SYDNEY, July 10 (Xinhua) -- A landmark aviation summit has concluded in Australia on Tuesday, with all 34 industry groups who attended the meeting, urging regulators to cut red tape and implement changes to the Civil Aviation Act.
With high costs and complicated regulation requirements, many small plane operators have been forced to step away from their businesses.
Some experts estimate that more than 8000 pilots have had to leave the industry over past few years with charter plane services, air ambulances and farm operators all among those affected by "over-regulation."
"It was unanimously voted that, we want change," Aircraft Owners and Pilots Australia executive director Ben Morgan, who attended the summit in Wagga Wagga told Xinhua.
"There is a misconception that regulation is creating safety, but safety is born through education and awareness and not through regulatory enforcement."
With the current rules choking the industry and decreasing profitability, those at the meeting believe a more streamlined regulatory system can be put in place without compromising safety.
"The industry wants to uphold and continually improve aviation safety," Morgan explained.
"But we want to do it from a perspective of efficiency and the purpose of the summit and the outcomes of the summit really identified that," he said.