Casa's Role Under Scrutiny After Crash
Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday June 8, 2000
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority's handling of the airline involved in last week's fatal crash in South Australia will be investigated by a parliamentary committee.
The safety record of Whyalla Airlines and CASA's decision not to ground it in 1997 are expected to be included in the investigation by a Senate committee.
The Federal Government yesterday called for anybody with evidence of any improper action by CASA to come forward.
A spokesman for the Transport Minister, Mr Anderson said: ``There have been some people who have made claims of cronyism between CASA and Whyalla Airlines and we are more than happy for those allegations to be made public."
Investigators yesterday recovered more wreckage of the Whyalla Airlines plane which crashed into Spencer Gulf last Wednesday, killing eight people. One body was still missing last night.
The chairman of the Senate's Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport committee, Liberal Senator Winston Crane, confirmed last night it would examine CASA's actions and surveillance of the airline.
Senator Crane said the committee would question CASA officials as part of its ongoing investigation into airline safety and regulation.
``We will definitely have a look at it," he said. ``This is not just a wheel falling off or something. People's lives have been lost."
It was revealed on Saturday that CASA reinstated the sacked chief pilot of Whyalla, Mr Kym Brougham, in April despite finding in 1997 that he was contemptuous of licensing conditions.
In his role as deputy CASA chairman, Mr Dick Smith in 1997 unsuccessfully called for the airline to be grounded, claiming it should not be running a regular public transport operation.
But it also emerged yesterday that some people believed CASA had been too harsh on Whyalla.
In 1997, the local Federal MP, Mr Barry Wakelin, wrote to the then transport minister, Mr Mark Vaile, saying he was ``not satisfied that CASA has handled this matter with due fairness and genuine endeavour".
``CASA have made certain allegations which have been strongly denied, in the main, by Whyalla Airlines.
``My experience of Whyalla Airlines after hundreds of hours in their aircraft is that they are a first-rate outfit. I am prepared to give my personal endorsement to Whyalla Airlines on all the evidence available to me," he said.
Mr Wakelin also wrote a second letter, to Mr Smith, in January 1998 defending Mr Brougham.
The Opposition's transport spokesman, Mr Martin Ferguson, called for Mr Anderson to release all letters between politicians and CASA relating to the airline.
© 2000 Sydney Morning Herald
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