The term safety is applied to the management of risk in the case of an accident or incident with the aim of eliminating, reducing and mitigating injury and loss. And aviation accident is said to happen when an occurrence associated with the operation of the aircraft leads to serious injury or fatality and the aircraft sustains damage or structural failure or during a flight. An accident is also said to happen if an aircraft goes missing or completely inaccessible. An aviation incidence is said to happen when an occurrence which could affect the safety of the operations of an aircraft, other than an accident takes place. Safety is an important issue especially in commercial aviation and generally in all air transportation. In the past, safety in the aviation industry revolved around the analysis of previous accidents and looking for corrective measures in order to avoid a repeat of the events that lead to the accidents. Over the past few decades, personnel training and cockpit management has been greatly advanced by use of simulators and other advanced technologies. The rate at which accidents in aviation occur has gone down sharply and as a result this approach can no longer be relied on. It has been largely believed that human error is the cause of most aviation accidents.
This motion would generally mean that these accidents result from negligence, carelessness andor incompetence of the personnel. It would therefore be expected that by simply replacing these people, the accidents would be avoided but this is however not the case. Analysis of accidents and incidents has shown that human error is actually the last commission or omission in a series of numerous events leading to the accident or incident.
The rate of improvement has somehow reached its peak in the recent past years and experts now blame organizational deficiencies for current occurrence of accidents. Development of a safety culture with the aim of identifying hazards in commercial aviation and bringing them to a minimum can reduce aviation accidents and mishaps. This can be done by putting in place an effective aviation safety program, or what is commonly referred to as a Safety Management System (SMS).Every airline needs an effective safety management program with continuity throughout the company. Effectiveness and integrity of the operational management must be ensured by making the safety program have accountability (Bangalore International Airport Limited).
Even though air transport is presently among the safest means of transportation in the world, accidents still happen. Proactive approaches must be employed in order to minimize the occurrence of accidents and improve safety. All aviation service providers in member states of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) are required to implement Safety Management System (SMS) programs in their airlines. Some countries such as Australia, Canada, members of the European Union and New Zealand have been using in SMS for a few years.
The concept is currently emerging in the United States but still remains non-existent in many countries in the world. A safety management program helps to improve the existing levels of aviation safety. With more and more people preferring to travel by air, procedures of enhancing aviation safety have never been in more need. All aviation service providers need to introduce their own safety management programs. These programs are necessary for business survival and as financial management systems. The implementation of such a program should result in enhanced safety performance in a view to attain the best practice and not just following the laid down rules and regulatory requirements (Stolzer, 2008).
Causes of Aircraft Accidents
Traveling by plane is the safest means of transport today. This however, does not mean that accidents dont occur. In the last decade, safety in aviation has gone up and the occurrence of accidents has dramatically decreased. The causes of aviation accidents are many and include human and mechanical errors. Most accidents happen when safety regulations are violated. According to aviation accidents analysis 80 percent of all accidents take place at take-off and landing due to pilot error. The following are some of the most common causes of aviation accidents
Human error. The highest number of aviation accidents resulting in the highest number of fatalities is attributed to pilot error. A pilot is obliged to transport passengers from the point of departure to the destination and ensure their safety. If the pilot or another member of the flight crew makes an error, it may result in an accident. In the U.S., aviation safety regulations are laid down by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). These bodies are also responsible for monitoring and analysis of aviation accidents. A survey conducted by FAA to determine the causes of aviation accidents between 1950 and 2006 attributed 53 of the 1,843 accidents to pilot error and 8 to other human error including poor maintenance and lack of communication. This implies that human error causes more accidents than all the other factors combined. Pilot error may be brought about by weather conditions like fog limiting the pilots visibility. Pilot error may also be brought about by some type of mechanical failure. Other human error includes improper loading of aircraft and contamination of fuel (PlaneCrashInfo.com).
Equipment Failure. Mechanical failures and faulty equipment are also responsible for many accidents and accounts for about 21 of all aviation accidents.
Flaws in Aircraft design. Poor aircraft design is another cause of aviation accidents. If and accident occurs due to a flaw in the structural design of an aircraft, the manufacturer is normally held responsible.
Violation of Safety Regulations. Flouting of safety regulations such as the FAA and NTSB regulations may lead to the occurrence of an aviation accident.
