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Civil Aviation Order 40.0 Amendment Order (No. 1) 2008

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I, William Bruce Byron, Director of Aviation Safety, on behalf of CASA, make this instrument under regulations 5.11 and 303 of the Civil Aviation Regulations 1988.
[Signed Bruce Byron]
Bruce Byron
Director of Aviation Safety and
   Chief Executive Officer
3 March 2008
Civil Aviation Order 40.0 Amendment Order (No. 1) 2008
1          Name of instrument
            This instrument is the Civil Aviation Order 40.0 Amendment Order (No. 1) 2008.
2          Commencement
   (1)     This instrument commences on 5 March 2008 with the exception of the provision in clause 8 relating to student pilots.
   (2)     Clause 8 commences on 5 September 2008.
3          Amendment of Civil Aviation Order 40.0
            Schedule 1 amends Civil Aviation Order 40.0.
4          Transitionals and saving
   (1)     The holder of a flight crew licence issued before 5 March 2008 that was in force immediately before the commencement of this Order and who only performs domestic operations is taken to have demonstrated sufficient English language proficiency to exercise the privileges of his or her licence.
   (2)     The holder of a flight crew licence issued before 5 March 2008 that was in force immediately before the commencement of this Order and who performs international operations is taken to have met the requirements of English language proficiency level 4 if he or she has, in the 2 years immediately before 5 March 2008, been resident continuously in Australia or New Zealand except for brief periods not exceeding in total 6 months.
   (3)     The holder of a flight crew licence issued before 5 March 2008 that was in force immediately before the commencement of this Order and who performs international operations is taken to have met the requirements of English language proficiency level 4 if he or she has, in the 2 years immediately before 5 March 2008, been resident continuously in a specified country except for briefs period not exceeding in total 6 months.
   (4)     For subsections 2 and 3, the grant of an English language proficiency level 4 ceases to have effect at the earlier of:
(a)   the holder applying for the issue of a new licence; or
(b)   5 March 2010.
Note   The grant of English proficiency level 4 is to be entered on a licence before the commencement of international operations.
Schedule 1          Amendment
[1]       Subsection 1, heading
omit
Interpretation
insert
Definitions
[2]       After subsection 5
insert
6          English language proficiency
             In this subsection:
domestic operation means a flight that is not classifiable as an international operation.
English language proficiency level means the level in the International Civil Aviation Organization Language Proficiency Scale mentioned in Appendix 4.
flight crew licence means any 1 of the following:
(a)   air transport pilot licence (ATPL);
(b)   commercial pilot licence (CPL);
(c)   unrestricted private pilot licence (PPL);
(d)   flight engineer who is required by flight crew duties to conduct radiotelephone communications with Air Traffic Control (ATC).
International operations means a flight which passes through the territory of more than 1 country.
specified country means any of the following countries:
(a)   United Kingdom;
(b)   Republic of Ireland;
(c)   United States of America;
(d)   New Zealand;
(e)   Canada.
Note   For Canada, proof of English language proficiency may still be required.
7          English language proficiency requirements
   7.1     For regulation 5.09, a person who applies to CASA, on the commencement of this Order, for a flight crew licence must provide to CASA evidence that he or she has at least an English language proficiency level 4 before the licence can be issued.
   7.2     For regulation 5.09, the holder of a flight crew licence issued before 5 March 2008 who, on the commencement of this Order, applies for the issue of a new type of flight crew licence must demonstrate that he or she has an English language proficiency of at least level 4 before the new type of licence can be issued.
   7.3     The holder of a flight crew licence who has demonstrated to CASA that he or she meets the requirements of a level of English proficiency may apply to CASA for the level of English proficiency to be entered on his or her licence.
8          Student Pilots
             A person who applies for a student pilot licence must satisfy the Chief Flying Instructor of the flying school that:
(a)   he or she has an English language proficiency at a level that will enable the person to safely conduct the flying operations; and
(b)   he or she meets 1 of the following requirements:
             (i)  he or she has completed a secondary education in an Australian or New Zealand educational institution;
            (ii)  he or she has completed at least the equivalent of an Australian secondary education in an educational institution in a country where 1 of the principal mediums of instructions is English;
            (iii)  he or she is receiving secondary education in an Australian or New Zealand educational institution and the language of instruction is English;
           (iv)  he or she has been working in Australia or New Zealand for at least 3 of the 5 years immediately before applying for the student pilot licence;
            (v)  he or she has been working in a specified country for at least 3 of the 5 years immediately before applying for the student pilot licence;
            (v)  he or she has successfully completed 1 of the English language proficiency tests in Appendix 3.
9          Assessment of English language proficiency
   9.1     CASA may by instrument in writing approve an organisation or a person as an English language proficiency assessor, at a level mentioned in Appendix 4, to assess the English language proficiency of applicants for the issue of a flight crew licence.
   9.2     CASA may by instrument in writing revoke an approval referred to in paragraph 9.1.
   9.3     CASA may accept an assessment of English language proficiency of at least level 4 as meeting the requirements for the issue of a flight crew licence if the assessment has been done by an approved English language proficiency assessor or organisation.
   9.4     CASA may by notice in writing require the holder of a flight crew licence with English language proficiency level entered on the licence to undertake an English language proficiency assessment if CASA has reason to believe the holder’s English language proficiency may affect the safe exercise of the privileges of the licence.
   9.5     If the holder of a flight crew licence fails to maintain English language proficiency of at least level 4, CASA may suspend the licence until such time as the person is able to satisfy the minimum requirement of level 4 proficiency.
10        How to obtain an English language proficiency assessment
             A person may apply to an approved English language proficiency assessor or organisation for an English language proficiency assessment at a level mentioned in Appendix 4.
11        How long does an English Language proficiency assessment remain in force
             An English language proficiency assessment provided by an approved assessor or organisation remains in force as follows:
(a)   for proficiency level 4 (operational), 3 years from the date of issue;
(b)   for proficiency level 5 (extended), 6 years from the date of issue;
(c)   for proficiency level 6 (expert), while the flight crew licence remains in force.
[3]       After Appendix 2
insert
Appendix 3
            English Language Proficiency Tests
            General Training Module of the International English Languages Testing System (IELTS) with an overall grade of 5.5 on condition that no single test area has a score of less than 5.0.
            Test of English for International Communication-Secure Program (TOEIC-SP) with minimum test score of 650.
            Test of English as a Foreign Language internet-based test (TOEFL iBT) with a test score of 71.
            Test of English as a Foreign Language computer-based test (TOEFL CBT) with a test score of 197.
            Test of English as a Foreign Language paper-based test (TOEFL PB) with a test score of 530.
Appendix 4
            ICAO Language Proficiency Scale
ICAO Language Proficiency Scale: Expert, Extended and Operational Levels

