SAFETY For outstanding contributions to the promotion of helicopter safety and safety awareness
Neo Aik Sia Certified International Safety Manager, Kahului, Hawaii, USA
Neo Aik Sia was destined for aviation from an early age. Fascinated with aircraft, he joined the Junior Flying Club in 1972 in his native Singapore before he could even drive a car. He later earned his private pilot airplane rating six months after graduating from high school. Neo was conscripted into the Singapore National Service shortly after school. Seeing an opportunity to stay in aviation,
he opted to leave the service three months later to enlist full time with the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) as a pilot officer. Once in the RSAF, he found his calling in safety. Troughout his 29-year career at the RSAF, Neo progressively advanced
through the ranks in areas where he could champion safety culture and implement safety programs. Troughout his service, he held multiple positions, including head of accident prevention, senior staff director and lecturer, director of operational development, senior pilot, and squadron commander. Neo was eventually charged with responsibility for all RSAF aircraft,
maintenance, and ground safety and accident prevention programs. He developed and implemented a safety management system (SMS) in 2000 that has since proven its effectiveness through reduced accidents and incidents. Now retired from the RSAF, he uses his experience to help develop and refine SMS programs for civilian organizations. After emigrating to the United States in the early 2000s, Neo obtained his
Neo Aik Sia
FAA airline transport pilot, ground instructor, and advanced instrument ground instructor certificates. He later worked with Air Methods, flying air ambulance, search-and-rescue, and maintenance test-flight missions in multiple locations across the United States.
In 2016, Neo was hired as the safety, quality, and standards manager for the Vision Technologies Aerospace subsidiary
Aviation Academy of America, a national and international airline flight training academy in San Antonio, Texas. While there, he developed and implemented SMS and quality-assurance system programs aimed at achieving and sustaining a zero- accident record. When an incident occurred, he conducted investigations and used the findings to develop and implement changes in maintenance, operations, and training. Most recently, Neo served as regional safety director at Blue Hawaiian Helicopters. In this role, he was responsible for
promoting safety and implementing an SMS program and the FAA’s Aviation Safety Action Program across Blue Hawaiian companies. He was also appointed as an FAA Safety Team (FAASTeam) representative. Neo concurrently prepared the companies for external audits by the Tour Operators Program of Safety (TOPS) and by Starr Aviation’s loss-control consultant. Troughout his career, Neo has been recognized for promoting safety culture while developing effective safety programs
that identify and analyze hazards and mitigate the associated risks to safeguard operations. Neo’s passion is driven by the belief that all accidents are preventable. He mentors members of the industry in the need to
understand accident causation, human factors, SMS, and the importance of adopting safety excellence and safety culture as a way of life to eliminate accidents. “Building a positive safety culture by changing mindset, attitude, and behavior is the
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biggest challenge of implementing a safety program,” Neo says. “Without a positive culture, the program is often implemented robotically with minimal effort. I emphasize the need to embrace safety at all levels. With total safety as a lifestyle, we all benefit—ourselves, our families, and our organizations.”
50 ROTOR MARCH 2021
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