Poor Maintenance and Fueling. If maintenance and repair is not properly done or the aircraft is not properly fueled at the service station, this negligence may result in an accident.
Negligence of Air Traffic Controllers. Failure of the traffic controllers to monitor the airways properly may result in an aviation accident.
Weather. Weather is a contributing or causal factor in many aviation accidents. Pilot error attributed to causing some accidents is actually brought about by bad weather. Wind and fog are common weather conditions that bring about aviation accidents.
Sabotage and Terrorism. Some aviation accidents are caused by shoot downs, hijackings, sabotage and use of explosive devices (Bangalore International Airport Limited, 2010)
Bird Strike. An aircraft may crash on collision with a bird. This usually happens at low altitudes during take off and landing. An example is the 1988 Ethiopian Airlines plane which sucked about sixteen into both engines while taking off from Bahar Dar Airport. This caused considerable power loss forcing the pilot to abort the take off. On returning to the airport, the plane crash landed causing many fatalities.
Method An effective and sustainable aviation safety program for a medium sized commercial airline should be based on real life experience and the best practices which have been observed in aviation industry and should have the following characteristics in
Should be able to identify the safety hazards involved in flight operation.
Should allow for the implementation of corrective measures necessary to maintain safety.
Should be aimed at improving the overall performance of the safety management system continuously.
In this paper I am going to attempt to lay down a structure for an aviation safety program of a medium sized commercial airline by following some basic steps.
a)_Study the Concept
The first step in structuring an effective safety program is to analyze the existing system in order to establish which components are already in place and which need to be added or modified in order to enhance safety. This is commonly known as a Gap Analysis. This also helps to give a grading criterion to help evaluate the significant areas for improvement.
At this stage it will also be necessary to get familiar with the different areas of commercial aviation business. These include Administration- it will be necessary to know the administrative structure and the chain of command in order to structure a good an effective safety program. It will also be necessary to know the safety accountability and responsibility of each member of the senior management team.
Flight Operations it is necessary to have a good knowledge of all the flight operations including the number of flights, routes, schedules, bookings etc.
International Operations knowledge of the cross border operations in which the airline is involved is also necessary.
Maintenance Operations maintenance is a very important issue in the aviation industry and as such, knowledge of the maintenance schedules and other aspects will be vital.
Aircraft Insurance aircraft insurance is an expensive business and any good safety program must also ensure financial performance of the airline. One of the main practices for mitigation and loss control in case of an aviation accident is to have the aircraft insured. It is also important to ensure that the aircraft has the right kind of insurance.
Regulatory Responsibilities and Safety Guidelines it will be necessary to examine the existing regulation and safety guidelines in order to determine which areas need to be improved.
b) Obtain the Managements Commitment
The establishment of an effective safety program will largely depend on the airlines tradition. Obtaining the support of the senior management right from the onset will avoid complications about resources and priorities because these are the people who make decisions and allocate the resources in the company. The cooperation of the senior management team will be vital in the implementation and later during the evaluation of the safety program process. It is vital to win the senior management team so that they want the safety program and understand that its good for business. It will be important to define the roles and responsibilities of all the people who will be involved in the management of the major hazards at all levels of the airline company. The skills and abilities of the personnel should be identified. It should then be ensured that such skills and abilities are provided and applied. If necessary, contractors can be employed to assist in the program. These contractors should be furnished with all the necessary information pertaining to the safety program and policy.
c) Establish a Safety Management Team
In order to have an effective safety program, every member of the flight staff, the company passengers and other lines of business that the airline is involved in. the inclusion of many people will encourage the adoption of the safety program and enhance its quality. Different people who will be included in the program will have different opinions of the various aspect of the program and consequently ideas which some people could have ignored will be brought up.
d) Determination of Necessary Resources
It will be necessary to note the safety procedures and processes currently being used in the airline and ensure that they are appropriate, then make maximum use of them. It will also be good to consider the knowledge, experience and talent that I have for creating an effective safety program.
e) Survey to Identify the Hazards and Assess the Risks
An initial survey to identify the hazards arising from the activities in the flight operation would be conducted. The risks would then be assessed in order to develop a safety risk profile. Everyone in the flight department would be asked to identify potential safety hazards. A formal and systematic method should be used in order to identify and evaluate the hazards. The risks usually experienced during flight operation would be looked into with a view of lessening their intensity in order to optimize safety. This can be done by looking at different scenarios. The risks generally experienced by flight operation include accidents, incidents and violation of rules and regulations. Lessons learned from past accidents and incidents in and outside the company should be given the necessary consideration.
