Story ID: 
FltPlan Updates FRAT and SMS Program
By: Matt Thurber
Caption: The improvements give operators more flexibility and control of safety programs
Word Count: 233
Garmin has updated its FltPlan safety management system (SMS), adding updates to the flight risk assessment tool (FRAT) and a new safety performance dashboard. 
The FRAT now automatically pulls in weather, terrain, and runway condition information and combines it with pilot fitness questions, according to Garmin. An hour before departure, the FRAT automatically re-scores and notifies the pilot if factors have changed and negatively affected the flight risk. 
Flight department customers can also modify the FRAT and, according to Garmin, “create custom rules to apply specific flight risk questions based on pilot profiles, aircraft profiles, weather conditions, airport conditions, and more.” This includes the ability to tie a pilot profile and rule together into a higher-level rule, such as a preassigned risk in the FRAT for a low-time pilot in a specific aircraft type.
The safety performance dashboard introduces preconfigured and customizable reports for assessing the effectiveness of an operation’s SMS. Dashboards are available for various departments—for example, one for company leaders and another for flight department managers. Reports can be grouped by risk level, report type, category, and other criteria.
Participants in the FAA’s Aviation Safety Action Program can use FltPlan SMS for employee reporting and can self-manage with an internal event review committee or use the Air Charter Safety Foundation as a third-party reviewer, Garmin said.