Hazard ID, Risk Assessment, & Mitigation
Understanding Aviation Safety
Identifying hazards and managing risks is essential to safe operations in the aviation industry. Do members of your organization have a way to share identified hazards, and do they feel safe from retribution in doing so? What happens within your organization once specific hazards and risks are identified? Understanding hazards and associated risks and then mitigating those risks is paramount to safety management.
Defining Hazards
In AC 120-92D, Safety Management Systems for Aviation Service Providers, the FAA defines hazards as "a condition or an object that could foreseeably cause or contribute to an incident or aircraft accident, as defined in 49 CFR part 830.2." With this definition, it's easy to envision airport vehicles, birds, contaminated fuel, weather, time pressure, fatigue, and procedural errors as a few examples of potential hazards to your operation.
Identifying Hazards
How do you identify hazards in your organization, especially if no severe consequences have occurred? Are hazards reported or shared so others can learn from them? If your organization does not already have a Safety Management System (SMS) or reporting program, gathering hazard data could be as simple as taking a walk through a hangar or on the ramp and discussing your experiences and observations with others. Another way to find hazards is to encourage members within the organization (such as pilots, mechanics, or ramp personnel) to report or share events that could have gone better or events with questionable safety standards.
Scenario: Runway Incursion Near-Miss
Consider the following scenario:
You are an on-demand charter cargo operator, already delayed by weather and with delivery needed urgently at your destination. In response to your desire to please the customer, you hurry through your preflight, engine start, and before-takeoff checklists. While taxiing to the departure runway, the tower clears you to cross an active runway, but you are heads down for just a second to verify a checklist item. You do not realize the flightcrew of another aircraft that was cleared to lineup and wait on that runway misread their clearance and began its takeoff roll. Luckily, you cleared the runway without incident, but that was close!
Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment
The main hazard from this scenario is the external pressure to complete the mission. To identify this hazard, you could report the incident to your organization's reporting program and/or discuss your experience with other pilots on the ramp after your return. Sharing this knowledge will increase awareness about this hazard among local pilots and potentially help avoid future incidents.
Now that you have identified the hazard, you can identify and assess the risks. As defined in AC 120-92D, risk is "the composite of predicted severity and likelihood of the potential effect of a hazard." A risk assessment is the process of combining the identified risks and comparing them against acceptability criteria. AC 120-92D, Safety Management Systems for Aviation Service Providers, has a sample risk matrix that can help with your risk assessment.
| Risk | Severity | Likelihood |
|---|---|---|
| Poor Aeronautical Decision Making (ADM) | High | Moderate |
| Impaired Situational Awareness | High | Moderate |
| Runway Incursions (RI) | Catastrophic | Low to Moderate |
Part of assessing the risk in this scenario is understanding related data. In this case, a good resource would be the FAA's Runway Safety Statistics, which indicate that RIs have increased in recent years—especially at airports with high traffic volumes and complex airport layouts. Knowing that RIs have potentially catastrophic outcomes and a higher likelihood of occurrence at those airports, you and your organization decide minimizing the risk of RIs, low situational awareness, and poor ADM is high priority.
Mitigation Strategies
Mitigations are used to reduce or eliminate the effects of identified hazards and their associated risks. (AC 120-92D is a great resource for more details!) Keeping in mind cost and the effectiveness of reducing the risk to an acceptable level, what mitigation measures could you take to reduce the likelihood of an RI? Below are a few examples of mitigations relevant to the above scenario:
- Ensure Cockpit Situational Awareness (SA): Equip your aircraft with advanced cockpit displays and moving map systems to provide real-time position information on the field.
- Use Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) and Global Positioning System (GPS) technology: Install runway awareness systems that use GPS and ADS-B information to alert you to potential traffic conflicts.
- Use Crew Resource Management (CRM): Conduct recurring training sessions to improve communication, coordination, and decision-making skills among crew members during taxi operations.
- Implement "Heads-Up" Procedures: Whether working in a crew or as a single pilot, make sure you or another crewmember is always "heads up" to monitor external conditions while the other handles communications and cockpit tasks.
- Acknowledge All Runway and Taxiway Crossings with Callouts: For example, use the following callouts after both pilots have visually confirmed the runway is clear in both directions before crossing:
Pilot in Command: "Crossing runway 36, clear left."
Pilot Monitoring: "Clear right." - Implement Proactive Reporting and Feedback: Encourage crewmembers to report any RI incidents or near misses with detailed feedback to improve awareness at airports with risky infrastructure.
Conclusion
Establishing a robust SMS that emphasizes hazard identification, risk assessment, and mitigation is essential for maintaining high safety standards in aviation. By fostering a culture of safety through proactive measures and open communication, organizations can effectively manage risks and enhance operational safety. Encouraging nonpunitive hazard reporting ensures continuous improvement and adaptation to new challenges.
At PAI Consulting, we understand the intricacies of safety culture and offer expertise in developing comprehensive SMS programs that promote voluntary and confidential reporting, ensuring a safer aviation environment for all. Feel free to contact us for assistance in enhancing your organization's safety practices.
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