FOUR “CORNERSTONES” CAN ANCHOR A SAFETY CULTURE Building an organizational culture


that focuses first on safety saves lives, prevents injuries, protects future rev­ enue, and eliminates the expenses of damaged equipment. This safety cul­ ture can be developed in both large and small organizations if emphasis is placed in a few core areas of a helicop­ ter operation These core areas, or “cornerstones,”


that can strengthen a safety culture are: • safety management systems • training • maintenance • and advanced systems and equipment


Implementing a safety management


system (SMS) represents a fundamental shift in the way an organization does business. Safety management systems require organizations to adopt and actively manage safety elements and to incorporate them into everyday business practices. In effect, safety becomes an integral part of the everyday operations of an organization and is no longer con­ sidered an adjunct function belonging to a single safety “overseer.” Everyone in


the operation is responsible to discover, analyze and correct safety practices, which spreads responsibility throughout an organization. In addition, the success of a safety


management system hinges on the development of a “just” safety culture that promotes open reporting through non­punitive disciplinary policies and continual improvement through proac­ tive safety assessments and quality assurance. IHST tools that support a safety management system include a SMS toolkit and video, a risk assess­ ment matrix, and a preflight risk assess­ ment tool. Ongoing and effective training is


another cornerstone needed in order to build a thriving safety culture. IHST tools and materials that can support continual instruction and development include aeronautical decision making, crew resource management, recogni­ tion and avoidance involving meteoro­ logical conditions, fatigue countermea­ sure training, and night vision goggles training. Other supporting pieces to improve training include a European training pamphlet, a U.S. training toolk­ it, HAI safety videos, a European Flight


Into Degraded Visual Environment DVD, and a Low Flying in the Wired Environment DVD. Properly maintaining a helicopter


contributes just as much to a safety culture as flying a helicopter. IHST support within the cornerstone of maintenance includes recently devel­ oped maintenance toolkit materials on manufacturers’ instructions for continued airworthiness, on quality assurance procedures, on a health and usage monitoring system, and on an engine monitoring system. The final cornerstone, advance sys­


tems and equipment, calls for the uti­ lization of technology that requires an upfront investment, but will realize bottom­line savings. The IHST recom­ mends the usage of tools that are focused on eliminating accidents, including flight data monitoring sys­ tems, a helicopter flight analysis profile tool, night vision goggles, a helicopter terrain awareness and warning system, an emergency medical services weath­ er tool, point in space approaches, the Wide Area Augmentation System, and Automatic Dependent Surveillance­ Broadcast technology. 


U.S. HELICOPTER ACCIDENTS DECLINE OVERALL, BUT PRIVATE MISHAPS CLIMB UPWARDS New data released by the International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST) shows that the total number of civil helicopter accidents


in the U.S. has declined since 2009. During the three-year span from 2007 to 2009, there were 466 helicopter accidents in the United States. For the past three years from 2010 through 2012, there were 411 U.S. accidents. However, the data also shows that the number of helicopter accidents involving personal/private flying increased during the


3-YEAR PERIOD 2007-09 2008-10 2009-11 2010-12


CIVIL HELICOPTER ACCIDENTS IN THE UNITED STATES (BY TYPE OF FLIGHT) TOTAL


466 429 415 411


PRIVATE FLIGHT 96 92 93


102


DURING INSTRUCTION 111 83 88 81


ALL OTHER 259 254 234 228


same time period. Within the 2007-09 span, 21 percent of total U.S. helicopter accidents occurred during personal/private flying. From 2010 to 2012, personal/private accidents made up 25 percent of the helicopter accident total. In addition, over the past six years, the number of accidents occurring during instruction/training flights has decreased, but they continue to be a key focus for


safety improvements.  44 October 2013


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