Making Aviation Ground Operations Safer...

As stated in my other blogs there are several hazardous situations involved with the aviation industry. In this blog I am going to discuss some of the preventative measures the industry has to reduce the number and type of accidents and injuries. Some of the areas that are hazardous ground operations include: ramp operations, specialized services (aviation fuel handling, aircraft rescue and fire fighting, and deicing), and runway incursions. Now that we have identified some of the hazards associated with aviation ground operations, we can discuss some of the safety practices.
I believe the most important safety practice is just that, practice. (Commonly referred to as training in the industry). Most of the procedures that are in place to avoid ground mishaps are trainable. Training procedures are intended to increase knowledge, skills, and overall performance of pilots, controllers, vehicle operators, and other individuals who interact on the surface of airports. Some guidelines to aide in the development of a ground safety plan are:

Give written and practical exams to flight instructors and pilots to identify areas that need improvements both in the area of pilots and airport design. Modify existing training for air traffic controllers is also used in the procedures. When observing the procedures for air traffic controllers emphasis is to be placed on: situational awareness, task and resource management, understanding of individual and team roles and responsibilities, decision making, coordination (communication and team building), retraining and refresher training, and incursion examples that have occurred at their airports. Procure hardware for training pilots and controllers. Develop awareness and educational material for the aviation community. Review federal aviation regulations to determine if the safety program is in need of modifications. Lastly, require airports to implement incursion prevention plans in the construction and development of the airfield.

These safety practices can be applied to every aspect of aviation ground operations. The main thing to take away from this post is the fact that these practices are simply guidelines for developing your own safety procedures. They are to be modified as situations and regulations occur. It is the responsibility of all to ensure every aspect of aviation is continually monitored and upgraded. This way we can all help reduce the incidents occurring on our airports surfaces.