FAA Order Lays Groundwork for Unified Agency SMS

The FAA this week released an order implementing a unified safety management system (SMS) throughout the agency. Effective September 15, Order 1030.8 establishes safety management policy and the requirements for a single SMS under the Aviation Safety Management Office.

In January, the agency announced a reorganization that included a new safety oversight office tasked with implementing a single safety management system and risk management strategy throughout the FAA. The agency said that instead of having individual offices monitor their own safety metrics, the new office would pull together and share safety data from across the agency.

At the time, FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford had outlined a “Flight Plan” for the agency that called for streamlining its safety management activities. He explained to the Aero Club of Washington that there have been 14 lines of business at the FAA, and “We don’t collaborate well. We don’t share data across the silos. So we’re tearing those silos down, and we’re creating one FAA SMS and moving really more…to true risk management, risk identification, and threat assessment.”

The order reiterated that the policy and requirements are designed to “improve the FAA’s ability to proactively identify hazards and manage risk at the enterprise level.” It outlines the roles and responsibilities of the Aviation Safety Management Office regarding SMS, as well as those of the agency’s executive leadership, Executive Safety Council, and other personnel.

In addition, the order defines and standardizes safety management and facilitates information sharing, requiring a common approach to implementing and maturing a unified SMS that fosters a positive safety culture.

Key in the order is that it applies to all FAA organizations: Everyone has a role in safety management activities in the FAA,” the agency said.