Level
Pronunciation
Structure
Vocabulary
Fluency
Comprehension
Interactions

 
Assumes a dialect and/or accent intelligible to the aeronautical community.
Relevant grammatical structures and sentence patterns are determined by language functions appropriate to the task.
 
 
 
 

Expert
6
Pronunciation, stress, rhythm and intonation, though possibly influenced by the first language or regional variation, almost never interfere with ease of under-standing.
Both basic and complex grammatical structures and sentence patterns are consistently well controlled.
Vocabulary range and accuracy are sufficient to communicate effectively on a wide variety of familiar and unfamiliar topics. Vocabulary is idiomatic, nuanced and sensitive to register.
Able to speak at length with a natural, effortless flow. Varies speech flow for stylistic effect, e.g. to emphasize a point. Uses appropriate discourse markers and connectors spontane-ously.
Comprehension is consistently accurate in nearly all contexts and includes comprehension of linguistic and cultural subtleties.
Interacts with ease in nearly all situations. Is sensitive to verbal and non-verbal cues and responds to them appropriately.

Extended
5
Pronunciation, stress, rhythm and intonation, though influenced by the first language or regional variation, rarely interfere with ease of under-standing.
Basic grammatical structures and sentence patterns are consistently well controlled. Complex structures are attempted but with errors which sometimes interfere with meaning.
Vocabulary range and accuracy are sufficient to communicate effectively on common, concrete, and work-related topics. Para-phrases con-sistently and successfully. Vocabulary is sometimes idiomatic.
Able to speak at length with relative ease on familiar topics but may not vary speech flow as a stylistic device. Can make use of appropriate discourse markers or connectors.
Comprehension is accurate on common, concrete, and work-related topics and mostly accurate when the speaker is confronted with a linguistic or situational complication or an unexpected turn of events. Is able to comprehend a range of speech varieties (dialect and/or accent) or registers.
Responses are usually immediate, appropriate and informative. Initiates and maintains exchanges even when dealing with an unexpected turn of events. Deals adequately with apparent misunderstand-ings by check-ing, confirming or clarifying.

Operational
4
Pronunciation, stress, rhythm and intonation are influenced by the first language or regional variation but only sometimes interfere with ease of under-standing.
Basic grammatical structures and sentence patterns are used creatively and are usually well controlled. Errors may occur, parti-cularly in unusual or unexpected circum-stances, but rarely inter-fere with meaning.
Vocabulary range and accuracy are usually sufficient to communicate effectively on common, concrete, and work-related topics. Can often para-phrase suc-cessfully when lacking vocabulary in unusual or unexpected circum-stances.
Produces stretches of language at an appropr-iate tempo. There may be occa-sional loss of fluency on transition from rehearsed or formulaic speech to spontaneous interaction, but this does not prevent effective communica-tion. Can make limited use of discourse markers or connectors. Fillers are not distracting.
Comprehension is mostly accurate on common, concrete and work-related topics when the accent or variety used is sufficiently intelligible for an international community of users. When the speaker is confronted with a linguistic or situational complication or an unexpected turn of events, comprehension may be slower or require clarification strategies.
Responses are usually immediate, appropriate and informative. Initiates and maintains exchanges even when dealing with an unexpected turn of events. Deals adequately with apparent misunderstand-ings by check-ing, confirming or clarifying.