(06-18-2016, 06:15 AM)kharon Wrote: Self service and Avmed portals. - P2
Anyone else had problems getting established? Tried to register with the new fangled Avmed system – got knocked back; seems they don’t have an email address for me. WTF; same email address for at least 15 years; medical every six month with email address noted; emails everyday from CASA to that address; miles of correspondence etc. but now I need to find time to ring during business hours to sort it out. Again.
Bugger that, thinks I – I’ll tackle the infamous ‘self service portal’, time to get modernised. Nope, the system ain't having any of that; pink notice – insufficient data to register there. WTF I got my licence about the same time Pontius did.
I wonder how much the new whiz-bang system cost; also, why it insists I am a figment of my own imagination; cranky now. I intend to keep track of this little breeze blowing over my tea cup. So far, the bill is not too bad, lets call it 20 minutes, I had little else to do so the time cannot be counted as counterproductive, however…..
MTF I expect.
Heh heh; Just had a very funny PM from P26, suggests it’s all an IP trap; CASA malware by return; bag OST – computer crash, take the Mickey out of CASA, bang, blue screen etc. (big smile). Which is all jolly good fun, but don’t they have to let you into the system first? What a joke this outfit is.
Hey "K" according to Binger's article in the Oz today; a) you are definitely not on your Pat Malone; and b) apparently that is just the tip of the iceberg with many future frustrations yet to be experienced...
Quote:Pilots face grounding over medical delaysAlmost 1000 pilots are facing delays of two months or more to receive the medical certificates they need to fly because of a mammoth backlog within the aviation regulator’s new online medical portal.
- Mitchell Bingemann
- The Australian
- 12:00AM June 24, 2016[img=0x0]http://pixel.tcog.cp1.news.com.au/track/component/author/4c134add4c3a9e4881f7841b69d9ac85/?esi=true&t_product=the-australian&t_template=s3/austemp-article_common/vertical/author/widget[/img]
About 170 pilots are also within 14 days of having their medical certificates expire — which will effectively ground them and put them out of work — as the backlog continues to grow and slow down the processing system.
The logjam was created with the introduction of Civil Aviation Safety Authority’s online medical records system, which has been in operation since March 21. The new system was meant to streamline the application process and create a repository of pilot medical records for future use but teething problems with the system has instead created a slowdown that is now affecting hundreds of pilots.
The new system is processing about 1700 medical certificates a month, down from the 2000 a month that the old system was capable of issuing.
The delays mean there is now a backlog of about 900 pilots who are being told to expect waits of two months to receive their certificates. In about 400 cases, some are being told the wait is even longer.
Under the old system, the average processing time for Class 1 medical certificates — which are issued to holders of Air Transport Pilot Licences, Commercial Pilot Licences, Multi-crew Pilot Licences and Flight Engineer Licences — was 17 days.
But that time has now blown out to an average of 20 days as pilots and doctors come to grips with the new system.
The average processing time for Class 2 medical certificates (for student pilots, private pilots and balloon operators) is taking 27 days and Class 3 medical certificates (for air traffic controllers and flight service officers) about 21 days.
One pilot who contacted The Australian — but asked to remain anonymous — has had to wait six months to get clearance for a Class 1 Medical certificate and has lost work as a result of the delays.
“It’s been a total ‘fubar’. I’ve missed out on some jobs because this is hanging over my head,” the pilot said.
An investigation by The Australian prompted the Australian Federation of Air Pilots — the largest industrial and professional association for commercial pilots in Australia with over 3500 commercial pilots — to survey its members about issues with the new system.
The response rate on the survey set a record for the AFAP which has collated 19 pages of complaints about the system. In total, some 69 per cent of the 312 respondents to the survey have reported problems and major delays with the new online system.
Many of those surveyed pilots reported around a seven- to eight- week wait to receive their medical certificates, while the most severe cases had seen waits of up to four months.
The most common complaints about the system are that it is slow or not working, recurring glitches resulting in incomplete applications and payment problems.
