Bizav Safety Compliance Isn’t Enough, Says Wyvern CEO

Audits, certificates, and safety management system (SMS) documentation demonstrate compliance at a point in time but don’t by themselves prove that an operator is tracking how risk changes between those checkpoints, contends Sonnie Bates, CEO of aviation safety intelligence provider Wyvern.

Bates cites his own doctoral research, based on data from 257 U.S. business aviation participants, that found that emotional intelligence was a strong predictor of safety culture. He offers five questions for leaders to reflect on before their next audit: What has changed since the last safety review? Where is drift occurring? Are weak signals reported early enough? Do corrective actions change behavior? And Does the SMS influence operational decisions?

The FAA’s expanded SMS rule, which brings certain Part 135 operators and other certificate holders under Part 5 requirements by May 28, 2027, shouldn’t become an administrative exercise, according to Bates. “The real question is not simply whether an operator can produce an SMS manual,” he said. “The better question is whether the SMS helps the organization make better decisions under real operating pressure.”

Bates draws on NTSB findings on the January 2025 midair collision of a regional jet and U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (KDCA). The NTSB attributed the accident to systemic failures in airspace design, safety oversight, and risk management rather than a single isolated error. While the accident involved specific circumstances that shouldn’t be overgeneralized, Bates said one lesson applies broadly: serious safety failures typically begin earlier, in weak signals, normalized exposure, and risk that doesn’t translate into action quickly enough.