Security Archives

The old guard said: You toe our line. The new CAA leaders prefer to dip toes in the water

July 25, 2020

In any organisation, the first few months for a new manager can be tricky. On one hand, you must establish a rapport with your team and the stakeholders. You have to create open communication and be accepted as genuine. On the other, you’ve been appointed for a good reason. That reason may be unsettling for some; you are the new broom, here to sweep …

It’s officially true: the CAA is toxic. But will it get a detox?

June 14, 2020

Cast your mind back to 2018 and you may recall the Saga of the CAA Client Satisfaction Survey and how the Authority’s leading lights rubbished the results when the GAA ran a customer survey after the CAA refused to do the job. The Director, Graeme Harris, rejected what GAA supporters said about his Authority after our survey of opinion in 2018 and 2019. His …

Another whistleblower points to the inevitable: An investigation of the CAA

September 10, 2019

In his latest TV3 Newshub coverage of the CAA, reporter Michael Morrah exposes problems within Aviation Security Services, where team leaders are accused of allowing people to board flights with illegal items. It is alleged that bullying, harassment and ineffectual leadership are endemic within the lofty floors of the Asteron Centre, which is expensively occupied by the CAA and its subordinate, Aviation Security (AvSec). …

The CAA is seriously ill – but how can we tell the relatives?

July 22, 2019

If only we could ask The Average Kiwi to briefly pause and imagine what life would be like if, quite suddenly, all forms of general aviation disappeared. Everything, that is, below commercial airlines. If you could snap your fingers and make it happen, people on the street would realise what quietly and reliably had been going on all around them. Flying in New Zealand …

Hats off to the CAA whistleblower

June 25, 2019

The CAA, a place of dysfunction and distrust A whistleblower working in the Civil Aviation Authority has told Newshub that dysfunction and distrust at the CAA is putting the public at risk. The employee decided to speak to Newshub‘s investigations reporter Michael Morrah because, he says, the CAA has repeatedly failed in its regulatory role, and a “toxic” work environment is contributing to the …

ADS-B approaches The Twyford Zone – but is this another black hole?

April 25, 2019

In six days, some claim, God created Heaven and Earth. On the seventh, He rested. There was light, and God saw that it was good. Much later, this also pleased every aviator who did not possess a night rating. Making an entire world out of nothing, in less than a week, is an unimaginable feat of weight and balance, particularly when you compare it …

The cockpit video and audio recording case

July 16, 2018

The result of the hearing by District Court Judge Cunningham has been published. Her decision has gone against the case presented by counsel for the pilot involved. The issue for the Court in the application for a pre-trial hearing was about the status of the evidence presented. The prosecution, with the assistance of the police, had compiled a DVD which included footage from the …

No apologies for acting in the public interest, says the CAA

April 5, 2018

The CAA has now had the opportunity to consider the material presented by the Des Lines and Brian Mackie including their “Overview” document and the results of their “Client Satisfaction” survey. The CAA welcomes feedback on its performance. As a responsible state sector entity, the CAA must – and does – operate in an environment of accountability to the public, whose interests it ultimately …

Shocking, insane and incompetent: Customers condemn the ‘toxic’ CAA

The full results of the GAA’s independent survey of CAA client satisfaction have been published. The report reveals significant disapproval and disquiet. On virtually all questions seeking a rating of 0 (no satisfaction) to 10 (very high), the Authority scored below 5 and in some cases, such as cost control, less than 2. The CAA is described by some GA customers as “shocking”, “insane”, …

We’re calling for a public inquiry into the CAA

The GAA is seeking a public inquiry into the Civil Aviation Authority. On 5 April, the GAA released a report detailing known and alleged CAA failures and shortcomings and another showing the results of the independent CAA client satisfaction survey. The dossier of failures and shortcomings has taken about six years to compile. It contains evidence of failures by the Authority and its governing …

Category: Security