walrus

I wrote and posted this elsewhere. A private flight is a private flight, period.

Scene: A country road in outback New South Wales, three police cars are conducting random breathalyser checks. An SUV has just been flagged down for a breath test....

 

Officer: “Good morning, blow into the machine till I tell you to stop”.

 

Driver: (Blows into machine). “Morning Officer, is the reading OK?”

 

Officer: “You’re fine, by the way, your kid in the back seat is not looking very well”.

 

Driver: “Oh that’s not my kid, that’s a neighbours kid, Timmy, I’m taking him to Sydney for his chemo treatment, poor little fella.”

 

8

 

Officer: “What? Say that again.”

 

Driver: “Timmy has cancer, I’m taking him to hospital for his regular chemotherapy session, happens every month. His mother doesn’t have a car and can’t get anymore time off work either.”

 

Officer: Don’t you understand you’re breaking the law by doing this? You can’t take a patient to hospital except in an ambulance. I don’t see any flashing lights on your car, this doesn’t look like an ambulance.”

 

Driver: “It isn’t an ambulance , it’s just my Toyota. Timmy is strapped into his safety seat, what more do I need? We have water and some snacks and his painkiller medication, this is going to be a five hour drive.”

 

Officer: “You obviously don’t understand, the law says that only an ambulance can take a patient to hospital for treatment. It’s for safety! You don’t have emergency lights, siren, a flouro vest and a uniform, your not an accredited paramedic either”.

 

Driver: “But Timmy’s mother isn’t a parawhatsit either, if she had a car, couldn’t she drive him to hospital? Why not me? She doesn’t have the time and she’s not a very good driver as well.

 

Officer: “The law is quite clear. She can take him but you can’t. Don’t you understand? What you are doing is highly dangerous without being specially trained, in an ambulance, with a safety manual to follow and a procedures manual, operations manual and a log book and a mission statement. I should warn you, the penalties for this are severe. Your car tires look a bit scuffed as well.”

 

Driver: “ You mean I can take Timmy and a whole car load of screaming kids to McDonalds, Dreamworld or wherever and that’s OK, but if I want to take him to hospital I can’t?”

 

Officer: “Precisely(smiling). I see you understand. It would be far too dangerous to make that hospital trip.”

 

Driver: “Well this is crazy. I can do anything I like except help people. Not only that, me and my friends have been driving poor kids to doctors and hospitals for years without any trouble, but you now tell me it’s forbidden because it’s too dangerous? What is Timmy supposed to do if I’m not here - take non existent public transport? Hitchike?

 

Officer: “It sounds to me like you and your friends are engaged in a criminal conspiracy! Wait till my boss hears this! I should get a promotion for shutting you down. As for Timmy, the law doesn’t care what happens to him. All we care about is safety above everything else. If Timmy can’t travel to hospital then he can’t have an accident during the trip. The logic of the law is simple and unchallengeable. Now turn around and take the kid back home!”

The Board has basically two functions: to safeguard the assets of the members and to hire and fire the CEO.The CEO runs the business and the Board either approves or disproves his strategic plan.

If the board disapproves of the strategic plan then the CEO either resigns or is fired.

In my opinion, if what is alleged to have occurred has occurred, The Board should direct the CEO to assign the trademark to AOPA.

I am not happy about the state of cooperation between associations and I fear that RAA has embarked on a growth strategy at the expense of everyone else.

Ian McRitchie went on to an illustrious career as a metallurgist and private pilot.