f) Develop a Safety Strategy
Safety management is tackled using a safety management strategy. The strategy draws a connection between the identification of risks and hazards process and the rest of the safety program. The effectiveness and efficiency of the safety program can be maximized by monitoring of existing operational processes and procedures and making sure that they are appropriate and effective.
g) Identification of Safety Accountabilities
For the safety program to function properly, it should include specification of who is responsible of delivering what goal in the system. This will avoid situations where people would blame one another for an omission of a duty. Individuals should responsible for their actions and also accountable to their supervisors and managers. Although managers and supervisors answer for their actions, they are also responsible for the overall performance of the departments that they are in charge of. These people are also required to make sure that their subordinates have the necessary resources and that they are properly trained in order to enhance safety.
h) Hazard Identification and Tracking System
In safety management, the aim is to bring down the risk of harm or damage to an acceptable level, and not to necessarily to eliminate it completely. The safety hazards usually come out after an accident or serious incident. An effective safety program should however aim at developing a continuous hazard identification tracking system and risk-assessment procedure. After identifying the hazards, all the risks involved should be assessed. This can be done by creating a system in which everyone can openly report safety concerns. This gives an opportunity for safety issues which would otherwise never come up to be noted. The system should also provide for a review of the hazard report and which should include a forum for suggesting possible solutions.
i) Emergency Preparedness Plan
The safety program should provide for the development of an emergency preparedness plan. Everyone should know what to do in case of crisis. This is done by visualizing different critical situations and defining exactly what each person should do if those situations occur. Current news concerning operational hazards arising from the evaluation process availed to all staff and then documented procedures should be prepared. These written procedures should be made available to all staff and other persons involved in the safety program. A review of these procedures should be done regularly to ensure that they are accurate and up to date and to make sure that they are actually followed. Good practices which enhance safety should be defined for all flight operation activities.
j) Amend Existing Safety Programs, Procedures and Documents
By examining the existing safety programs, procedures, documents, and policies, it is possible to find some that need to be amended. Whenever this is to be done, caution must be exercised to ensure that the link in the system remains intact and the safety program works as a unit. The intended change should be documented and everyone made aware of the intention.
k) Staff Training and Education
Initial staff training is necessary in order to ensure that the personnel are prepared in case of a likely contingency. This should be followed by regular refresher training sessions. Continuous safety information should be carried out through newsletters and other publicized materials. There should be regular flight operations meetings to discuss safety issues and changes in the safety procedures.
l) Management of Change
Procedures should be laid down for planning and controlling changes in people, equipment, procedures, design etc. and other external factors that may affect the control of the hazards in the flight operation. The approach should cover
The definition of what a change is.
Responsibilities and duties of the personnel should be spelled out in the course of carrying out change.
Identifying and analyzing the safety implications of the change.
m) Track and Evaluate the Safety Management Program
Tracking and evaluating safety management activities provides a way to determine how the program working. This is the only way to tell if safety standard is improving. The information collected during evaluation can be used to determine whether the program is effective. This should be done periodically and regularly. Senior management need to be involved in the evaluation process and any advisable changes in the program should be implemented. The evaluation should determine whether the safety program is achieving its objectives and if there are arrangements in place to control the risks and if they are being put in place before and accident or incident occurs. This is referred to as active monitoring and should include assessing whether knowledge acquired in training is being applied. The evaluation should also carry out investigations of previous failures resulting from accidents and incidents. This is called reactive monitoring.
n) Audit and Review
Auditing is done in order to ensure that safety practices and procedures are consistent with the safety program. This should be done by independent people who are not involved in the activities of the unit being audited in order to avoid bias. The audit should be done periodically and should cover the following areas
The different areas of the aviation safety program and the various activities to be that need to be inspected.
How often the area or component should be audited.
What each audit is supposed to achieve.
The requirements of each audit in terms of personnel and other resources with the consideration of the required expertise and independence. The audit procedures to be used. These may be
Questionnaires
Checklists
Open interviews
Structured interviews
Measurements
Observations
The method of reporting the results.
Methods for making a follow-up.
