IS-BAO Newsletter 4th QTR 2015
IS-BAO Newsletter: Fourth Quarter 2015
Welcome
We hope you enjoy this edition of the IS-BAO newsletter! It includes information about EASA Part NCC, ICAO’s encouragement to participate in IS-BAO, The Value of IS-BAO, new implementation tools for the Smart Operator, and more. The IS-BAO Team continues to work with IBAC Member Associations, operators, auditors, support services affiliates, and other stakeholders to bring harmony to the world of business aviation safety. We enjoy meeting you at our workshops and other venues and look forward to a productive and meaningful year serving the business aviation industry with passion.
Pursuing Excellence With You!
Sonnie Bates, Program Director
Paul Lessard, Administration
Lawrence Fletcher, Audit Manager
Jason Starke, Operations Manager
Bruce Mayes, Auditor Accreditation Manager
Daniel Devraignes, Quality Manager
EASA Part NCC Deadline is August 2016
If you are an IS-BAO registered operator affected by EASA Part NCC (operations based in the EU or State of Registry is in the EU) you can self-declare that you are conforming to these requirements via the IS-BAO. If you know European based or European registered operators who are not IS-BAO registered and they are not sure what to do to meet EASA Part NCC, tell them that IS-BAO is a smart way to go and IBAC has done most of the work for you! See the BBGA website (Part NCC made easy with IS-BAO)
- IBAC developed the EASA Part NCC Compliance Tool which satisfies IS-BAO 3.3, Compliance Monitoring System, and covers all the applicable EASA Part NCC Elements.
- IBAC also developed an EASA Part NCC Generic Operations Manual for operators who do not have a conforming manual.
Did You Know?
Did you know that the IS-BAO is recommended by ICAO? See the below excerpt from ICAO Global Aviation Safety Plan, page 35.
The Value of IS-BAO
Some operators who have been in the program for many years sometimes ask if there is any more value that can be extracted from the program after being a repeat Stage 3 Operator. IBAC offers the following:
- Value #1: Leadership Opportunity IBAC encourages Stage 2 and Stage 3 operators to consider their leadership role in the industry and actively engage their applicable IBAC Member Association with ideas to ensure that the IS-BAO continues to serve the industry in the most progressive, yet practical and reasonable way. IBAC also strongly encourages these operators to serve as mentors for other operators starting their IS-BAO journey.
- Value #2: Insurance Incentives Insurance providers such as USAIG and Global continue to offer significant incentives to attain and maintain an IS-BAO registration. Click on the hyperlinks to learn more!
- Value #3 Promoting and Validating a Safety Culture Establishing and maintaining a generative organizational culture, or safety culture, is one of the essential requirements to achieve a Stage 3 IS-BAO Registration. Here’s the link to learn more about IS-BAO Stage 3 Cultural Attributes. It is only via a safety culture that an operator is really enabled to collect the critical low-consequence safety information (errors, deviations, near misses, and minor incidents) to prevent an accident or serious incident.
- Value #4 Community: Being part of a community of hundreds of other operators supports the mission of bringing harmony to business aviation around the globe. We are a family of professionals seeking the best possible ways to operate together with the common goals of safety, operational excellence, and efficiency. If you are still wondering about the value of IS-BAO, pick up the phone and call home (i.e. IBAC). Our team is operationally oriented with extensive experience in operations and maintenance and we want to understand your point of view. IBAC serves the community by representing your best interests (promoted through one of the 14 IBAC member associations) to the ICAO. Together, we can make a positive change to the world of aviation.
- Value #5: Benchmarking: The IS-BAO is respected around the globe. ICAO’s Global Aviation Safety Plan encourages the implementation of IS-BAO (p. 35) and IS-BAO is promoted by IBAC’s 14 Business Aviation Member Associations (NBAA, EBAA, BBGA, MEBAA, CBAA, AsBAA, ABAG, ABAA, GBAA, EBAA (France), RUBAA, JBAA, BAOA, IBAA). Furthermore, given the fact that the U.S. Federal Agencies have adopted the IS-BAO to validate operational excellence (FAA flight operations, NASA, FBI, DEA, DOE, NOAA, and more signing up this year!!) it is easy to see why an aviation organization would consider utilizing the IS-BAO to validate their safety efforts.
2016 IS-BAO
The 2016 IS-BAO is available on the IBAC website for immediate download. For a complete list of the revisions, download the “SB 16 Decision Record”. Revision highlights include:
- All ERP standards and recommended practices in chapter 11 were relocated to the IS-BAO Implementation Guide. This was yet another significant step to reduce the total number of prescriptive versus performance-based standards. The ERP is still required in the SMS. What the operator decides to include in the SMS is up to them as long as it is tailored and suitable to their operation. Furthermore, operators should give due consideration to the information in the IS-BAO Implementation Guide.
- All standards and recommended practices related to fatigue management were moved to the new Chapter 11, Fatigue Management Program.
