SMS Manual Part 6

TRANSMILE AIR SERVICES

TRANSMILE AIR

SAFETY MANAGEMENT

SYSTEM MANUAL

Equate Business Performance to Safety Performance

TRANSMILE AIR SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM MANUAL SAFETY ASSURANCE

PART 6SAFETY ASSURANCE

SMM/TAS001/ISSUE 1Rev. 1 Page: 82Date 15/6/2009


SAFETY PERFORMANCE MONITORING

INTRODUCTION

Safety management will require feedback on safety performance to complete the safety management cycle to evaluate system performance and any necessary changes effected. It will also provide all stakeholders with an indication of the level of safety within TML.

SAFETY HEALTH

Recognizing the complex interactions affecting safety and the difficulty in defining what is safe and what is not, reference to the “safety health” of TML is made. It would be an indication of TML’s resistance to unexpected conditions or acts by individuals. It reflects the systemic measures put in place by TML to defend against the unknown. It also indicates our ability to adapt to the unknown. In effect, it reflects the safety culture of TML.

Absence of safety-related events (accidents and incidents) does not necessarily indicate a “safe” operation, as some operations are considered to be “safer” than others. Safety deals with risk reduction to an acceptable (or at least a tolerable) level. The level of safety in TML is not static. As we adds defences against safety hazards, its safety health may be considered to be improving. However, various factors (hazards) may compromise that safety health, requiring additional measures to strengthen the company’s resistance to misadventure.

In principle, the characteristics and safety performance of the “safest” organizations can be identified. These characteristics, which reflect industry’s best practices, can serve as benchmarks for assessing safety performance of TML.

Symptoms of poor safety health

Poor safety health may be indicated by symptoms that put elements of the organization at risk. that may be indicative of poor safety health. A weakness in any one area may be tolerable; however, weaknesses in many areas indicate serious systemic risks, compromising the safety health of TML.

Indicators of improving safety health

These reflect the industry’s best practices and a good safety culture. Organizations with the best safety records tend to “maintain or improve their safety fitness” by implementing measures to increase their resistance to the unforeseen. They consistently do more than just meet the minimum regulatory requirements.



Identifying the symptoms may provide a valid impression of TML’s safety health; however, information may still be lacking for effective decision-making. Additional tools will required to measure safety performance in a systematic and convincing way.

Statistical safety performance indicators

Statistical safety performance indicators illustrate historic safety achievements; they provide a “snapshot” of past events. Presented either numerically or graphically, they provide a simple, easily understood indication of the level of safety in a given sector in terms of the number or rate of accidents, incidents or casualties over a given time frame.

Statistical safety performance indicators can be focused on specific areas of the operation to monitor safety achievement, or on identifying areas of interest. This “retrospective” approach is useful in trend analysis, hazard identification, risk assessment, as well as in the choice of risk control measures.

Acceptable levels of safety

TML must meet regulatory requirements to ensure acceptable levels of safety. By just meeting those minimal requirements, however, may not be healthy from a safety point of view. Although we may have reduced our vulnerabilities to the unsafe acts and conditions most conducive to accidents, we have actually taken only minimum precautionary measures.

Weak organizations that fail to meet the acceptable levels of safety will finally be removed from the aviation system either proactively, by the regulator revoking their operating certificate, or reactively, in response to commercial pressures such as the high cost of accidents or serious incidents.

SAFETY OVERSIGHT & SAFETY PERFORMANCE MONITORING

Safety oversight is a function of the State (in our context, that would be the DCAM), as the regulator, while safety performance monitoring is carried out by TML, as the operator/service provider. The “monitoring” functions of safety oversight take many forms with varying degrees of formality.

Components of the Authority Regulatory Safety Audits

DCAM carries out a programme of safety audits to ensure the integrity of the national aviation system. Audits conducted by the DCAM will take a broad view of the safety management procedures of an organization as a whole. The key issues in such audits would be:

a) Surveillance and complianceb) Areas and degree of risk



c) Competenced) Safety management

DCAM’s safety oversight, in essence, will require TML to present to the authority that TML’s SMS is in place amd that safety issues are or will be managed effectively and that TML is generally meeting its safety performance targets.

