1 July 2015. The review is to focus more on re-balancing the CAA's revenues than on increasing revenue. To enable that, the current funding review project is divided into two stages. The first stage is focused on the underlying principles of the Authority’s funding framework, and addresses the question, “Who Should Pay?”, and “How should they pay”, for the Authority’s services. Submissions on the review close at 5pm on 25 August. Questions and answers to matters raised so far are now on the website. More info: http://www.caa.govt.nz/funding/index.html

As part of our ethos of One Industry and collaborative leadership, we are working across industry for a shared position on CAA Funding Principles. This will be much more effective than a fragmented view, where everyone expects someone else to pay. The first draft of our Aviation NZ submission is here – it’s an easy read and follows the beneficiary pays philosophy.

We have had a very productive meeting with the Aviation Federation and are liaising with the Airports Association, BARNZ and other groups. A key suggestion from the Aviation Federation is a fuel levy – to replace ALL routine CAA fees, levies and charges, what do you think of this idea? Please let us have your comments on our draft submission email by 20 August. We will be using this draft as our initial feedback to the CAA during the Seminar roadshow (we don’t want to just be passive in that exercise), feel free to do the same.

RPAS and Rule Development

On 7 Jul 2014, Cabinet agreed to the CAA undertaking rule development for RPAS (previously called drones, UAVs or UASs), in line with the policy proposals. At a high level, the proposed new rules will:

update the definitions of RPAS
amend the model aircraft operating rules (Part 101) to account for the introduction of new proposed rules
establish a new Part 102 for RPAS
review other rule parts to ensure consistency.

We are taking a close interest in this area. More info from CAA is available: http://www.caa.govt.nz/rpas/index.html

An information hub for commercial and recreational UAV operators www.airshare.co.nz is now live. This hub contributes to airspace safety through education about Civil Aviation Rules, FAQs and easy to understand information. Airshare is a collaboration between Airways, the CAA, Callaghan Innovation and UAVNZ, on which Aviation NZ is represented. Airshare also creates a community for UAV operators with photos, videos, and news items.

LIB4 update Updated

We had an informal meeting with CAA last week. The policy work for a Rule change is well advanced but this will still take up to 18 months before it is implemented. In the interim, issues continue, especially around tenders being issued by other government agencies and the language in the report on the R44 Western Pacific accident in 2011. Possible remedies: we talked about the possibility of Director’s exemptions, about AIRCARE™ and a different marketing approach around business continuity as being alternative ways of meeting requirements set out in tender documents released by other government agencies. A Director’s exemption would have wider applicability. A more detailed report has been sent to the LIB4 group.

LIB4 appears quite complex, and not because of anything industry has done! We have some feedback from the industry advisory group and will be seeking more.

MOT Review of CAA Act 1990 and Airport Authorities Act1966

The Ministry of Transport has begun public consultation on a review of the Civil Aviation Act 1990 and the Airport Authorities Act 1966. The Civil Aviation Act 1990 governs the civil aviation system in New Zealand. The Airport Authorities Act 1966 confers on airports a range of functions and powers. Public consultation will run from 1 August – 31 October 2014.

Nick Brown, Ministry of Transport General Manager Aviation and Maritime, says the reviews provide an opportunity to improve the usability of the legislation, and ensure it supports effective and efficient regulatory decision-making.

To view the consultation document, and find out how to make a submission or attend an engagement session view www.transport.govt.nz/air/caa-act1990-aa-act1966-review-consultation/.

Given the breadth of issues covered by the review, there may be issues of interest to you that are not covered in the consultation document, or addressed in as much detail as you would like. Please contact the review team directly at ca.act@transport.govt.nz to seek clarification or discuss any issues in more detail.

You can provide feedback or raise any questions directly with the Act review project team at one of the Ministry’s upcoming regional engagement sessions. Further information about these sessions will be posted on the Ministry of Transport website shortly. We will also be back in touch with you with the session dates, times and venues once they are finalised.