- Clarity was provided to ensure the AE is accountable for the SMS performance, while the SM and other managers are responsible for ensuring the SMS is functioning effectively on a day to day basis.
- 6.12.2 was modified to make clear that crew member shall utilize these checklists in the performance of their assigned duties using the methods required by the operator. Also, 6.12.3 was added to state, The operator shall ensure that flight crews comply with best practices for checklist execution. It’s not enough to say that the training provider will ensure proper checklist discipline. These organizations get a snap shot once every six or 12 months. The operator needs to address how checklists will be utilized (flow, challenge & response, electronic versus paper, etc.) and ensure aircrew train and operate to these standards.
- Note: The operator could establish policy that if checklists are not executed in accordance with the organization’s policies, then these errors and deviations must be captured and reported on a daily basis via the voluntary reporting system. This could be facilitated by a formal daily debrief system. To learn more see the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society article, “Do Team and Individual Debriefs Enhance Performance?”
New Implementation Tools
Check out our new IS-BAO Smart Operator Protocols in Excel format for operators to more effectively implement the standards and recommended practices.
- They auto format based on your needs (helicopter only, fixed wing only, etc.)
- They have auto color fill for blocks that require your attention
- Buttons on the spreadsheet allow you to click to see the actual full text of the standard or recommended practice.
- A summary page is provided with graphs so you can brief your progress to the boss!
- The 2015 Smart Operator Protocols are available to download with the rest of the manuals.
- The 2016 version will be ready very soon. Check the IBAC website in about two weeks to download the 2016 version.
Audit Program Improvement Updates
The previous IS-BAO Newsletter introduced several initiatives that IBAC is pursuing to strengthen the integrity of the audit program. Many of these issues were discussed at the IBAC Governing Board last November and over the next few months IBAC will continue developing policy to support these improvements. More to come in the next newsletter.
IS-BAO Workshops
IS-BAO workshops are being conducted around the world. If you are looking for an opportunity to train your personnel on the fundamentals of IS-BAO or auditing techniques to support your internal audit program these workshops are an excellent solution. The following link provides a list of the upcoming IS-BAO workshops: IS-BAO Workshop Schedule
Webinars
I am very excited to announce a new webinar-based learning program collectively called “IBAC Safety Net”. We intend to host periodic webinars on select topics ranging from key standards in the IS-BAO and/or IS-BAH, to methodologies in implementing the IS-BAO and/or IS-BAH, to key hazards that impact both flight and ground handling operations. Registration for each is $99 USD and the webinars will run for 1.5 – 2 hours. Additionally, a certificate will be issued for each webinar attended.
Our first webinar is titled “Fatigue in Corporate Aviation: The Science of Fatigue, Operational Risk and Mitigation Strategies” and will be presented by Dr. Daniel Mollicone, CEO Pulsar Informatics. Please join us on 17 Feb. 2016 at 1600 UTC as Dr. Mollicone explains key Human Fatigue Principles, how to identify fatigue risk across your operation and typical procedures used to mitigate fatigue.
To learn more and register, please visit http://bit.ly/1KhwDhq
If you have any questions, please contact Jason Starke (jstarke@ibac.org).
Safety Performance Indicators and Targets
We still receive quite a few questions regarding SPI’s and targets. If you have questions related to these topics, we recommend you review the following documents:
Operator Registration Stats
Stage 1: 184
Stage 2: 312
Stage 3: 222
Total: 718
Staying in the Books
The following questions are related to the IS-BAO audit protocols and are designed for both internal and external auditors.
1. Regarding IS-BAO 3.2.3a (A1), “Has the organisation developed a series of safety performance indicators that are appropriate to the type of operation? “, which of the following is NOT a valid SPI?
- a) Missed Checklist Items
- b) Missed SOP Call-outs
- c) No Accidents
2. Regarding IS-BAO 3.2.3(a) (A2), “Are safety indicators supported by measurable data that can be analysed for trends?”, which of the following is an example of appropriate measurable data?
- a) Pilots attend simulator training (goals is once per year)
- b) All crew members receive CRM training (goal is once every two years)
- c) Number of missed checklist items and missed SOP call-outs (captured daily via debrief)
3. Regarding IS-BAO 3.2.3(a), which of the following is an example of a low-consequence indicator?
- a) Errors or Deviations
- b) Serious Incidents
- c) Accidents
4. Regarding IS-BAO 3.2.3(b), which changes should the organization have a formal process to manage?
- a) All changes introduced by the National Aviation Authority
- b) Any changes which may impact identified hazards and risk mitigation strategies
- c) Only changes which affect flight crew procedures
5. Regarding IS-BAO 3.2.2 (b) (E1), which of the following could be a good example of training programs highlighting safety critical issues identified in the hazard risk analysis process?
- a) Increased Low Visibility Training
- b) Enhanced CRM training for all aircrew
- c) Effective communications and conflict resolution training
- d) Any of the above