Implementing TML’s Safety Performance Monitoring

To provide adequate safety oversight the following methods need to be employed by the SMS department (Corporate or divisional) as well as the functional/first line supervisors:

a) Maintain vigilance (from a safety perspective) by monitoring day-to-day activities and regularly conduct inspections (formal or informal) of day-to-day activities in all safety-critical

areas;

b) Sample employees’ views on safety (from both a general and a specific point of view) through safety surveys or any other means as appropriate;

d) Systematically review and follow up on all reports of identified safety issues.

e) Systematically capture data which reflect actual day-to-day performance (FDA,

LOSA,NOSS etc.).

f) Conduct macro-analyses of safety performance (safety studies).

g) Follow a regular operational audit programme (both internally and externally conducted

safety audits).

h) Communicate safety results to all affected personnel.

Inspections

It involves carrying out informal “walk-arounds” of all TML operational areas. The resulting feedback should help to fine-tune the safety management system. The focus of an inspection should be on the quality of the “end product” and should be void of the traditional tick-box format as using a tick-box format may be helpful for verifying compliance with particular requirements, but it is less effective for assessing systemic safety risks. Use of checklist should be used as a guide to help ensure that parts of the operation are not overlooked. Management and functional supervisors should conduct safety inspections to assess adherence to TML organizational requirements, plans and procedures although such inspections may only provide a spot check of the operations, with little potential for systemic safety oversight.

Surveys



Surveys of operations and facilities must be conducted to provide management with an indication of the levels of safety and efficiency within TML. Understanding the systemic hazards and inherent risks associated with everyday activities will allow us to minimize unsafe acts and respond proactively by improving the processes, conditions and other systemic issues that lead to unsafe acts. Safety surveys are one way to systematically examine particular organizational (divisional and departmental) elements or the processes used to perform a specific operation - either generally or from a particular safety perspective. They will be particularly useful in assessing attitudes of selected populations, e.g. technicians, aircraft engineers and pilots.

Surveys must be independent of routine inspections to enable us to determine the underlying hazards in a system. Surveys completed by operational personnel can provide important diagnostic information about daily operations. Safety surveys would have to involve the use of checklists, questionnaires and informal confidential interviews. Surveys, particularly those using interviews, will elicit information that cannot be obtained any other way.

Quality assurance for safety

A safety quality assurance system (SQAS) defines and establishes the TML’s quality policy and objectives. It ensures that we have in place those elements necessary to improve efficiency and reduce risks. Properly implemented, a SQAS ensures that procedures are carried out consistently and in compliance with applicable requirements, that problems are identified and resolved, and that we continuously review and improve our procedures, products and services. An SQAS should identify problems and improve procedures in order to meet corporate objectives.

An SQAS will help ensure that the requisite systemic measures have been taken to meet our safety goals. However, quality assurance does not “assure safety”. Rather, quality assurance measures help management ensure the necessary standardization of the systems within TML to reduce the risk of accidents. An SQAS will contain procedures for monitoring the performance of all aspects of TML, including such elements as:

a) well designed and documented procedures (e.g. SOPs);

b) inspection and testing methods;

c) monitoring of equipment and operations;

d) internal and external audits;

e) monitoring of corrective actions taken; and

f) the use of appropriate statistical analysis, when required.

Safety audits

Safety auditing is core TML’a safety management activity. It provides a means for systematically assessing how well we are meeting our safety objectives. The safety audit programme, together with other safety performance monitoring activities, provides feedback to managers of individual units and senior management concerning the safety performance of the organization.



Safety audits will be conducted internally, or by the divisional and/or corporate safety department’s auditors. Demonstrating safety performance for regulatory authorities is the most common form of external safety audit. Safety audits should be conducted on a regular and systematic basis in accordance with the TML safety audit programme.

Self-Audit

Critical self-assessment (or self-audit) is a tool that senior management can employ to measure safety margins. A comprehensive questionnaire or check list to assist management in conducting a self-audit to identify organizational events, policies, procedures or practices that may be indicative of safety hazards.

