Holds 4th Annual Safety Conference In Cologne, Germany

EASA's 4th annual safety conference, continuing through Thursday, is focusing this year on Performance Based Oversight. More than 300 aviation specialists gathered in Cologne, Germany to consider the future of oversight by regulatory authorities, when Safety Management Systems (SMS) will be fully implemented by organizations in all aviation domains including Airworthiness, Operations, Licensing, Aerodromes, and Air Navigation Services.

The objective of Performance Based Oversight is to achieve the highest possible level of safety in the aviation system with a series of defined, organization-wide processes that enable effective day-to-day risk-based decision-making. Experiences and initiatives by industry and regulators to develop different practical approaches for inspection, assessment and oversight will be presented and discussed at the conference.

"I am very pleased to see so many aviation specialists from all over the world at this conference. Effective safety management is the recognized way forward in performing safety oversight," said Patrick Goudou, EASA Executive Director, in his opening remarks to the conference Wednesday. "However, this is a significant challenge for all of us in aviation, particularly due to the increasing complexity of the industry and the difficult financial times we are in. We therefore need to focus on safety performance in addition to complying with the relevant regulatory frameworks."

There are many benefits to be gained from a performance based approach: organizations can better understand the potential risks they face and be better informed about the implications of those risks in their daily activities. Similarly, authorities benefit from more effective targeting of their oversight, as well as improvements in efficiency and productivity.

Previous EASA safety conferences focused on pilot training (2009), the impact of climate change on aviation safety (2010), and loss of control (2011).

FMI: www.easa.eu.int