Gliding in NZ operates under CAA Rule Part 149, in which GNZ has delegated authority to conduct its own training and maintain its own gliders, both to agreed standards. Pilot medicals are to the same standard as driver licences, and gliders can be maintained by suitable GNZ-approved engineers.

Under Part 115, instructors have to hold a CPL-G rating, which requires a Class 1 medical, as Phil has said. Part 115 organisations also have to have their gliders maintained by a CAA LAME (licenced aviation mechanical engineer, or some such). Both of these requirements impose extra costs on any Part 115 operation, costs which may in some circumstances make the business model unviable. The Part 115 rules were written some time back but only became law after a particularly bad balloon accident; Part 115 applies to ballooning, skydiving, hang gliding, paragliding and gliding.

For gliding clubs, this has meant that they can no longer offer 'joy rides' (adventure aviation) but can offer 'trial membership flights' (instructional aviation) for the purposes of recruiting club members. Part 149 gliding clubs cannot pay their instructors.

GNZ has recently petitioned CAA for a formal exemption to the Part 115 rules around medicals and maintenance, using EASA requirements as precedent. We're seeking a relaxation to Class 2 medicals and to have maintenance carry on under the same requirements as Part 149; most of the LAMEs will have little experience of maintaining gliders so will have to rely on GNZ engineers anyway. None of this helps Glide Omarama in the short term, unfortunately..

CAA are currently undergoing a major re-shuffle and part of this appears to be manifesting as a much harder line when it comes to gray areas. Some might say that they need to be seen as being active and effective regulators, but I couldn't possibly comment on this. It has also been pointed out that gliding accidents and injuries don't tend to happen on trial flights, so that the only difference between a Part 149 operation and a Part 115 operation is the extra costs and certification imposed on the latter for little apparent gain. Again, I couldn't possibly comment.

DH