There are no right or wrong answers in all situations, nor are all the questions relevant to all types of operations. However, the response to a certain line of questioning may help reveal the TML’s safety health.

ACCEPTABLE LEVEL OF SAFETY (ALS)

In determining whether the system is operating in accordance with expectations, and to identify where action may be required (to enhance performance levels) to meet these expectations, performance outcomes need to be set and accordingly measured. The concept of acceptable level of safety responds to the need to complement the prevailing approach to the management of safety based upon regulatory compliance, with a performance-based approach.

Acceptable level of safety expresses the safety goals (or expectations) of Transmile Air Services and from the perspective of the relationship between DCAM and TML, it provides an objective in terms of the safety performance TML should achieve while conducting its core business functions, as a minimum acceptable to the authority. It is a reference against which the authority can measure safety performance.

In determining an acceptable level of safety, factors as the level of risk that applies and the cost/benefits of improvements to the system are considered. The ALS is expressed by two measures or metrics (safety performance indicators and safety performance targets) and implemented through various safety requirements, where:

Safety Performance Indicators (SPI)

SPI is a measure of the safety performance of TML. Safety indicators will be taken so as they are easy to measure and can be linked to the major components of the DCAM’s safety programme or the TML’s SMS. Safety indicators may therefore differ between segments of the TML, such as the engineering and the flight operations. Safety performance indicators are generally expressed in terms of the frequency of occurrence of some event causing harm.

Safety Performance Targets (SPT) (also referred to as goals or objectives)

SPI is determined by considering what safety performance levels are desirable and realistic for TML (as a whole) as well as for its sub-units. Safety targets should also be



measurable, acceptable to stakeholders, and consistent with the DCAM’s safety programme.

Safety requirements

Safety requirements will be imposed within TML to achieve the SPI and SPT. These will include the operational procedures, technology, systems and programmes, to which measures of reliability, availability, performance and/or accuracy can be specified.

A range of different SPI and SPT will provide a better insight of the ALS of TML and its functional units instead of having (use of) a single indicator or target. The relationship between ALS, SPI, SPT and the Safety Requirements is as follows:

acceptable level of safety is the overarching concept;

safety performance indicators are the measures used to determine if ALS has been

achieved;

safety performance targets are the quantified objectives pertinent to the ALS;

safety requirements are the tools or means required to achieve the safety targets.

Implementation

DCAM Safety Programme.

DCAM, as the SMS’s state oversight authority, as to date, has yet to establish any ALS to be achieved by its safety programmes. However so as to progress with TML’s planning for SMS, the following, being the ICAO’s ALS examples, are used for reference. Generally State’s ALS may be expressed by:

DCAM Safety Performance Indicator (SPI) & Safety Performance Target (SPT)

NO.

SPI SPT Ref.

1

2

3

4

5

6



DCAM Safety Requirements

a) the DCAM accident prevention programme;b) a mandatory occurrence reporting (MOR) system;c) a voluntary occurrence reporting system;d) a bird strike programme; ande) the deployment of radar systems in 3 Malaysian busiest airports within the next 12

months.

TML Safety Management System & Programme.

Generally, the State’s safety performance indicator(s) chosen to express global, regional and national targets will not be appropriate for application to TML, as an individual organizations and since accidents are relatively rare events, they do not provide a good indication of safety performance - especially at the local or organization level. From the DCAM’s Safety Programme, its SPI and SPT so established, TML’s SMS’s Safety Programme, SPI and SPT are accordingly drawn and it is then decide on what represents an acceptable outcome or goal. These are:

a) to reduce the number of accidents & fatalities in Malaysia irrespective of volume of air traffic; and

b) to achieve a significant decrease in accident rates, particularly in regions where these remain high.

TML Safety Performance Indicator (SPI) & Safety Performance Target (SPT)

NO.

