Airservices Community Engagement Standard

Consultation has concluded

We are improving the way we engage with communities. What do you think?

People love to fly. They love to fly into, out of, and around Australia. It allows them to easily travel long distances, to connect with family and friends.

Airservices Australia is the organisation responsible for managing our airspace and flight paths and adding, removing or adjusting flight paths to improve safety and better serve the needs of the aviation industry and people who fly.

We connect people with their world safely through our world-class services – linking family and friends, generating economic activity, creating jobs, and facilitating trade and tourism.

As our skies get busier and more complex, we will ensure we make aviation safer, more efficient and cleaner, while seeking to minimise the impact of aircraft operations on communities and the environment.

What are we engaging on?

Airservices Australia has a number of community obligations when planning and implementing changes to flight paths. These include:

  • minimise the impact of aircraft operations on communities
  • undertake effective community engagement
  • inform the community of the development and implementation of significant changes to air navigation.

To fulfill to these obligations and ensure best-practice community engagement on flight path and airspace changes, Airservices Australia is developing a new national Community Engagement Standard.

We are improving the way we engage with communities. What do you think?

People love to fly. They love to fly into, out of, and around Australia. It allows them to easily travel long distances, to connect with family and friends.

Airservices Australia is the organisation responsible for managing our airspace and flight paths and adding, removing or adjusting flight paths to improve safety and better serve the needs of the aviation industry and people who fly.

We connect people with their world safely through our world-class services – linking family and friends, generating economic activity, creating jobs, and facilitating trade and tourism.

As our skies get busier and more complex, we will ensure we make aviation safer, more efficient and cleaner, while seeking to minimise the impact of aircraft operations on communities and the environment.

What are we engaging on?

Airservices Australia has a number of community obligations when planning and implementing changes to flight paths. These include:

  • minimise the impact of aircraft operations on communities
  • undertake effective community engagement
  • inform the community of the development and implementation of significant changes to air navigation.

To fulfill to these obligations and ensure best-practice community engagement on flight path and airspace changes, Airservices Australia is developing a new national Community Engagement Standard.

Consultation has concluded

  • Final Community Engagement Standard

    We are pleased to release Airservices’ new national Community Engagement Standard, which provides a clearly defined process for our engagement with the public on flight path and airspace changes of various scope, scale and complexity. It also establishes a benchmark against which to measure our performance.

    The Standard has been finalised following industry and community engagement.

    National community engagement was conducted on the draft Standard between 3 May and 2 July 2023 and the Standard has been updated in response to feedback captured during this time.

    Over the eight week engagement program, more than 560 people participated, providing over 800 individual comments that have been considered as input for the final Standard. Airservices engaged independent consultancy Aurecon to conduct the engagement to provide assurance of a rigorous and transparent engagement process.

    Industry engagement has been ongoing since February 2023, with feedback sought on the draft and final draft of the Standard.

    A copy of the final Standard can be found here.

    A copy of the draft Standard with mark ups to identify the changes made as a result of feedback can be found here.

    A copy of the consultant report detailing the national engagement and recommendations can be found here.

    Airservices’ response to these recommendations can be found here.

    The Standard will be applied by Airservices to all future engagement on flight path and airspace changes. We are also working with the rest of the aviation industry to ensure a consistent cross-industry approach to engagement on changes to air traffic operations.

    We will continue to evolve our engagement practice and the application of the Standard as we deliver these changes. Ongoing feedback from industry and the community is welcome.

  • Thank you for providing feedback on our draft Community Engagement Standard

    Engagement on the Community Engagement Standard ran from 3 May and ran until 2 July. Feedback was collected through a survey, in-person community information sessions, community information webinars and written feedback through the project inbox. We appreciate both your time and your feedback on the draft Community Engagement Standard. Your comments, suggestions and feedback will be considered as we finalise the Standard. We will supply you with a link to the Engagement Outcomes (what we heard) Report and the final Community Engagement Standard once they are complete.

