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【范围】
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This document describes guidelines, methods and tools used to perform the ongoing safety
assessment process for transport airplanes in commercial service (hereafter, airplane). The process
described herein is intended to support an overall safety management program. It is associated with
showing compliance with the regulations, and also with assuring a company that it meets its own
internal standards. The methods outlined herein identify a systematic means, but not the only means,
to assess ongoing safety.
This document does not address the economic decision-making associated with the safety
management process. While this decision-making is an integral part of the safety management
process, this document addresses only the ongoing safety assessment process. To put it succinctly,
this document addresses the “Is it safe?” part of safety management. It does not address the “How
much does it cost?” part of the safety management.
This document also does not address any specific organizational structures for accomplishing the
safety assessment process. While the nature of the organizational structure is significant to the quality
of a safety program, this document focuses on the functions to be accomplished and does not attempt
to define what the structure should be. The intent is to leave the greatest amount of flexibility to the
organizations that use this document.
1.1 Purpose:
This document provides a systematic process to measure and monitor safety to help determine
safety priorities and focus available resources in areas that offer the greatest potential to improve
aviation safety. The current practice for ongoing safety assessment relies primarily on input from
individual carriers or operators, with substantial involvement from the manufacturers, suppliers,
airworthiness authorities, and other aviation service providers. There are variations in practices at all
levels throughout the industry. Also, air transport carriers, air cargo carriers, and manufacturers
each use their own methods for accomplishing safety assessment. It is felt that the creation of an
industry practice will enhance consistency of approach in how airplane safety assessment is
conducted and how airplanes are operated worldwide. This document is not a regulation. It is,
rather, a compendium of best safety practices gathered together as a reference. It allows the users
to compare their existing methods to those listed herein to seek improvements.
To improve safety during the complete airplane life cycle, it is not sufficient to assess the safety of the
airplane only during its design phase. Ongoing airplane operations must be evaluated for safety
(e.g., maintenance or operation procedures). The airplane is also evolving and changing during the
“In-Service” phase (e.g., obsolescence, modifications). Differences exist or can develop between
the assumptions made during the design phase and how the airplanes are actually operated and
maintained. For these reasons, safety should be assessed also during the “In-Service” phase of the
airplane life cycle. In order to do that, information must be collected, monitored and analyzed. A
large portion of this needed information may already exist in an organization's maintenance or
warranty information databases.
In addition to maintaining the safety of the airplane, there is also a need to enhance safety wherever
possible. This means that the user must always be alert to the opportunity to advance safety where
possible and feasible.
The transport airplane accident rate has remained stable since approximately 1975, while the
number of aircraft has greatly increased. The number of airplanes in commercial service is expected
to increase. The transport aviation industry provides the safest form of transportation in the world,
but each accident generates tremendous negative effect. Therefore, the accident rate must be
reduced in order to keep the number of accidents low. Thus, it is imperative to constantly improve.
This can be accomplished by continuously changing what we do and what we accept as adequate.
1.2 How to Use This Document:
The intent of this document is to identify typical activities, methods, and documentation that may be
used in the performance of safety assessments for airplanes (including their associated systems and
equipment) and user operations. The document describes a number of valid methods for resolution
of safety issues, selection of actions and their scheduling. The specific applicability and usefulness
of the individual guidelines, methods and tools will vary among organizations and from situation to
situation. The user is not constrained to use all of the elements contained within this document.
Each organization needs to establish which sections may prove helpful in improving or
supplementing their existing safety related practices. The guidelines, methods and tools provided in
this document are to be used in conjunction with other applicable guidance materials.
The appendices are not standalone documents and are to be used in conjunction with the
information contained in the basic document. The user is cautioned not to use the appendices
independent of the basic document. Document users are also cautioned not to engage in the
practice of ascribing greater importance or validity to one method or tool presented in the appendices
herein, over another when addressing safety issues. No hierarchy is intended, either explicitly or
implicitly by the authors.
1.3 Intended Users:
The intended users of this document include but are not limited to:
a. operators
b. manufacturers
c. equipment suppliers
d. modification or repair centers
e. airworthiness authorities
Anyone who is involved with the safety assessment and safety management of transport airplanes in
commercial service may be a potential user.strRefField
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