The aim of a review is to determine whether any of the components of the safety program need modification. The review should look into the changes in personnel, technology and standards (Job, 1992).
Aspects of the Aviation Safety Program
a) Published Safety Accountabilities
Participation of all levels of management and supervision is required. Safety accountabilities of all personnel involved should be written down and the publication made available to all. This can be done with the aid of organizational charts defining the responsibilities, accountabilities and authorities of the personnel. Individual and collective responsibilities of the personnel stressed. The safety program ought to cover all aspects of commercial aviation without leaving any gaps.
b) Safety Manager
Medium sized companies like the one we have in consideration usually have the position of a safety manager. The person who occupies this position is also responsible for flight task. The safety manager reports to the CEO. This person needs to be objective in hisher discharge of safety management duties and should be able to win the respect of all the staff, both his subordinates and the senior management team.
c) Positive Safety Culture
The senior management team should be committed to safety and safety practices should run throughout the organization. The safety culture should such that it recognizes that errors cannot be completely eliminated in the system and that blaming persons for errors committed cannot resolve safety issues. The culture should encourage the employees to report safety issues openly and freely. The program must not allow automatic punishment due to human error as this will only hamper with free reporting of safety issues.
d) Documentation of Policies and Practices
The safety policies of an organization reflect the top managements commitment to safety. The policies should be based on clear decisions made by the board of directors of the company, clearly showing that aviation safety is a priority in the company. These should be published and should include
The CEOs safety policy statement
A chart of showing the organization of the safety program
The tasks of the safety program reviewers
The duties of each member of top management
The procedures used for hazard identification and assessment of risks
The process used for remedial action following and accident or serious incidence
The list of records pertaining to aviation safety that will be maintained (National Business Aviation Association, 2010).
e) Safety Oversight Process
This consists of an independent oversight program which acts as a quality assurance program and ensures safe performance of the safety program itself. Personnel carrying out this process need to be qualified and to have good knowledge of the processes being reviewed.
f) Review of Safety Improvement Plans
Ways by which the airline will reach its goals in safety are published in the safety improvement plans. The document contains details of the action to be taken, the person to carry out the action and the time and duration the action will take.
g) Formal Safety Review Processes
The safety program should have a formal board to ensure its smooth performance and to ensure that risks are properly and timely addressed and another board to assist in the risk management process.
This paper has sought to formulate an effective commercial airline safety program and a practical means of implementation by lying down some important steps. These steps act as a guide to setting up the structure and it can be improved with growing experience and by making use of the evaluation and audit reports. Implementation of an aviation safety management program goes a great way in enhancing safety in aviation which is already the safest mode of transportation today.
This motion would generally mean that these accidents result from negligence, carelessness andor incompetence of the personnel. It would therefore be expected that by simply replacing these people, the accidents would be avoided but this is however not the case. Analysis of accidents and incidents has shown that human error is actually the last commission or omission in a series of numerous events leading to the accident or incident.
The rate of improvement has somehow reached its peak in the recent past years and experts now blame organizational deficiencies for current occurrence of accidents. Development of a safety culture with the aim of identifying hazards in commercial aviation and bringing them to a minimum can reduce aviation accidents and mishaps. This can be done by putting in place an effective aviation safety program, or what is commonly referred to as a Safety Management System (SMS).Every airline needs an effective safety management program with continuity throughout the company. Effectiveness and integrity of the operational management must be ensured by making the safety program have accountability (Bangalore International Airport Limited).
Even though air transport is presently among the safest means of transportation in the world, accidents still happen. Proactive approaches must be employed in order to minimize the occurrence of accidents and improve safety. All aviation service providers in member states of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) are required to implement Safety Management System (SMS) programs in their airlines. Some countries such as Australia, Canada, members of the European Union and New Zealand have been using in SMS for a few years.
The concept is currently emerging in the United States but still remains non-existent in many countries in the world. A safety management program helps to improve the existing levels of aviation safety. With more and more people preferring to travel by air, procedures of enhancing aviation safety have never been in more need. All aviation service providers need to introduce their own safety management programs. These programs are necessary for business survival and as financial management systems. The implementation of such a program should result in enhanced safety performance in a view to attain the best practice and not just following the laid down rules and regulatory requirements (Stolzer, 2008).