SPI SPT SR ACC

1 ___ total operational incidents per year 15% reduction per year

SMS

211.5 Air Turn Backs (ATB) per ____ departures

15% reduction per year FOP

325.4 Ground Turn Backs (GTB) per ____ departures

15% reduction per year ENG

4 ___ major aircraft defects per _____ flights15% reduction per year ENG

5 ___ FOD ingestion per _____ aircraft movements

15% reduction per year

FOP

6____ Rainwater ingression per _____ aircraft stops

15% reduction per year ENG

TML Safety Requirements

a) TML-wide hazard identification programme;b) a departmental mandatory occurrence reporting system;



c) a voluntary occurrence reporting system;d) an FOD programme; ande) the deployment of safety officer in area exceeding 50 occupancy/main

activity/process within the next 12 months.

SAFETY AUDIT

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Safety audits fulfills the safety performance monitoring functions. It is a core activity of the TAS Safety Management System (SMS). Safety audits may be performed by an external audit authority, such as the State regulatory authority, or they may be carried out internally as part of an SMS. This chapter focuses on the internal safety auditing programme.

2. SAFETY AUDITS

2.1 Safety audits are used to ensure that:

a) the structure of the SMS is sound in terms of appropriate levels of staff; compliance with approved procedures and instructions; and a satisfactory level of competency and training to operate equipment and facilities and to maintain their levels of performance;

b) equipment performance is adequate for the safety levels of the service provided;

c) effective arrangements exist for promoting safety, monitoring safety performance and processing safety issues; and

d) adequate arrangements exist to handle foreseeable emergencies.



2.2 Safety audits shall be conducted regularly, following a cycle that ensures each functional area is audited as a part of TAS’s plan for evaluating overall safety performance. Safety audits should entail a periodic detailed review of the safety performance, procedures and practices of each unit or section with safety responsibilities. Thus, in addition to the organization-wide audit plan, a detailed audit plan shall be prepared for each individual unit/section.

2.3 Safety audits should go beyond just checking compliance with regulatory requirements and conformance with the TAS’s standards. The audit team should assess whether the procedures in use are appropriate and whether there are any work practices that could have unforeseen safety consequences.

2.4 The scope of a safety audit may vary from an overview of all activities of the unit or section, to a specific activity. The criteria against which the audit will be conducted should be specified in advance. Checklists may be used to identify what is to be reviewed during the audit in sufficient detail in order to ensure that all intended tasks and functions are covered.

2.5 The safety audit programme shall be based on the following principles:

a) It must never appear to be a “witch hunt”. The objective is to gain knowledge. Any suggestions of blame or punishment will be counterproductive.

b) The auditee should make all relevant documentation available to the auditors and arrange for staff to be available for interview as required.

c) Facts should be examined in an objective manner.

d) A written audit report describing the findings and recommendations should be presented to the unit or section within a specified period.

e) The staff of the unit or section, as well as the management, should be provided with feedback concerning the findings of the audit.

f) Positive feedback should be provided by highlighting in the report the good points observed during the audit.

g) While deficiencies must be identified, negative criticism should be avoided as much as possible.

h) The need to develop a plan to resolve deficiencies should be required.

2.6 Following an audit, a monitoring mechanism may be implemented to verify the effectiveness of any necessary corrective actions. Follow-up audits should concentrate on aspects of the operations where the need for corrective action was identified.

2.7 The overall annual audit programme should make allowance for unscheduled audits.

3 THE SAFETY AUDIT TEAM



3.1 Safety audits may be undertaken by a single individual or a team, depending on the scale of the audit. Experienced and trained individuals within TAS may perform safety audits or they may assist external auditors.

3.2 The staff selected to conduct an audit should have practical experience in disciplines relevant to the area to be audited, a good knowledge of the relevant regulatory requirements and the SMS, and they should have been trained in auditing procedures and techniques.

3.3 An audit team comprises an audit team leader and one or more auditors. Those chosen to undertake an audit must be credible to those being audited. They must be qualified and trained for the audit function in the appropriate areas of expertise.

3.4 The audit team members should be independent of the area being audited. These functions should be undertaken by persons who are not responsible for, and have not been involved in, the design or performance of the tasks and functions being audited. The audit team shall not be composed exclusively of management level staff.

