Keynote discussions:

• Mike Lemay, Chief Air Safety Investigator at Bombardier, who presented a case study in which a Challenger 350 had a jammed spoiler on final approach. Upon Bombardier’s internal investigation and testing, the authorities (Transport Canada, FAA and EASA) approved the new procedures and issued Advisory Directives.
• During the first wave of the COVID crisis, we learned from Carlos Brana, Senior Executive VP that Dassault’s focus was on continuity – protecting people and maintaining manufacturing and deliveries as much as possible.
• Jean-Marc Cluzeau, Principal Advisor to the Executive Director noted that EASA had many direct contacts with operators and associations during the crisis. The Agency’s interlocutors were looking for a counterpart at European level with whom they can discuss their issues and who could offer some advice and provide solutions. He concluded the interview by saying that the cooperation with EBAA is a model of cooperation that EASA would like to develop with all other association.
• We discussed with Kurt Edwards, Director General IBAC about the future of the IS-BAO and IS-BAH standards, how the crisis affected the way in which we conduct audits and how can we move further

Summit highlights:

• Resilience in people cannot be taught, but it’s a state of mind. Human resilience is mainly about being able to “recharge”, it’s the psychological capacity to adapt to stressful circumstances and to bounce back from adverse events. However, effective communication can be trained and it requires a consistent effort to be applied on a daily basis: the team needs to be kept informed about and involved in decision making. (Do we want to want to add Iris’s statement – “From a resilience perspective, the water is stronger than a stone. The water can change its shape to go around the rock and regroup later to continue its journey, while the rock is stuck to the ground and does not move in any direction.” – I think we can use it freely since she signed the Agreement)

• When it comes to Safety Management Systems (SMS), a parallel to a lottery winning system can be created – while you may apply statistics and mathematical models, you cannot reliably predict winning the lottery. Similarly, having an SMS in place does not equate to “zero harm”.
• In terms of SMS implementation into Part-CAMO, it has been agreed that the new set of regulations improves the control that organisations have over their vendors and by connecting the Safety Management Systems, the companies have more clarity and visibility. This makes it easier to spot any potential safety issues with the vendors and enables the companies to take actions in time.
• Our speakers also urged peers to speak up if they suspect or have the confirmation that someone in their circle has a problem with alcohol and/or drugs. By getting help for someone as soon as possible, it could be avoided that professional and personal aspect of their life are compromised.
• The Aviation Industry has been long discussing about Just Culture – but now it’s time to walk the talk. Read here the 5 commitments of the Just Culture Manifesto and decide for yourself if you can support them: hps://www.skybrary.aero/index.php/Just_Culture_Manifesto

Lessons learnt:

From a certain perspective, the crisis was a blessing in disguise and this is what we would like to keep, moving further :

• We should encourage the desire to keep moving, adapting, evolving – this made us as an industry be prepared for the unexpected
• We should maintain the high level of focus on going back to basics and looking into risk reduction and change management – knowing what we do not know
• We should remember to put safety in context, as a business dimension which was reinforced during the crisis
• We should keep the safety partnerships – the crisis brought us together and we can rally together against the aftermath
• We should empower and invest in the agility of SMS
• We should leverage the use of the software and digital tools that we became so familiar with during the crisis

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EBAA’s Annual Safety Summit has established itself as Europe’s premier event where aviation professionals from across Europe and beyond discuss together

With the traditional event format having changed, EBAA will leverage different digital tools to host the event over the course of three days.
This year’s theme “Resilience – human and business” explores the topic of aviation safety when the concept of “business as usual” is overturned by an unprecedented event and how businesses have to adjust and find alternate ways to attain safety compliance. The COVID-19 crisis also brought to light the importance of having resilient people when overcoming hurdles in safety compliance.

EBAA wants to contribute to the development of an aviation safety culture that is proactive, not simply reactive, by answering the main question the industry has been thought these past months: How do we prepare for the unexpected?

Check-out the programme for more information on the topics!

Registration is already open, and participation is free for members and non-members.

EBAA wants to contribute to the development of an aviation safety culture that is proactive, not simply reactive, by answering the main question the industry has been thought these past months: How do we prepare for the unexpected?

This year’s Safety Summit will not only discuss the topic of “Resilience – Human and Business”, but is in itself an example of resilience, changing to a virtual format to reach our members.

Attendees will receive new perspectives and engage in discussions and debates on how to make business aviation safer and more resilient to the unexpected. Furthermore, those joining us will learn about and delve into the newest developments related to safety, in the areas of compliance and requirements.

Operators

• Discuss and learn about safety topics relevant in the aftermath of the crisis, such as the upcoming alcohol and drugs testing during ramp checks and best practices for a solid just culture
• Share examples of use of best practices and effective leadership to improve safety and avoid accidents and incidents.
• Learn how to improve safety performance and maintain safety risk to as low as reasonably practicable.

Regulators and National Authorities

• Meet with the representatives from the industry to discuss relevant safety topics
• Learn about business aviation’s unique operational environment and how the industry addresses safety.
• Cooperate on identifying regulatory areas to further improve safety in BizAv

FBOs, Fuel companies and other vendors

• Discuss the impact of the new basic regulation as an opportunity for implementing safety management at all FBOs
• Exchange views on best practices and commitment to safety
• Discuss all aspects of safety on the ramp, including workforce competency and staffing with all stakeholders present

OEMs

• Ensuring a consistent approach to managing risks before and after delivering aircraft by engaging with your customers
• Exchange ideas with your customers on how to use and collect data and improve safety
• Ensuring operators and OEMs participate in the same safety culture environment

Insurance companies and aircraft financiers:

• Learn about risk and risk mitigation in business aviation
• Understand how to make a difference in pushing the safety agenda and consequently cost
• Share knowledge of data mining with the industry