Causes of Aircraft Accidents
Traveling by plane is the safest means of transport today. This however, does not mean that accidents dont occur. In the last decade, safety in aviation has gone up and the occurrence of accidents has dramatically decreased. The causes of aviation accidents are many and include human and mechanical errors. Most accidents happen when safety regulations are violated. According to aviation accidents analysis 80 percent of all accidents take place at take-off and landing due to pilot error. The following are some of the most common causes of aviation accidents
Human error. The highest number of aviation accidents resulting in the highest number of fatalities is attributed to pilot error. A pilot is obliged to transport passengers from the point of departure to the destination and ensure their safety. If the pilot or another member of the flight crew makes an error, it may result in an accident. In the U.S., aviation safety regulations are laid down by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). These bodies are also responsible for monitoring and analysis of aviation accidents. A survey conducted by FAA to determine the causes of aviation accidents between 1950 and 2006 attributed 53 of the 1,843 accidents to pilot error and 8 to other human error including poor maintenance and lack of communication. This implies that human error causes more accidents than all the other factors combined. Pilot error may be brought about by weather conditions like fog limiting the pilots visibility. Pilot error may also be brought about by some type of mechanical failure. Other human error includes improper loading of aircraft and contamination of fuel (PlaneCrashInfo.com).
Equipment Failure. Mechanical failures and faulty equipment are also responsible for many accidents and accounts for about 21 of all aviation accidents.
Flaws in Aircraft design. Poor aircraft design is another cause of aviation accidents. If and accident occurs due to a flaw in the structural design of an aircraft, the manufacturer is normally held responsible.
Violation of Safety Regulations. Flouting of safety regulations such as the FAA and NTSB regulations may lead to the occurrence of an aviation accident.
Poor Maintenance and Fueling. If maintenance and repair is not properly done or the aircraft is not properly fueled at the service station, this negligence may result in an accident.
Negligence of Air Traffic Controllers. Failure of the traffic controllers to monitor the airways properly may result in an aviation accident.
Weather. Weather is a contributing or causal factor in many aviation accidents. Pilot error attributed to causing some accidents is actually brought about by bad weather. Wind and fog are common weather conditions that bring about aviation accidents.
Sabotage and Terrorism. Some aviation accidents are caused by shoot downs, hijackings, sabotage and use of explosive devices (Bangalore International Airport Limited, 2010)
Bird Strike. An aircraft may crash on collision with a bird. This usually happens at low altitudes during take off and landing. An example is the 1988 Ethiopian Airlines plane which sucked about sixteen into both engines while taking off from Bahar Dar Airport. This caused considerable power loss forcing the pilot to abort the take off. On returning to the airport, the plane crash landed causing many fatalities.
Method An effective and sustainable aviation safety program for a medium sized commercial airline should be based on real life experience and the best practices which have been observed in aviation industry and should have the following characteristics in
Should be able to identify the safety hazards involved in flight operation.
Should allow for the implementation of corrective measures necessary to maintain safety.
Should be aimed at improving the overall performance of the safety management system continuously.
In this paper I am going to attempt to lay down a structure for an aviation safety program of a medium sized commercial airline by following some basic steps.
a)_Study the Concept
The first step in structuring an effective safety program is to analyze the existing system in order to establish which components are already in place and which need to be added or modified in order to enhance safety. This is commonly known as a Gap Analysis. This also helps to give a grading criterion to help evaluate the significant areas for improvement.
At this stage it will also be necessary to get familiar with the different areas of commercial aviation business. These include Administration- it will be necessary to know the administrative structure and the chain of command in order to structure a good an effective safety program. It will also be necessary to know the safety accountability and responsibility of each member of the senior management team.
Flight Operations it is necessary to have a good knowledge of all the flight operations including the number of flights, routes, schedules, bookings etc.
International Operations knowledge of the cross border operations in which the airline is involved is also necessary.
Maintenance Operations maintenance is a very important issue in the aviation industry and as such, knowledge of the maintenance schedules and other aspects will be vital.
Aircraft Insurance aircraft insurance is an expensive business and any good safety program must also ensure financial performance of the airline. One of the main practices for mitigation and loss control in case of an aviation accident is to have the aircraft insured. It is also important to ensure that the aircraft has the right kind of insurance.
