Mazza FIRED. Orgne in receivership

[FL280]

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[Chuck Ellsworth]

I have some real problems with the thought process some of you people have on this single engine all weather IFR subject FL280.

Can you give me your thoughts on why the airlines are so strict with their ETOPS rules if single engine with passenges is so safe?

[FL280]

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[Chuck Ellsworth]

Seeing as you have no idea why there are ETOPS rules in place for large jets carrying passengers let me explain why for you FL280.

It is because the risk of flying passengers in a large jet on only one engine is considered to be risky enough that the regulators have put clear strict rules in place should a twin engine jet lose one of the engines.

The concept is really not that difficult to comprehend.

Obviously in the small airplane sector the risk factor scale seems to be different......

......anyhow I personally do not buy into the thought process that turbines are so safe it is acceptable to use them as all weather platforms to carry people in the commercial end of aviation.

Maybe I am just paranoid?

[FL280]

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[Doc]

FL280, Santa was good to you, I trust. Got you a nice model of a PC12 you can paint OrAnge and put on your mantel to remember the "glory days" by I'd bet?
Just don't wait till the ship actually ducks under the waves before you bail. A sinking ship tends to suck folks under with it.
Enjoy the New Year!

[FL280]

Oh Doc, I missed you over Xmas! Nice to see things haven't changed, except for the picture, still like the oroginal one best but I can get used to the newest one!

[Cat Driver]

Here is another factor to be considered in the single engine versus multiple engine commercial operations.

There are many like Doc and me out here who pay taxes and may be customers of a commercial operation who will not willingly get into a single engine anything that is about to launch into Imc conditions........

........including Ornge.

[Doc]

Just having "sport" with you! Which pic did you like? The girl on the single DUC?

[FL280]

Well that's your choice I guess, still doesn't negate the fact that the majority of medevac aircraft in Ontario are single engine. If you choose not to get one then power to you. Personally I'd rather get into anything thats gonna help either me or my family rather than to put them at risk because of my 'beliefs' in the aircraft. For what it's worth, I do appreciate both your and Doc's opinions, I may not always agree with them but I do appreciate where they are coming from.

[FL280]

Doc, YES! I may be younger but I can still appreciate class!!

[Doc]

Doc, YES! I may be younger but I can still appreciate class!!

PM on it's way....you're going to LIKE my PM...

[rigpiggy]

the Yukon Govt, took the bid package down, but they required twin engine aircraft with sufficient performance to make it out of all the strips used in the Yukon. ie: B200, 200GT, or 350. the others weren't even considered. FL280 the only reason why the pilatus was considered, was the politically connected head, sold them a false bill of goods.

I have always advocated that the provincial governments buy there own fleets, and tender for operating contracts. with capital cost, fuel, maintenance, spares, and insurance paid for well basically they are only justifying crew, and admin

viewtopic.php?f=54&t=60854

[2R]

I have some real problems with the thought process some of you people have on this single engine all weather IFR subject FL280.
?

Some pilots are real lucky, they have never had to limp home on one engine ending the flight with a one way approach down to minimums

[FL280]

Those of us that have never forget it though!

[Cat Driver]

It would sure be nice if all the threads showed as much respect for each other as this one does, where we can discuss these issues without insulting each other.

Us old retired guys still remember what it is like to be young.

[oldncold]

doc like the new pics better take less space and saves time scrollin' to read yur point //next after many hundreds thousand miles in the 12 the reason ornge bought it was f.k. bravo mgt in 2007 made a presentation to manza allong with flyn doc's austrailia and pilatus engineering staff . thunder used the 12 intially on medvac and proved it was viable/ bravo proved it on a larger scale by 2007 for medivac.

the 3 big reason s for the 12 are
1/range > ontario is a large province it is 570 st miles to fort severn from thunderbay until one buys a king air 350 for an extra 2.5 mil +operating costs there is no way new current production in another aircraft can go there then direct to ywg with out a fuel stop with a full medvac kit ie incubator and team the patient might die waiting on the ground at 40 below for the thing to get fueled say in ytl / on average a turnaround on a twin turbo prop is 30 min plus climb and maneouving.

2/cargo door that big door has probably extended the working lives of both medics and flt crews in reduciing back strains // it is available on the king air 200 as a c model but few n far between and 400 lbs penalty to the useful load.

3/alternates and balanced field req for twin turbo prop must leave somthing behind to meet req on some runways// the 12 has no req for this// alt when one can sit in ywg hold yxu as an alt if one misses in ygq or yqt ( pissy wx front in from the north my lord)


what i dont understand is the prairie provinces that dont have the big water to deal with (compared to greatlakes ) alot smaller, continue to burn hundreds of thousands of tax dollars more than they have too by only allowing king airs/ now that the pc12 has a 15year operatiing history ( the highest time pc 12 in the world is eow/// will a pt6 67b or p fail at some point? probably that is why simcom on an ongoing basis etc is a good part of the training program.. 947000safe medvac miles the stove was the least of my worrys I am cognicent of the potential but didnt loss any sleep over it .

