SM4 Safety Articles & Resources
A wealth of knowledge provided by experts in aviation safety can be found here in our Aviation Safety Resource Library. From time-proven safety and risk management principles to updates on the latest in aviation safety regulation, you’ll find the information you need to strengthen the safety culture in your organization. The content available here can be used as curriculum in your organization’s safety systems, and the experts whose content appears here are available as aviation safety consultants and safety trainers.
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Emergency Response as Applied Leadership
The task of responding to an emergency is a daunting one. The organization has already experienced harm or a severe threat to its personnel, equipment and reputation because of the emergency, and a poorly run response can bring further damage to one or all those areas. Confronted with this pressure, the sense of urgency inherent with emergencies and an onslaught of new and rapidly changing information, nerves tend to run high, and acuity drops significantly.
Safe Flights—It Takes All of Us!
Aviation safety is crucial to safeguarding human lives and preserving public trust in air travel. There are many factors and components of aviation safety. Human factors, aircraft design, maintenance, air traffic management, operational procedures, regulations, training and education, to name a few.
Maximizing Your SMS: Differences Between Audits, Evaluations and Investigations
Audits, evaluations and investigations are distinctively different and powerful tools for supporting decision-making within an organization’s safety management system (SMS). Understanding the differences of the SMS “big three” can help us utilize each tool at the right time with minimal resources and result in the quality decision-making required within the SMS risk management framework.
Beyond Part 107: Enhancing Drone Pilot Skills for Safety and Performance
As a licensed drone pilot, you can fly commercial missions, embark on exciting new adventures, hone your skills and earn money. Your Part 107 license is an important start on your training journey. However, additional training beyond Part 107 is crucial. You should invest in your future and strive to become the best drone pilot you can be!
Understanding the Effect of Increased Aviation Demand and Fatigue on Pilots
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken its toll on the aviation industry, with travel restrictions and flight cancellations severely impacting air travel over the past three years. Business aviation was one of the most impacted air travel sectors, as organizations opted for virtual meetings or found other ways to engage remotely with their clients and colleagues.
What Would Marcus Aurelius Do?
In a recent discussion with an experienced pilot about this, he immediately gave his biggest concern. “It’s not just about pilots or air traffic controllers, everybody is new,” he said. From maintenance personnel to ground support, thousands of new entries into our industry are learning as they go and making simple mistakes along the way. It has always been this way with inexperienced people, but now we have a lot more of them.
Management of Change (MoC): A Collaborative Approach To Raising Awareness Amidst a Constant State of Change
Identifying and managing hazards affecting an operation’s integrity is a fundamental objective of all flight departments or organizations working within a risk-based environment. In aviation, more and more operators are coming to the conclusion, and rightly so, that mere regulatory compliance is not an assurance of operational integrity and safety.
Strategies for Reducing a Concerning Trend in Runway Excursions
Over a four-year period ending in 2010, there were 20 runway excursions at Jackson Hole, WY (KJAC). As a result of this uptick in excursions, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) published Safety Alert for Operators (SAFO) 11011. A combination of the heightened awareness created by the SAFO and the Jackson Hole airport and operators adopting many of the recommendations successfully has mitigated excursions over the last 12 years.
SMS and ERP: Moving Toward Full Integration
Regulatory approaches to aviation safety are after-the-fact reactions to major incidents and accidents or historical data studies. Where working safety professionals value proactivity and prevention, governmental agencies often take an…
Ready for Takeoff: The Importance of In-Flight Allergic Reaction Preparedness
As business aviation operators, we are constantly focused on the safety and well-being of passengers and crew. But what happens when an in-flight allergic reaction strikes? Are you prepared for the unexpected?
Quality of Life and Its Implications for Safety, Attraction & Retention
We are often asked, “What are the greatest factors in an aviation operation that influence attraction, retention and operational safety?” Without a doubt, the most frequent response we get when talking one-on-one with hundreds of aviation professionals is quality of life. Then, company leadership commonly asks us, “What has the greatest impact on quality of life for those in an aviation organization?”
Take the Stairs!
It is only human nature to seek the easy button and attempt to expedite the path to understanding and mastering skills. Unfortunately, this streamlined approach is inconsistent and far less effective than its more methodical, and occasionally longer, counterpart.
Getting to Zero One Report at a Time
In the world of safety management, the goal is zero accidents and incidents. While zero may seem an elusive and unreachable goal, improvements in processes and attitudes can prevent accidents and generate a positive culture of safety within an organization if everyone participates.
A Time for Reflection and a Call to Action
As we prepare to flip the calendar from 2022 to 2023, will we do so with something other than a few new gifts and a list of New Year’s resolutions? How can we best use this moment to make a lasting and positive change in our personal lives and organizations?
What If I Can’t Sleep 8 Hours?
Sleep is precious. Ample scientific evidence exists that getting enough sleep sharpens the brain, improves mood, helps with weight management and boosts athletic performance. In fact, the American Heart Association recently added sleep to its cardiovascular health checklist. But what if you’re an aviation professional who struggles to get eight consecutive hours? Your total daily sleep may be enough.
To Declare or Not To Declare
Due to a greater prevalence of “critical events” compared to higher-status “emergency response plan-activating events,” we propose that critical events pose a powerful opportunity for practicing and refining emergency response procedures. We also feel organizations should “over-respond” to critical events out of an abundance of caution.
Get Yourself to Yes
I am not a picky eater, but I was 40 years old before I ever ate a Brussels sprout. My grandfather didn’t eat them, my father didn’t eat them, and I’ll be gosh darned if I was ever going to have one cross the plane of my mouth. (Stick with me—there’s a connection to aviation training and safety here!)
Managing In-Flight Emergencies in the Age of Advanced Air Mobility
By 2030, the global eVTOL aircraft market will transport 27 million passengers. Some vehicles will have a single pilot, while others will operate remotely or autonomously with only civilian passengers. Therefore, the companies commercialising this space have a duty of care to their employees and customers to ensure the safety of all on board.
Safety Reporting: Crewed and Un-Crewed
It’s an exciting time to be part of the expanding UAS industry. It has been a whirlwind to watch the growth from its earliest days until now. Over the next few years, it will continue that evolution and expand in tandem with regulatory standards and guidelines for its safe operation.
The Two Effects of Jet Lag
Everyone who has travelled in an airplane is familiar with jet lag. True, the effect only applies when travelling east or west. But jet lag is so pervasive and annoying—not to mention a safety risk for pilots—that it merits serious discussion.