3.5 A specialist from outside the audit authority may be required to participate in the audit.

3.6 An audit team leader should be appointed if more than one auditor is involved. The audit team leader is responsible for the overall conduct of the audit. In addition, the audit team leader undertakes some of the general tasks of an auditor. The audit team leader must be an effective communicator and must be able to earn the trust of the organization being audited.

3.7 The tasks to be undertaken by each audit team member will be assigned by the audit team leader. These tasks may include conducting interviews with staff of the unit or section being audited, reviewing documentation, observing operations and writing material for the audit report.

4 PLANNING AND PREPARATION

4.1 A formal notification of intention to perform the audit shall be forwarded to the unit or section to be audited in adequate time for any necessary preparations to be made. The auditee may be requested to provide preparatory material in advance of the actual audit, for example, selected records, a completed pre-audit questionnaire, and manuals. The auditee must have a clear understanding of the purpose, scope, resource requirements, audit and follow-up processes, etc. before the auditors arrive.

4.2 Pre-audit activity

4.2.1 Verify the feasibility of the proposed schedule and to identify the information that will be needed before commencement of the audit.

4.2.2 Specify the criteria against which the audit will be conducted and to develop a detailed audit plan together with checklists to be used during the audit.

4.2.3 The checklists consist of a comprehensive series of questions grouped under topic headings, which are used to ensure that all relevant topics are covered. For the purposes of a safety audit, the checklists should address the following areas in the organization:



a) national safety regulatory requirements;b) TAS safety policies and standards;c) structure of safety accountabilities;d) documentation, such as safety management manual and operational

documentation (including its local instructions);e) safety culture (reactive or proactive);f) hazard identification and risk management processes;g) safety oversight capabilities (monitoring, inspections, audits, etc.); andh) provisions for assuring safety performance of contractors.i) sampling of safety assesment SME Record

4.3 The audit plan will be tied up and comprise of SMS Audit/Safety Audit/Station Audit.

5 CONDUCT OF THE AUDIT

5.1 The conduct of the actual audit is essentially a process of inspection or fact-finding. Information from almost any source may be reviewed as part of the audit.

5.2 Opening meeting - At the opening meeting, the audit team leader should briefly present the background for the audit, its purpose, and any specific issues that will be addressed by the audit team. The practical arrangements, including the availability of staff for interview, should be discussed and agreed upon with the manager of the unit or section being audited.

5.3 Audit procedures - The techniques for gathering the information on which the audit team’s assessment will be made include:

a) review of documentation;b) interviews with staff; andc) observations by the audit team.

5.4 The audit team should work systematically through the items on the relevant checklist. Observations should be noted on standardized observation sheets.

5.5 If a particular area of concern is identified during the audit, this should be the subject of a more thorough investigation. However, the auditor must complete the rest of the audit as planned and therefore avoid spending an excessive amount of time exploring a single issue and so risk missing other problems.

5.6 Audit interviews - the purpose of audit interviews is to elicit information, not to enter into discussions. The persons to be interviewed should be drawn from a range of management, supervisory and operational positions.

5.7 Audit observations - once the audit activities are completed, the audit team should review all audit observations and compare them against the relevant regulations and procedures in order to confirm the correctness of observations noted as nonconformities, deficiencies or safety shortcomings.

5.8 An assessment should be made of the seriousness with respect to all items noted as nonconformities, deficiencies or safety shortcomings.



5.9 It should be borne in mind that the audit should not focus only on negative findings. An important objective of the safety audit is also to highlight good practice within the area being audited.

5.10 Closing meeting - Management may require regular progress reports throughout the audit. Nevertheless, a closing meeting should be held with the management of the unit or section at the conclusion of the audit activities to brief them on the audit observations and any resulting recommendations. Factual accuracy can be confirmed and significant findings highlighted.

5.11 Prior to this meeting, the audit team should:

a) agree on the audit conclusions;b) prepare recommendations, such as proposing appropriate corrective action, if

required; c) discuss whether there is a need for follow-up action.

