Error Management in a 3rd Party Repair Station

The 1996 Federal Aviation Reauthorization Act created the National Civil Aviation Review Commission. The legislation charges the Commission with considering future Federal Aviation Administration budget needs and appropriate financing mechanisms, as well as suggesting productivity and safety improvements. On December 11, 1997 the commission issued a report titled Avoiding Aviation Gridlock and Reducing the Accident Rate, A Consensus for Change. The following recommendation is included in the executive summary of that report:

“Aviation safety programs in industry and government need to be improved by establishing more effective safety risk management programs. This should include self-audit and self-disclosure programs within aviation companies, protecting and sharing safety information in non-punitive ways, and encouraging research to support these activities. Where possible, these programs should include the analysis of real flight and operational data. The aviation community must look deeper than accidents and incidents to identify latent and emerging problems and fix them before a mishap occurs. There needs to be a willingness in government and industry to invest in new ways of doing business. This will require changes in the traditional regulatory relationship so that tools beyond the simple enforcement of rules are available to improve safety.”