The MITRE Corp, a federal funded research and development center, has made great strides to help lead the aviation industry into the era of Safety Management System acceptance and adherence. To that end, MITRE has become a “catchall” of sorts where the entire industry brings a wide variety of philosophies and practices to be analyzed and digested into the best practices. One of the core principles in the institution of an effective Safety Management System is to develop a strong safety culture within the air show organization.
As it pertains to air shows, the safest air shows are those that have “buy-in” from the top management of the air show. An air show that has strong buy-in from the event’s leadership will — in nearly all cases — be a safer air show. Transport Canada released to MITRE a worksheet that allows organizations to score their safety culture. This worksheet tracks many different organizational factors and should be used by air show organizers across the country to, at the very least, gain a deeper understanding of the role safety plays at their air show.
The worksheet may be found here. ICAS encourages all air show organizers and performers to take a look at the applicable sections and to evaluate their responses. Feel free to contact Dan Hollowell with any questions concerning your air show’s safety culture or the results of your evaluation.