5.12 The audit findings may fall into three categories:

a) serious discrepancies of non-compliance warranting action to suspend a licence, certificate or approval;

b) any discrepancy or non-compliance that must be rectified within an agreed time limit;

c) observations on issues that are likely to impact on safety or become a regulatory issue before the next audit.

5.13 At the closing meeting, the audit team leader should present the observations made during the audit and give the representatives of the unit or section being audited the opportunity to correct any misunderstandings. Dates for issuing an interim audit report and for receiving comments on it should be mutually agreed upon. A draft copy of the final report is often left with management.

6. CORRECTIVE ACTION PLAN

6.1 At the completion of an audit, planned remedial actions should be documented for all identified areas of safety concern. The management of the unit or section has the responsibility for developing a corrective action plan setting out the action(s) to be taken to resolve identified deficiencies or safety shortcomings within the agreed time period.

6.2 When completed, the corrective action plan should be forwarded to the audit team leader. The

final audit report will include this corrective action plan and detail any follow-up audit action proposed. The manager of the area being audited is responsible for ensuring the timely implementation of the appropriate corrective actions.

7. AUDIT REPORTS



7.1 The audit report should be an objective presentation of the results of the safety audit. As soon as possible after completion of the audit, an interim audit report should be forwarded to the manager of the unit or section for review and comments. Any comments received should be taken into consideration in the preparation of the final report, which constitutes the official report of the audit.

7.2 The key principles of audit report are:

a) consistency of observations and recommendations in the closing meeting, interim audit report and final audit report;

b) conclusions substantiated with references;c) observations and recommendations stated clearly and concisely;d) avoidance of generalities and vague observations;e) objective presentation of the observations;f) use of widely accepted aviation terminology, avoiding acronyms and jargon;

andg) avoidance of criticism of individuals or positions.

.8. AUDIT FOLLOW-UP

8.1 Audit follow-up involves the management of change. Upon receipt of the final audit report, management shall ensure that progress is made to reduce or eliminate the attendant risks. The primary purpose of an audit follow-up is to verify the effective implementation of the corrective action plan. Follow-up is also required to ensure that any action taken pursuant to the audit does not in any way degrade safety.

8.2 Follow-up action may be effected through monitoring the status of implementation of accepted corrective action plans or through follow-up audit visits. Where a follow-up visit has been made, a further report of this visit should be prepared. This report should clearly indicate the current status of the implementation of the agreed corrective actions. If any non-compliance, deficiency or safety shortcoming remains unresolved, the audit team leader should highlight this in the follow-up report.

SAFETY AUDIT SYSTEM & ACTION PROCEDURES

INTRODUCTION

This Leaflet outlines the procedures of the Safety Audit System for the Safety Management System as reflected in TAS Maintenance Organisation Exposition (MOE) Part 1 and Flight Operations Surveillance and Inspection (FOSI) Handbook Vol. 3 Chapter 11. Safety Audit policy is to ensure that approved policies and procedures are adhered to and implemented in order to achieve Safety Standards. Safety Audit findings and observations shall be taken into consideration when reviewing the company procedures. This requirement is applicable to all TAS Engineering personnel involved with the applicable Safety Audit consisting of Safety Audit of Organisation (MOE Part 3 - Chapter X) and Surveillance (MOE Part 3 - Chapter X) respectively.

ACTIONSSMM/TAS001/ISSUE 1Rev. 1 Page: 95Date 15/6/2009


2.1 Safety Audits

2.1.1 The Safety Audits of Organisation shall be performed twice a year. The Manager Safety (SM) is responsible for the Safety Audit System and the planned Safety Audits performed by Safety Auditors. The Safety Audit shall always be performed by trained personnel independent of direct responsibility for the activity being audited.

2.1.2 Engineering activities in Transmile Air Services, Transmile Spares and Transmile Aviation shall be audited as determined by Safety Assurance & Safety Department. These activities identified in TAS annual Safety Audit Plan, is planned and reviewed by Manager Safety who shall submit the Safety Audit Plan by the end of November each year to Manager Safety for approval.

