Civil Aviation Not Interfered With, Says Mr. Fraser

Wanganui Chronicle, 4 August 1948, Page 5

Civil Aviation Not Interfered With, Says Mr. Fraser

Mr. Fraser said he denied entirely Mr. Oram's dictum that, civil aviation in New Zealand was not independent. There had not been, as far as he could discover, a scrap of evidence before the Tasman Commission of Inquiry to support its findings on this aspect of the matter.

Mr. P. Oram: The Commission did not have the relevant files before it.

Mr. Fraser said that if any person haul interfered with the safety of civil aviation, even if it were the Air Secretary himself, or a director of Tasman Empire Airways, that person should be dealt with, but there was no evidence to support the allegation made byMr. Oram. If any person connected with aviation hail at nay point interfere;! in a manner affecting the safety of lives of those travelling by air, then that person was unworthy of the position he occupied.

When Mr. Oram, In an interjection, made further reference to the Director of Civil Aviation being subordinate to the Air Secretary. Mr. Fraser replied:: “We will look into it.” The Prime Minister said he had looked in vain for any evidence tendered to the Tasman Commission supporting its conclusions about the control of civil aviation. He had asked for any further evidence to that ef; feet, but had been unable to get it.

Mr. Fraser said that while the relative merits of privately-owned and publicly-owned aviation could be debated. it was worth remembering that in Britain it was not the Labour Government which set. up 8.0 *_p. Aviation had made vast strides in New Zealand under this Government and the lack of serious accidents compared: well with the record of any country. PENDING INQUIRY Nothing in the Bill would impinge on, or cut across, the inquiry to be made shortly by the visiting mission of British experts. Safety must be the first consideration at all times. Mr. G. H. Mackely (Opp., Wairarapa): What does this Bill do towards it? Mr. Fraser said that in engaging a mission from Britain the Governmnt was doing as much for aviation as if it had appointed a Royal Commission. It was nonsense to say of civil aviation in the Dominion that “things must be bad" because the Government had invited Sir Frederick Tymms and his associates to investigate the services here. Mr. Fraser said the only example of interference with the control of aviation of which he knew arose from a wartime, incident, and he took full responsibility for it. When an aircraft of the Tasman service made a forced landing on Lord Howe Island two ground engineers were suspended, pending investigation. Then the chief engineer of the trans-Tasman service refused to issue a certificate for another machine, which was ready to depart from Auckland with 17 wartime priority passengers for Australia. Mr. Fraser said the chief engineer of the service contended it was the job of the men who had been suspended to certify the planes as airworthy, and as thensuspension had not been revoked he would not sign the certificate in their stead. The Acting Director of Civil Aviation thereupon said the plane could not undertake the trip, although an engineer of the department did certify that the plane was safe to take the air. A director of the company discussed the matter with the Acting Director of Civil Aviation, telling the latter that if he maintained his re-

fusal to let the plane go unless tha documents were properly completed by the company's own engineer, the matter would be taken up with the Prime Minister, a statement which the Acting Director apparently regarded as a threat. Mr. Fraser said that when the matter was referred to him. he at once took the attitude that provided the safety of the passengers was assured, the regulations should he waived for once, and the plane then left for Sydney. In similar circumstances of wartime passengers being held up by what amounted to a sit-down strike, he would take the same action again. Such a trip could not be delayed indefinitely be<»use people quarrelled and sulked with one another. ONLY CASE OF INTERFERENCE

This was, however, the only case in his knowledge, said Mr. Fraser, of any interference with departmental control of civil aviation. If proof could be given of improper Interference by anyone endangering the lives of passengers, then he would sav the culpable persons shauld be dealt with. The debate was Continued by Mr. T. P Shand (Opp.. Marlborough), Mr. W. W. Freer (Govt., Mt. Albert), Mr. J. K. McAlpine (Opp.. Selwyn) and 'Mr. Clvde Carr (Govt., Timaru) before Mr. E. P. Aderman (Opp.. New Plymouth) moved the adjournment.