For further information about these sessions, please contact Bronwyn Lauten on ph (04) 439 9343 or ca.act@transport.govt.nz

New Zealand Defence and NZ Industry

Some of you will have replied to a questionnaire from the Department of Defence a few months ago as to what could be done to improve the prospects of New Zealand companies securing more work from Defence contracts. A draft report ‘Optimising New Zealand Industry Involvement in the NZ Defence Sector’ has been prepared and we’ve had a chance to comment on it. The final report goes to the Minister of Defence today or early next week. Decisions will then be made as to how it becomes public. The Defence Industry Association’s Annual Forum in Wellington on 21 and 22 October will see a significant chunk of time spent discussing the report and its recommendations. We’ll bring you more info as soon as the report becomes public.

Save money and reduce foreign exchange risk

NZForex presented at the Summit and have now prepared a 7 point check list (on one page) with suggestions on how those doing business internationally (buying and selling) can save money here Mobile Tools (download free here)

Parachute rated pilot and aircraft

The New Zealand Defence Force is to engage an accredited supplier to provide a piloted civil aircraft capable of supporting military parachuting activities, predominantly in Auckland but sometimes in other locations. The aircraft will be required to carry a minimum of six military parachutists wearing military operational parachutes with parachute drop bags plus two NZDF dispatchers up to an altitude of 13,000 feet above mean sea level. The aircraft and pilot will be required to support military static line and freefall parachuting activities. RFT closes 5 September, GETS: RFZ ID 2827574. The tender is available on NZDF’s SmartProcure website https://nzdf.bravosolution.com

Cricket World Cup Updated

In recent newsletters, we’ve brought you info on the ICC Cricket World Cup which opens in Christchurch on 14 February next year, with some possible thoughts on how we in aviation could benefit. Basically 14 teams will be playing 49 matches over 44 days in 14 host cities across two countries. There are seven NZ host cities: Auckland, Hamilton, Napier, Wellington, Nelson, Christchurch and Dunedin. There will be thousands of fans travelling across the country to support their team – but also keen to have a New Zealand experience. Are you thinking about what kind of charter packages you could offer to these high net worth and other visitors? There’s a great business opportunity here. Over 1 million expected attendees and 1 billion TV viewers. This is the biggest event in NZ since the Rugby World Cup in 2011 – let’s make the most of it. http://www.icc-cricket.com/cricket-world-cup To see where people will be and when http://www.icc-cricket.com/cricket-world-cup/fixtures .

The FIFA Under 20 World Cup will be held in New Zealand from 30 May to 20 June next year. This is not expected to attract the same number of international visitors as the Cricket World Cup, but it is a MAJOR World event, there will still be good numbers of well heeled visitors. More info: http://www.fifa.com/u20worldcup/index.html

Both events create opportunities for NZ aviation to promote its products and services. We are working with CWC NZ and a NZ Inc government group to develop business opportunities for the aviation sector. More info on this soon.

International News

World Bank Projects in the South Pacific New

A few weeks ago we mentioned that we were starting to monitor the World Bank funded Pacific Aviation Infrastructure Programme in the South Pacific – Kiribati, Samoa, Tonga and Tuvalu approved with more countries to be added. The World Bank has approved US$160m so far on this project. Procurement is being packaged so that common systems, processes and products are used across the region. This means that a scale of contract not previously seen in the region is being achieved. At today, 24 contracts worth NZ$33.1m have been awarded to NZ companies covering advisory services; project supervision; systems design and technical support; database development and implementation; and runway resurfacing. Some significant tenders with strong New Zealand interest have recently closed. We’ll bring you info soon about the likely forward procurement schedule.

RAAA Conference, 8 - 10 October 2014

The Regional Aviation Association of Australia is holding its national convention ‘A New Horizon’ in the Hunter Valley. The RAAA is the only organisation representing all sectors associated with Regional Aviation across Australia and therefore, plays a significant role in the aviation industry. The National Convention is highly regarded as a premier annual aviation event. Av NZ CEO will be speaking at this event. We also expect good representation from the RAAA executive at our Leadership Summit in July. More info on the RAAA event is here

P3 Orion International Operators Support Conference (P3 IOSC) Atlanta, Georgia, 27-30 October

New Zealand companies can attend and showcase their technologies or services at the next P3 IOSC in Atlanta, Georgia. This conference is co-hosted annually by Lockheed Martin and an international operator country. This year it is New Zealand and the NZ Defence Force’s turn. There is an industry expo throughout, a number of networking opportunities and New Zealand will host a function to showcase our technology, culture and cuisine. NZTE is supporting the NZ presence. For more info, contact: richard.harrison@icn.govt.nz .