Regulatory Responsibilities and Safety Guidelines it will be necessary to examine the existing regulation and safety guidelines in order to determine which areas need to be improved.
b) Obtain the Managements Commitment
The establishment of an effective safety program will largely depend on the airlines tradition. Obtaining the support of the senior management right from the onset will avoid complications about resources and priorities because these are the people who make decisions and allocate the resources in the company. The cooperation of the senior management team will be vital in the implementation and later during the evaluation of the safety program process. It is vital to win the senior management team so that they want the safety program and understand that its good for business. It will be important to define the roles and responsibilities of all the people who will be involved in the management of the major hazards at all levels of the airline company. The skills and abilities of the personnel should be identified. It should then be ensured that such skills and abilities are provided and applied. If necessary, contractors can be employed to assist in the program. These contractors should be furnished with all the necessary information pertaining to the safety program and policy.
c) Establish a Safety Management Team
In order to have an effective safety program, every member of the flight staff, the company passengers and other lines of business that the airline is involved in. the inclusion of many people will encourage the adoption of the safety program and enhance its quality. Different people who will be included in the program will have different opinions of the various aspect of the program and consequently ideas which some people could have ignored will be brought up.
d) Determination of Necessary Resources
It will be necessary to note the safety procedures and processes currently being used in the airline and ensure that they are appropriate, then make maximum use of them. It will also be good to consider the knowledge, experience and talent that I have for creating an effective safety program.
e) Survey to Identify the Hazards and Assess the Risks
An initial survey to identify the hazards arising from the activities in the flight operation would be conducted. The risks would then be assessed in order to develop a safety risk profile. Everyone in the flight department would be asked to identify potential safety hazards. A formal and systematic method should be used in order to identify and evaluate the hazards. The risks usually experienced during flight operation would be looked into with a view of lessening their intensity in order to optimize safety. This can be done by looking at different scenarios. The risks generally experienced by flight operation include accidents, incidents and violation of rules and regulations. Lessons learned from past accidents and incidents in and outside the company should be given the necessary consideration.
f) Develop a Safety Strategy
Safety management is tackled using a safety management strategy. The strategy draws a connection between the identification of risks and hazards process and the rest of the safety program. The effectiveness and efficiency of the safety program can be maximized by monitoring of existing operational processes and procedures and making sure that they are appropriate and effective.
g) Identification of Safety Accountabilities
For the safety program to function properly, it should include specification of who is responsible of delivering what goal in the system. This will avoid situations where people would blame one another for an omission of a duty. Individuals should responsible for their actions and also accountable to their supervisors and managers. Although managers and supervisors answer for their actions, they are also responsible for the overall performance of the departments that they are in charge of. These people are also required to make sure that their subordinates have the necessary resources and that they are properly trained in order to enhance safety.
h) Hazard Identification and Tracking System
In safety management, the aim is to bring down the risk of harm or damage to an acceptable level, and not to necessarily to eliminate it completely. The safety hazards usually come out after an accident or serious incident. An effective safety program should however aim at developing a continuous hazard identification tracking system and risk-assessment procedure. After identifying the hazards, all the risks involved should be assessed. This can be done by creating a system in which everyone can openly report safety concerns. This gives an opportunity for safety issues which would otherwise never come up to be noted. The system should also provide for a review of the hazard report and which should include a forum for suggesting possible solutions.
i) Emergency Preparedness Plan
The safety program should provide for the development of an emergency preparedness plan. Everyone should know what to do in case of crisis. This is done by visualizing different critical situations and defining exactly what each person should do if those situations occur. Current news concerning operational hazards arising from the evaluation process availed to all staff and then documented procedures should be prepared. These written procedures should be made available to all staff and other persons involved in the safety program. A review of these procedures should be done regularly to ensure that they are accurate and up to date and to make sure that they are actually followed. Good practices which enhance safety should be defined for all flight operation activities.
j) Amend Existing Safety Programs, Procedures and Documents
By examining the existing safety programs, procedures, documents, and policies, it is possible to find some that need to be amended. Whenever this is to be done, caution must be exercised to ensure that the link in the system remains intact and the safety program works as a unit. The intended change should be documented and everyone made aware of the intention.
k) Staff Training and Education
Initial staff training is necessary in order to ensure that the personnel are prepared in case of a likely contingency. This should be followed by regular refresher training sessions. Continuous safety information should be carried out through newsletters and other publicized materials. There should be regular flight operations meetings to discuss safety issues and changes in the safety procedures.
l) Management of Change
Procedures should be laid down for planning and controlling changes in people, equipment, procedures, design etc. and other external factors that may affect the control of the hazards in the flight operation. The approach should cover
The definition of what a change is.
