SMS Pro Aviation Safety Software Blog 4 Airlines & Airports

Aviation Incident and Accident Reporting Software

Aviation Incident and Accident Reporting Software are specialized software systems that facilitate the collection, analysis, and reporting of aviation incidents and accidents. Safety reporting systems are crucial for enhancing aviation safety by providing a structured, repeatable process to document, analyze, and learn from occurrences within the aviation industry.

When Should I Review Our SMS Manual?

It's very important to review SMS Manuals.

The most common audit finding is that the operator is not conducting operations as stated in their SMS manual.

Furthermore, your manual is only as useful as the information it contains. If the information is out of date, employees will lose trust in it. This undermines the safety culture you've worked to build.

What Is an SMS Implementation Plan?

As a safety manager, the implementation plan is your road map to success, but finding guidance on how to create one is difficult at best.

The FAA doesn't provide an implementation plan for the latest Part 5 regulations, but there is an implementation plan suggested by ICAO 9859.

ICAO recommends a 5-year plan with 4 phases of implementation, but this plan may not work well for small organizations or those with many elements already in place.

4 Tips to Sell SMS to Top Management

ICAO and civil aviation authorities require SMS for many organizations. Even so, it's important to have buy-in from top management to make your SMS effective.

Lack of top management support remains among the top reasons an aviation SMS may fail.

Here are four, common-sense tips to help you earn top management support.

Why Create an Aviation SMS Manual?

ICAO 9859 calls for aviation organizations to document their SMS. This can be a simple document referencing the policies and procedures or a detailed manual.

If you run a small operation, or many processes are already in place, a simple document might be all you need.

Most organizations will need a detailed manual. An SMS manual shares much in common with your quality manual if you conveniently have one.

Why Is Safety Culture So Important?

In many of today's articles about aviation safety management systems, there is something about safety culture. Why? Safety culture ties into every part of your SMS, feeding it as your SMS nurtures your safety culture in return.

It’s a symbiotic relationship, like honeybees and flowers. Each one needs the other to grow and thrive. When your safety culture thrives, your SMS is easier to build and maintain.

Or How to Create an Aviation SMS in 7 Simple Steps

You’re probably familiar with the 4 Phases of SMS implementation outlined by ICAO 9859. Here, I’ll break them down another way, into 7 steps.

For a deep dive into how to use the 4 Phases of SMS implementation, start with How to Complete Phase 1 of Aviation SMS Implementation.

If, for whatever reason, the four phases don’t resonate with you, here is another way to look at building an SMS for aviation service providers. Much like the 4 phases, these are not steps that must be taken in order.

What Are Internal SMS Audits in Aviation, and Why Conduct Them

Internal SMS audits are an extremely important element in verifying the performance of every aviation safety management system (SMS). They’re also a neglected process in a surprisingly large number of smaller operators' SMS risk management schedules.

Just ask yourself, when was the last time you performed an internal audit on your aviation SMS implementation? Let’s also be clear about what we mean when we say “audit”, as this word is thrown around loosely.

What Is Responsibility?

Responsibility n. the state or fact of having a duty to deal with something or of having control over someone. (Oxford Dictionary)

Most of us learned about responsibility as children. Our parents gave us responsibilities like walking the dog or loading the dishwasher. As adults, we’re responsible for paying our bills, finishing our tasks at work, and doing the laundry.

What Is a Fishbone Diagram for Aviation Safety Programs

Fishbone diagrams are a lesser known but very effective risk management tool in aviation safety management systems (SMS).

Fishbone diagrams get their name because of their fish-like appearance, with several fins and a head. Each “fin” or “branch” of a fishbone diagram describes a different element of the safety issue, such as “Man” and “Machine.”