This Day in History: 2007-11-13

Former CASA chairman Dick Smith threatened to sue air traffic control authorities unless they reversed a decision to close down 27 Flightwatch transmitters he said were essential to air safety. The transmitters provided weather and safety information to pilots. Mr Smith said their closure by Airservices Australia would be ‘an intolerable risk to public safety and a clear contravention of government policy’. The next day, Transport Minister Mark Vaile ordered Airservices Australia not to proceed with plans to shut down the Flightwatch transmitters. Source: Steve Creedy, ‘Smith ready to sue air agency’, The Australian, 13 November 2007, p. 9. via aph.gov.au website