2.1.3 Flight Operations safety activities shall be audited by Division Manager Safety &

Security in accordance to the Annual Safety Audit plan structured by Safety Manager.

2.1.4 The Manager Safety shall develop the schedule of Safety audit activities (Safety Audit Programme) for a one year period. The schedule shall be reviewed and approved by SM before being circulated to responsible Managers for advance information to Transmile Air Services, Transmile Spares and Transmile Aviation.

2.1.5 Manager Safety may perform the Safety Audit or appoint a team of auditors to prepare and perform the planned Safety Audit as stipulated in the approved Safety Audit Plan for the year.

2.1.5 Manager Safety shall assign a control number for each Safety Audit report. This includes the monitoring, control and registering of the Non-Compliance Reports (NCR). The Manager Safety shall send a reminder to the responsible Managers to ‘Close’ any ‘Open’ NCR within the agreed time frame, failing which The Manager Safety is informed on the status for appropriate action(s).

2.1.6 Safety Auditors are authorised to perform Safety Audit and Surveillance.

2.1.7 All relevant guidelines and references shall be provided by the Manager Safety to the Safety Audit team for the preparation and planning of the actual Safety Audit.

2.18 Assigned Safety Auditors shall report directly to Manager Safety for a pre-audit briefing. The briefing shall focus on comments and observations by previous Safety Auditors, their personal observations & areas of concern including recent changes to policies and procedures. The briefing shall determine “target dates” for completion of the Safety Audit.

2.1.9 The Safety Audit Report and NCRs shall be reviewed by Manager Safety before they are issued to the responsible Managers. The Manager Safety is authorised by the Accountable Manager to approve the Safety Audit Reports. The NCRs are registered and controlled before being issued to the respective responsible Managers for corrective actions and preventive measures taken to prevent a recurrence within an agreed time frame.



2.1.10 The Safety Auditor shall devote full time for the audit. Below are Safety Auditors’ responsibilities:

He/She shall familiarise himself / herself with the documents including references provided by Manager Safety.

He/She shall develop questionnaires to check the implementation of policies and procedures which are to be carried out accordingly.

Opening Safety Audit meeting is required. This meeting shall be organised by the Safety Audit Team Leader to brief the responsible Manager on the Safety Audit Programme.

Safety Audit shall be performed in accordance with the prepared questionnaires. If non- compliance is observed, these shall be identified in draft sheets.

Manager Safety shall be briefed from time to time on any doubt including all non-compliances found in the prepared draft sheets during the audit.

A post-audit briefing for the responsible Manager shall be done as soon as the audit is completed. Non-compliance or observations made to auditee shall be discussed and appropriate corrective action time scales shall be agreed with each auditee.

Non-compliance reports (NCR’s) using Form SA1/002 shall be raised. Original copy shall be given to the auditee and photocopy retained by the Safety Auditor. The Team Leader shall prepare an Executive Summary of the completed Safety Audit for Manager Safety and the audited Department Head using Form SA1/004.

A Closing meeting may be organised by the Safety Audit Team Leader to brief the department / business head of the findings, corrective action & time scales for NCRs.

Each NCR shall be categorised as follows:-

Critical – means any non-compliance with the safety Regulation which could lower the safety standard and probably hazard an aircraft

Major - means any non-compliance with the safety Regulation that could lower the safety standard and possibly hazard an aircraft.

Minor - means any non-compliance with the Maintenance Regulation that could lower the maintenance standard but do not hazard the aircraft.

Observation – means an observation intended to give background information. This must not include information suggesting non-compliance with the Safety Regulation.

2.1.11 The Department Manager shall be informed immediately of any non-conformance detrimental to the operation of the system in order that appropriate corrective actions may be taken to overcome the non-conformance. All corrective actions must be closed affirmatively. Intentions to close with recorded statements as “Noted” is not acceptable. Where possible, preventive measures shall be identified and recorded. Each NCR shall be given a time frame agreed between the



Safety audit Team Leader and the department Manager for its accomplishment as follows:

Critical - Immediate action required to avoid a potential hazard or safety degradation.