“My company has been on my back about the expiry and renewal and told me that if my medical expires they will stop paying me until it is renewed,” one pilot said.
“All the while, CASA is still sending me emails reminding me that my medical expires within 60 days, and what the renewal process is. I have done everything required to renew it, well ahead of the expiry date.”
CASA has acknowledged the problem and is shifting additional staff into its aviation medicine branch to cope with the strains on the system. Changes are also being made to workflow practices to improve turnaround times.
“Some medical certificates are taking more time to process. CASA apologises to pilots who have been waiting longer than normal for their medical to be finalised and thanks everyone for their patience,” a CASA spokesman said.
“Anyone who considers they are facing hardship due to a delay in medical processing should contact CASA as soon as possible, and assistance will be provided.”
The aviation regulator is also prioritising medical certificate applications where the current certificate is due to expire within 14 days.
“There are more than 400 medical certificate applications that have been lodged for eight weeks or longer. In the majority of these applications CASA requires further information from the applicant and/or specialist medical reports,” the CASA spokesman said.
While on the subject of Pilot Licence medicals, I note the filing of a recent AAT decision which highlights the 'fubar' situation of differing interpretations of AvMed Part 67 regulations. Also ironically this case could represent an indication of a more 'conciliatory approach' to placing conditions on pilot medicals...
Quote:Barnes andCivil Aviation Safety Authority
[2016] AATA 401 (17 June 2016)
...SUBSEQUENT GRANT OF CLASS 2 MEDICAL CERTIFICATE
25. Even if the decision I have come to on the extension application is incorrect, the consequences for Mr Barnes would not alter. I alluded to this possibility in my earlier decision regarding Mr Barnes’ right to apply for review, which is dated 21 April 2016 at [31]. That is because CASA issued to Mr Barnes on 17 February 2016 a Class 2 medical certificate valid for 24 months, subject to a number of conditions.
26. Regulation 67.205(6) of the CASR provides:
Quote:27. Accordingly, if the correct outcome of this application was that an extension of the period for which his 11 August 2014 Class 2 medical certificate remained in force should be granted, it would be taken to have been in force at the time CASA issued to Mr Barnes a 24 month Class 2 medical certificate on 17 February 2016. In fact, in accordance with Reg 67.205(2)(a), given that Mr Barnes’ last medical examination was done on 21 December 2015, that medical certificate came into force on the certificate’s appropriate day, which, for a person who has undergone any relevant examinations required for the purpose of the issue of the certificate, is the day when the last relevant examination was completed. That is, the 24 month Class 2 medical certificate came into force on 21 December 2015. If the extension of time were granted to his 11 August 2014 medical certificate, by reason of Reg 67.205 (6) of the CASR, his 11 August 2014 medical certificate ceased to be in force on 20 December 2015.Quote:If a new medical certificate is issued to a person who holds a current medical certificate, and the new certificate comes into force before the current medical certificate is due to expire, the current certificate ceases to be in force at the last moment of the day before the day when the new certificate comes into force.
28.The 24 month Class 2 medical certificate contains restrictions, including a Special Condition which is set out in the letter of 17 February 2016. It requires Mr Barnes to provide to the Aviation Medicine Branch of CASA on or before 28 February 2017 a progress report from the doctor monitoring his diabetes, detailing a number of matters set out in that letter. In other words, Mr Barnes need do nothing until February 2017 to maintain a current Class 2 medical certificate. However he must comply with the Special Condition on or before 28 February 2017. Otherwise, that medical certificate will cease to be in force.
29. The fact that I have come to the conclusion that the Class 2 medical certificate issued to Mr Barnes on 11 August 2014 should not be extended does not alter the conclusion that at the present time, Mr Barnes holds a valid Class 2 medical certificate which will remain in force until 21 December 2017 subject only to the restrictions set out on that certificate including the Special Condition.
CONCLUSION
30. I find that the decision made by CASA on 15 June 2014 to refuse to extend Mr Barnes’ Class 2 medical certificate issued on 11 August 2014 was the correct decision. I affirm that decision...
MTF...P2
