Forms In-House Directorate

To demonstrate what the company calls "its commitment to giving flight safety the highest priority," Eurocopter recently created an in-house flight safety directorate, headed by Jean-Pierre Dedieu, Executive Director of Customer Support, who reports directly to the Eurocopter CEO.

Eurocopter representatives tell ANN the directorate is based on three main areas and tasked with initiating, coordinating and harmonizing all company actions related to flight safety.

"The Flight Safety directorate was created in response to a worldwide dynamic," said Dedieu. "As with the airline companies a few years back, there has recently been increased awareness among international aeronautical authorities, helicopter operators and manufacturers of the need to improve flight safety. The helicopter community has now decided to take concerted action to drastically reduce the incidence of fatal accidents over the next decade."

The directorate will focus on three areas:

• Technical & Maintenance sector: Initiates action plans following accidents attributed to technical causes. No. 1 priority is to reduce time between the accident analysis phase and the effective fleet-wide implementation of all technical modifications, as soon as each modification is deemed necessary.
• Operations sector: Responsible for improving Eurocopter understanding of operational accidents and facilitating solution development. Particular emphasis will be placed on:
• • proposing special training to pilots in accessible locations and at competitive rates, as per the Group training policy, with the aim of minimizing accidents attributed to crew errors.
  • providing operators with equipment such as flight recorders and obstacle detectors; discouraging pilots from performing dangerous maneuvers, and improving flight control aids.
• Corporate Affairs sector: Four major objectives:
• • identify, coordinate, and develop action plans so that Eurocopter and its employees can manage the consequences of helicopter accidents in an appropriate manner.
  • implement a more structured crisis management process.
  • improve communication with international authorities such as the International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST).
  • encourage operators to do their part in improving flight safety by fitting helicopters with operational equipment such as obstacle detectors, and increasing survivability; ensure maintenance is carried out in Eurocopter-approved workshops with original parts; improve training for crew and maintenance personnel (which could possibly reduce insurance premiums for operators).

FMI: www.eurocopter.com