  • It’s not too late to provide your feedback on Airservices Australia’s draft Community Engagement Standard

    We understand life can be busy, so we have extended our feedback period on the Community Engagement Standard. If you would like to provide any final feedback on the Standard, please email your comments to engagementstandard@aurecongroup.com before midnight Sunday 2 July 2023. You can view the draft Community Engagement Standard here.

  • Community Engagement Standard Engagement sessions

    Airservices Australia invites the community to attend face-to-face engagement sessions and online webinars to discuss the draft Community Engagement Standard.


    Community information sessions (times shown in local):

    1. Sydney - Monday, 22 May 2023 - 5 to 7PM
    2. Sydney - Tuesday, 23 May 2023 - 10 AM to 12 PM
    3. Launceston - Thursday, 1 June 2023 - 10 AM to 12 PM
    4. Hobart - Friday, 2 June 2023 - 10 AM to 12 PM
    5. Adelaide - Tuesday, 6 June 2023 - 5 to 7PM
    6. Perth - Thursday, 8 June 2023 - 9:30 to 11:30 AM
    7. Brisbane - Tuesday, 13 June 2023 - 5 to 7PM
    8. Brisbane - Wednesday, 14 June 2023 - 1 to 3 PM
    9. Gold Coast - Thursday, 15 June 2023 - 5 to 7PM
    10. Ballina - Friday, 16 June 2023 - 10 AM to 12 PM
    11. Melbourne - Monday, 19 June 2023 - 5 to 7PM
    12. Melbourne - Tuesday, 20 June 2023 - 1 to 3 PM
    13. Canberra - Wednesday, 21 June 2023 - 12 to 2 PM


    The location of the community information session that you register for will be confirmed by email closer to the date.


    Webinars (AEST):

    1. SESSION FULL Saturday, 27 May 2023 - 1:30 to 3 PM
    2. SESSION FULL Monday, 29 May 2023 - 6 to 7:30 PM
    3. NEW SESSION Monday, 5 June 2023 - 6 to 7:30 PM
    4. Saturday, 10 June 2023 - 1:30 to 3 PM
    5. SESSION CANCELLED Saturday, 10 June 2023 - 5:30 to 7 PM
    6. SESSION CANCELLED Saturday, 17 June 2023 - 1:30 to 3 PM
    7. NEW SESSION Thursday, 15 June 2023 - 9:30 to 11 AM
    8. NEW SESSION Wednesday, 21 June 2023 - 5 to 6:30 PM
    9. Thursday, 22 June 2023 - 6 to 7:30 PM


    Please click here to register for a community information session and/or webinar.

  • Draft Community Engagement Standard released for national feedback

    Airservices Australia is now engaging with community and industry on a new national Community Engagement Standard. This is an opportunity for communities and industry to influence how Airservices Australia will engage on all future flight path and airspace changes.

    The feedback gathered will help us understand the ways in which communities and industry wish to be engaged on future changes to flight paths and airspace operations. The draft Community Engagement Standard is available for public comment from 3 May to 23 June 2023.

    The draft Community Engagement Standard can be viewed here.

    A summary of the draft Community Engagement Standard can be viewed here.

    A fact sheet explaining the new national Community Engagement Standard can be viewed here.

    Click here to provide feedback (please note that there is a 2000 character limit if using this feedback option).

    If you would like to provide a detailed submission or prefer to submit feedback by email, please send through to engagementstandard@aurecongroup.com

    The dates, times and locations of face-to-face engagement sessions and online webinars will be released shortly, along with details on how to register.

    What happens next?

    Once the consultation period is complete, we will produce a consultation outcomes report detailing the feedback received and our recommended next steps.

    The Community Engagement Standard will be updated to incorporate community feedback received and is scheduled for publication later this year. Once finalised, the Community Engagement Standard will be published on this website.

    The Community Engagement Standard will be used as a guiding document for community engagement by Airservices Australia on all flight path and airspace changes nationally.

    For more information about the Community Engagement Standard or if you have any questions, please contact engagementstandard@aurecongroup.com