EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
CIVIL AVIATION ACT 1988
CIVIL AVIATION REGULATIONS 1988
SUBREGULATION 208 (1)
DIRECTION — CARRIAGE OF CABIN ATTENDANTS IN HOT AIR BALLOONS
Section 98 of the Civil Aviation Act 1988 (the Act) provides that the Governor-General may make regulations for the purpose of the Act and in relation to the safety of air navigation.
Under subregulation 235 (7) of the Civil Aviation Regulations 1988 (CAR 1988), CASA made Civil Aviation Orders (the CAOs) in relation to passengers and goods on aircraft. Paragraph 6.1 of section 20.16.3 of the CAOs provides, among other things, that aircraft in charter or regular public transport operations carrying more than 15 but not more that 36 passengers must carry a cabin attendant. Paragraph 7.1 of section 20.16.3 of the CAOs provides that whenever a cabin attendant is so required, the aircraft must also have an aisle.
Under subregulation 208 (1) of CAR 1988, CASA may give directions as to the numbers of operating crew required to be carried on an aircraft, having regard to the safety of air navigation.
This instrument is a direction about cabin attendants on certain hot air balloons operated in charter operations by Outback Ballooning Pty Ltd. It applies to specific Kavanagh E-300 and B-350 balloons designed to carry not more than 16 passengers, and a Kavanagh B-400 balloon designed to carry not more than 20 passengers. Because of the design of these balloons and their baskets, and subject to certain conditions, CASA does not consider that safety will be compromised by the absence of an aisle or if the balloon does not carry a cabin attendant during operations with not more than 16 or 20 passengers.
Conditions include, that if more than 16 passengers are carried (permissible on the Kavanagh B-400 only), there must be 2 suitably trained ground crew, in addition to the pilot, to supervise and assist in loading and unloading passengers. These ground crew personnel must be located at either end of the basket and the operator’s operations manual must set out the course of training they have undergone to qualify for the role of ground crew. The operations manual must also set out the duties of the pilot in command in relation to briefing and controlling passengers in normal and emergency situations.
Other conditions require that the passengers must be equally distributed between the balloon’s 4 compartments and that all passengers must be able to hear the pilot’s instructions. Apart from subparagraph 6.1 (a) and paragraph 7.1, other relevant provisions of section 20.16.3 of the CAOs concerning passengers and goods continue to apply.
The instrument revokes a previous instrument (CASA 538/03), which expires at the end of November 2006, and replaces it in a modified form with the same conditions. One modification adds 2 new Kavanagh B-350 balloons to those that may operate without cabin attendants and aisles (VH-CJP and VH-OZK). The other modification deletes reference to a balloon that was misdescribed as a Kavanagh E-300 model and erroneously included in the earlier instrument.
Legislative Instruments Act
Under regulation 5A of CAR 1988, if CASA has issued a CAO, and CASA later issues a direction, instruction, notification, permission, approval or authority that in any way affects the operation of the CAO, the later document is declared to be a disallowable instrument. Under subparagraph 6 (d) (i) of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003 (the LIA), an instrument is a legislative instrument for section 5 of the LIA if it is declared to be a disallowable instrument under legislation in force before the commencement of the LIA. The instrument affects the operation of subparagraph 6.1 (a) and paragraph 7.1 of section 20.16.3 of the CAOs. It is, therefore, a legislative instrument for the purposes of section 5 of the LIA. It is subject to tabling and disallowance in the Parliament under sections 38 and 42 of that Act.
Consultation
Consultation under section 17 of the LIA has not been undertaken in this case. The instrument replaces a similar previous instrument specifically at the request of the operator to whom it applies. A similar instrument would be issued to any appropriate operator with similar balloons who could meet the same conditions.
The instrument has been issued by a delegate of CASA. It commences on the day after it is registered on the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments. It stops having effect at the end of November 2006.
[Instrument number CASA 214/05]