Major -Within thirty (30) days to avoid a lowering of safety standards. Minor - Within three (03) months Observation - No action required.

2.1.12 The satisfactory closure of all corrective actions and satisfactory accomplishment of preventive measures as stated in the Safety audit report shall be monitored closely by Manager Safety.

2.1.13 The Safety audit reports, complete with auditee’s corrective action implementation remarks shall be passed to Manager Safety for review and comment. Delays in completion of corrective action shall be tabled in Safety Review Council (SRC) by Manager Safety who shall determine if and when a follow up audit (whenever required) shall take place.

2.1.14 Manager Safety is responsible for keeping all Safety Audit results/reports together with the Summary of Safety Audit for a period of not less than two (02) years from the date of clearance of the finding. These records may be subjected to routine audits by the Safety Authority / other Operator to validate the effective functioning of TAS Engineering Safety Management System.

2.2 Safety Surveillance

2.2.1 The Safety Surveillance normally performed by Safety Engineers, Manager Safety or Inspector Safety who shall raise Form SA1/001 upon identification of non-conformance of Safety System requirement during their Safety Surveillance.

2.2.2 Manager Safety shall administer routine surveillance on TAS Engineering activities including activities of Transmile Spares and Transmile Aviation and Flight Operations activities. SE shall raise and register all NCRs and brief Manager Safety for appropriate actions to be taken to address the NCR.

2.2.3 TAS Engineering personnel e.g. Licensed Aircraft Engineer/Approval Holders may instigate non-compliance by informing Safety Engineers who shall raise a NCR. This may be done through an acceptable means such as MERES, etc.

2.2.4 The Safety Engineers and Safety Manager shall advise the Department Manager regarding deficiency found so that corrective action can be taken on an agreed time frame. If corrective actions are not carried out within the specified time frame, the NCRs may be tabled by Manager Safety at the Safety Review Council for discussion and disposition.

2.2.5 All corrective actions must be closed affirmatively. The Safety Engineers shall verify that corrective actions are satisfactory and record such observations on Form SA1/002 for review by Manager Safety for appropriate actions.

2.2.6 All completed NCRs shall be returned to the SME/SMF for review and closure.


3-1-00


2.2.7 SME/SMF shall review and summarise all NCRs picked up using Form SA1/003 and submit the summary to CMS for his review and subsequent tabling of the surveillance findings to the Safety Review Council/Board.

2.3 Safety Audit Personnel – Safety Auditors

2.3.1 The Auditors are usually the trained LAEs/Authorised Pilots who have been with Transmile Air Services as QAE/Management Pilot and assigned to report directly to Manager Safety. The Safety Auditors primary function is to perform planned Safety Audits as directed by SME/SMF. The Safety Auditor is normally the Team Leader of a group of auditors.

2.3.1 The Designated Safety Inspectors are normally suitably trained Licensed Aircraft Engineers who are recommended by the departmental manager and assigned to SME as Safety auditor. For Flight Operations, the auditors are normally SMF and Executives, Manager Cargo Safety & Standards and Inspectorate Safety & Security.

2.3.2 The Designated Safety Inspectors shall attend the Safety Audit briefing and be prepared as a team member for a live audit.

2.3.5 The Designated Safety Inspectors shall be independent from the Section that the audit team plans to audit. The Team Leader is responsible in ensuring that this restriction is strictly adhered to.

2.4 Yearly Safety Audit Programmes

2.4.1 The SME/SMF shall prepare the Safety Audit of Organisation programme and Safety Audit of Aircraft / Line Station programme and this shall be reviewed and approved by CSM.

2.4.2 An Example of Safety Audit of Organisation is shown in Annex A

2.4.3 An example of Safety Audit of Aircraft / Line Station is also shown in Annex B.

2.4.4 The Manager Safety may follow the examples of the above two Safety Audit Programmes.



MANAGEMENT OF CHANGE

To be published


Documents

SMS Manual Part 6