[ipilot54]

Now Ornge is "sorry". Right...sorry that they got caught would be more like it. The wage that Mazza was taking was just a pointer to the bigger problem. Using tax payer's to start for profit companies and to leverage bond issues so that the "investor" would see guaranteed income with government contracts with no tender or process.

Anyone manager that had any integrity left Ornge long ago; all that is left is Mazza's "yes" men (women). Lapine is this article is the new "acting" Pres. He is a medic right? He was also on CBC in YQT last week saying that the under-staffing of the helicopter was a "good news story" as Ornge Global moved more patients as a result. What he did not say was that the number of patients moved were essentially the same. Ornge Global moved more, taking them away from Thunder and Bravo.

Today's Star article...

ORNGE admits secrecy surrounding exec’s salary was a mistake

Kevin Donovan Staff Reporter

Related

ORNGE president -- paid $1.4M a year -- steps down
More on The Star's investigation into ORNGE

Ontario’s ORNGE air ambulance service is conducting a “vigorous” internal review and has admitted that secrecy around its business model and the whopping salary of its boss was a mistake.

“Simply put, your leadership team could have and should have done a much better job of communicating to everyone,” interim leader Tom Lepine said in an email to ORNGE’s 400 employees. “We will significantly improve transparency and accountability,” he added.

The Star reported last week that ORNGE’s founder and president, Dr. Chris Mazza, earned $1.4 million a year, making him the highest paid executive at a publicly funded organization in Ontario. ORNGE receives $150 million a year from Ontario taxpayers.

An ongoing Star investigation initially revealed that numerous high salaries were kept secret and also explored serious problems including call delays, lack of service in some areas and the existence of a web of for-profit companies (ORNGE was set up to be non-profit) that aimed to “leverage” the assets and good will of the Ontario air service. The Star also detailed a deal that saw the for-profit ORNGE, with Mazza as controlling shareholder, receive $6.7 million back from the Italian company that sold it helicopters.

Mazza has stepped down and taken an indefinite medical leave. Lepine is the interim president of the non-profit ORNGE and Maria Renzella is the interim president of the for-profit ORNGE Global (her salary and others have not yet been disclosed). Previously, Mazza was boss of both.

Lepine, a former paramedic, is one of the few top executives whose salary was always public. The salary of Lepine, earning $282,000 as of last year, has never been shielded because he was considered the operational leader of the ORNGE non-profit. Mazza was president and ORNGE said that type of salary did not need to be disclosed.

The stories in the Star brought the wrath of the provincial health ministry down on ORNGE, followed last Friday by forensic auditors with the provincial finance ministry.

Lepine mentioned those auditors in his memo to staff, saying “we welcome their arrival. We’ve dedicated a team to work with the audit team to ensure they get everything they need to do their work.”

At stake for ORNGE are the provincial millions that are their only meaningful source of income. If the government turns off the tap, ORNGE would be left with a series of shell companies that are for now more plan than performance. One scheme is to provide a sort of high-end insurance to executives who get sick in foreign countries. As far as the Star can tell, nothing has come of that scheme yet.

The email from Lepine on Friday was in stark contrast to previous emails and town hall addresses that went out to staff from the Crystal Palace, the Toronto airport-area headquarters employees have criticized for being too luxurious at a time when ORNGE struggles to pay qualified paramedics to staff helicopters and airplanes.

Just a day or so before Friday, angry emails went out from executives to staff. ORNGE executives were furious that the Star was investigating and staff were hauled to Town Hall meetings and warned to keep their mouths shut. Don’t talk to the Star — don’t talk to any outsiders, they were told.

In Lepine’s email, he said they now recognized that “many of you, valued members of the ORNGE family, have been upset and concerned by the media stories about our structure and the transparency with which we operate, especially as it relates to compensation.”

In his email, Lepine said he and his leadership team will be “relentlessly” focusing on three priorities. He said they will maintain a strong focus on patient care; improve transparency and accountability; and in a reference to the Star’s stories that showed crucial delays in dispatching an air ambulance, Lepine said they will look into those issues.

“The executive team is fully dedicated to deliver on these three priorities and to find improvements and solutions reflected in whatever recommendations are made in due process,” Lepine said. He asked staff to work collaboratively with executives and he expressed “heartfelt thanks for your ongoing dedication and commitment to Ontario’s transport medicine system and those we serve.”

In an email to the Star with a different tone, an ORNGE public relations official warned that the Star was in breach of provincial privacy law by writing a story about a 44-minute delay in dispatching an air ambulance helicopter last August.