Responsibilities and duties of the personnel should be spelled out in the course of carrying out change.
Identifying and analyzing the safety implications of the change.
m) Track and Evaluate the Safety Management Program
Tracking and evaluating safety management activities provides a way to determine how the program working. This is the only way to tell if safety standard is improving. The information collected during evaluation can be used to determine whether the program is effective. This should be done periodically and regularly. Senior management need to be involved in the evaluation process and any advisable changes in the program should be implemented. The evaluation should determine whether the safety program is achieving its objectives and if there are arrangements in place to control the risks and if they are being put in place before and accident or incident occurs. This is referred to as active monitoring and should include assessing whether knowledge acquired in training is being applied. The evaluation should also carry out investigations of previous failures resulting from accidents and incidents. This is called reactive monitoring.
n) Audit and Review
Auditing is done in order to ensure that safety practices and procedures are consistent with the safety program. This should be done by independent people who are not involved in the activities of the unit being audited in order to avoid bias. The audit should be done periodically and should cover the following areas
The different areas of the aviation safety program and the various activities to be that need to be inspected.
How often the area or component should be audited.
What each audit is supposed to achieve.
The requirements of each audit in terms of personnel and other resources with the consideration of the required expertise and independence. The audit procedures to be used. These may be
Questionnaires
Checklists
Open interviews
Structured interviews
Measurements
Observations
The method of reporting the results.
Methods for making a follow-up.
The aim of a review is to determine whether any of the components of the safety program need modification. The review should look into the changes in personnel, technology and standards (Job, 1992).
Aspects of the Aviation Safety Program
a) Published Safety Accountabilities
Participation of all levels of management and supervision is required. Safety accountabilities of all personnel involved should be written down and the publication made available to all. This can be done with the aid of organizational charts defining the responsibilities, accountabilities and authorities of the personnel. Individual and collective responsibilities of the personnel stressed. The safety program ought to cover all aspects of commercial aviation without leaving any gaps.
b) Safety Manager
Medium sized companies like the one we have in consideration usually have the position of a safety manager. The person who occupies this position is also responsible for flight task. The safety manager reports to the CEO. This person needs to be objective in hisher discharge of safety management duties and should be able to win the respect of all the staff, both his subordinates and the senior management team.
c) Positive Safety Culture
The senior management team should be committed to safety and safety practices should run throughout the organization. The safety culture should such that it recognizes that errors cannot be completely eliminated in the system and that blaming persons for errors committed cannot resolve safety issues. The culture should encourage the employees to report safety issues openly and freely. The program must not allow automatic punishment due to human error as this will only hamper with free reporting of safety issues.
d) Documentation of Policies and Practices
The safety policies of an organization reflect the top managements commitment to safety. The policies should be based on clear decisions made by the board of directors of the company, clearly showing that aviation safety is a priority in the company. These should be published and should include
The CEOs safety policy statement
A chart of showing the organization of the safety program
The tasks of the safety program reviewers
The duties of each member of top management
The procedures used for hazard identification and assessment of risks
The process used for remedial action following and accident or serious incidence
The list of records pertaining to aviation safety that will be maintained (National Business Aviation Association, 2010).
e) Safety Oversight Process
This consists of an independent oversight program which acts as a quality assurance program and ensures safe performance of the safety program itself. Personnel carrying out this process need to be qualified and to have good knowledge of the processes being reviewed.
f) Review of Safety Improvement Plans
Ways by which the airline will reach its goals in safety are published in the safety improvement plans. The document contains details of the action to be taken, the person to carry out the action and the time and duration the action will take.
g) Formal Safety Review Processes
The safety program should have a formal board to ensure its smooth performance and to ensure that risks are properly and timely addressed and another board to assist in the risk management process.
This paper has sought to formulate an effective commercial airline safety program and a practical means of implementation by lying down some important steps. These steps act as a guide to setting up the structure and it can be improved with growing experience and by making use of the evaluation and audit reports. Implementation of an aviation safety management program goes a great way in enhancing safety in aviation which is already the safest mode of transportation today.
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