Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Hansard source

Last week in my electorate around the Deep Creek National Park on the southern Fleurieu Peninsula, we had a bushfire that burned out of control for a week before being officially contained on Sunday. It caused significant damage, burning more than 4,400 hectares, 22 structures and 12 vehicles. It had a perimeter of 56 kilometres. Our CFS worked tirelessly to defend property and to protect the habitat of native flora and fauna in Deep Creek. A huge thank you to those CFS crews and to the more than 200 firefighters from across the country who came to help from Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.

Part of the huge firefighting effort was from the air, led by our local company Aerotech. Aircraft operations undertook more than a thousand drops over the fire with water and firefighting material. They gathered intelligence from the firegrounds and assisted with back-burning. Aerotech is forefront in South Australia's bushfire rapid response. The approach can mean the difference between a minor incident and a full-scale emergency. I recently visited the company's Adelaide Hills base in Brukunga, where I saw a fixed-wing fleet and a range of helicopters, including repurposed Black Hawks.

Aerotech not only does work in emergencies but also in other sectors such as agriculture, construction and resources. The company has sovereign capabilities, delivering services across Australia and internationally, providing training programs including for pilots, offering in-house maintenance, airfield infrastructure, avionics and ground transport. This South Australian company operates more than 40 aircraft and employs more than 160 people. It's a world leader.

But Aerotech and other aircraft companies are waiting on the federal government for approval for a set of aviation maintenance rules put together by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, CASA. These rules, Civil Aviation Safety Regulations part 43, are designed to simplify maintenance requirements, with clearer rules delineating private and aerial work aircraft from passenger airlines. Part 43 is ready to go. It's supported by industry but it has been sitting on the minister for transport's desk since October 2024—it must be lost! We should be acting faster to cut red tape. After 16 months, the minister should approve this package so companies like Aerotech can get on with the job.

Again, I would just like to reiterate my great thanks to all of our firefighters, including the air support from Aerotech. My heart goes to the families in Deep Creek who have lost infrastructure, as well as to all the animals and the damaged environment. It's been a very terrible time on the Fleurieu.

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