The Star story, which quoted the mother of the young woman who died, referenced the time it took for the helicopter to be dispatched and noted multiple delays by ORNGE and incorrect information given to the municipal ambulance service in York Region. ORNGE told York no helicopter was available, though it was. The only personal health information was information the young woman’s mother provided the newspaper.

In a stern email, ORNGE’s chief privacy officer Andrew Lemon warned the Star not to publish any information related to other calls.

Kevin Donovan can be reached at kdonovan@thestar.ca or (416) 312-3503

Interim boss’ message

Text of the message sent to staff Dec 23 from Ornge interim boss Tom Lepine:

We know that over the past few weeks, many of you, valued members of the Ornge family, have been upset and concerned by the media stories about our structure and the transparency with which we operate; especially as it relates to compensation.

Simply put, your leadership team could have and should have done a much better job of communicating to everyone.

As we move forward to serve the people of Ontario — our patients and their families — the interim leadership team will focus relentlessly on three priorities.

First, and foremost, we will stay absolutely focused on that for which we are relied upon every single day: caring for patients. It is why we’re here and what we do. You have our full commitment that this will be our overarching priority.

Second, we will significantly improve transparency and accountability.

This begins today, as auditors from the Ministry of Finance begin their work at our office. We welcome their arrival. We’ve dedicated a team to work with the audit team to ensure they get everything they need to do their work.

And third, while Ontario’s Privacy Laws don’t allow us to comment further on recently raised issues, we commit to a vigorous review of current practices and process and improved communications regarding outcomes.

This review, together with the transparency improvements to which we are committed, will be central to our efforts in the new year to re-engage with you, our colleagues, as well as with all of our stakeholders.

This will not be an easy undertaking but we can assure all of you that the Executive Team is fully dedicated to deliver on these three priorities and to find improvements and solutions reflected in whatever recommendations are made in due process. We ask staff to work collaboratively with us as we move forward in tackling the challenges ahead. Our hope and desire is that each of you will join us in improving communications throughout the organization.

In conclusion, please accept our genuine and heartfelt thanks for your ongoing dedication and commitment to Ontario’s transport medicine system and those we serve especially during these challenging times.

We wish you and your family a safe and happy holiday season.

[whipline]

So it's not ornge's fault for not dispatching aircraft and helicopters to critical patients, it's the Toronto stars fault for publishing it? The sad thing is most patients/families would never know there loved one was put at risk by the very organization that's suppose to save them. Now ornge says they want to be transparent yet tells employees to stop talking to the media. What are they hiding?

[lownslow]

Now ornge says they want to be transparent yet tells employees to stop talking to the media. What are they hiding?

Not defending Ornge here but that's a pretty standard thing. If you have ever spoken to a reporter for any story, even a cheesy human interest bit, you'll find that more often than not they'll take little snippets of what you say and stitch them together to fit the story they want to tell.

LnS.

[FL280]

Pretty much standard for any company actually. I'm sure that everyone who works for a company has some sort of a 'confidentiality' agreement or something in place when it comes to talking to the media.

[FL280]

So it's not ornge's fault for not dispatching aircraft and helicopters to critical patients, it's the Toronto stars fault for publishing it?

The reasons for why the helicopter was delayed was never established, unless I missed it in the story? As for the Star's reporting, they flip-flop more than a freshly caught Pickerel on the ice so take it for what it's worth.

A couple of years ago a Star reporter went out on a call with the helicopter crew up to Muskoka area I think, watched this on the Star's website but it has recently been removed? Can't show good stuff while dragging a company through the proverbial mud!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=63R1y4FrW8c

[FL280]

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[ipilot54]

Uh...Ornge is NOT-for-profit. Their mandate was to administer the Air Ambulance "system".

Mazza then decided to start his own "for-profit" company. He used staff from Ornge to run the "for profit side" (still does) and used his ability as the head of Ornge to decide where flying would go; to himself of course.

He used the all of this "unmonitored" trust with public funds to go and raise $270,000,000 in bonds. His sales pitch was that he could give himself the contracts. Sweet deal eh? He used his control of tax payer's money to sell the bonds...which sold in one placement. I would think that investor is, well, looking for a return on that investment? We have yet to hear anything on that but I am sure it is a major topic in some boardroom somewhere.

So I guess you could call it a scandal...he leveraged something that was NOT his! And then took a kick back to boot.

[Doc]

oldncold......With the money that's been "bilked" here, if you don't think the Ontario government could have afforded to buy a fleet of King Air 350's you're dreaming! Methinks the Ont Gov already runs a couple of 350's. Fleet commonality. As you stated, the PC12 was pure salesmanship!
My "issue" with the PC12 is that it's been used as a "all weather night fighter"....which it clearly is not.
My "issue" with Ornge, goes way deeper than the equipment they operate. Do "Honesty" and "Integrity" ring a familiar note?