Premium on Safety - Issue 28, 2018 - 1

PREMIUM ON SAFETY
ISSUE 28 SPRING 2018

IN THIS ISSUE

Quiz: Things that go BUMP in the Flight 05
Lessons Learned: 06
Beware Unforecast CAT
Safety Spotlight: 08
Is your Food Safety Toolbox Empty?
ASI Message: 10
Nine Traits Good Pilots Share
Career Corner: 11
But of Course Mechanics can Fly!

A MESSAGE FROM USAIG
The November 2015 crash of a Hawker 700A in Akron,
Ohio, has become a frequent safety forum case study in
procedural non-compliance (See NTSB/AAR-16/03).
A recurring theme in this case is that the operator
had specified procedures in a manual, however, those
procedures were not followed. The vital preventative
medicine was right there in reach-but not taken.
Maybe the story seems more tragic or compelling by keying
on that. It sure steers blame toward employees who are
heard in a recording of their last earthly conversation acting
contrary to company procedures. But let's not infer that
having procedures that weren't followed is worse than having
no procedures; those two sins are functionally equivalent.
Many of the manuals in place to govern flight operations
were born at a consulting firm or another flight department,
and imported for adaptation. It can be as if the organization
got a suit several sizes too big into which it hoped to
someday grow. The result of importing such "one size
fits all" manuals is that you may fly for a long time with
procedures in "your" manuals that nobody really knows
or cares about, at least until a very bad day comes and
accident investigators, lawyers and safety presenters start
reading them to you.
If you are the lead in a flight department (even a small one)
you have a duty to your crews and passengers, people living
beneath your flight paths, and the company and industry
reputations riding with you to set appropriate procedures
for your operation and build a culture that knows and
follows them. The Akron accident is a reminder to all of us
to lend a critical eye to the fit between your operation and
the manuals and procedures that define them. If that fit
is not looking like a James Bond tux on Daniel Craig, stop
waiting and start tailoring.
Fly smart and fly safe.

Paul Ratté
Director of Aviation Safety Programs, USAIG

BEST PRACTICES

How to Find, Hire, and Retain the
Best Business Aviation Professionals
Your flight department can compete for the
best talent, if properly represented.
BY SHERYL K. BARDEN

The aviation talent shortage
is here, and there are a lot of
"grass is greener" rumors of
amazing compensation packages
being offered-especially by
the airlines. But in its defense,
business aviation does have a
lot of attractive benefits to offer

as well as working for your
particular organization. Focus on
the state-of-the-art equipment
you fly, the places you go and
your team's camaraderie.
You'll also want to mention the
opportunity new employees have
for advancement and rewards

So how long should the hiring process take?
The best answer is: "It depends."
professionals in all disciplines,
from maintenance and safety to
cabin crew and pilots.

for their performance, rather
than merely a straight
seniority system.

As a hiring authority, your
number one priority is to
address candidate attraction
and employee retention. It's
your role as the cheerleader-inchief to highlight the benefits
of business aviation in general,

At Aviation Personnel
International (API) our recruiting
team helps businesses find, hire
and retain top aviation talent,
and there is plenty of science to
our system.

(continued on page 2)
https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/AAR1603.pdf
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Premium on Safety - Issue 28, 2018
