Abstract

John is a student at a large university in the Midwest and is pursuing a degree in Aeronautical Science. One of his curricular requirements is to take a course on safety management systems (SMS) in the aviation industry. Having no background in safety, he is a little nervous about the subject matter, so he arranges to meet a friend of his father who works in the safety department at a major air carrier. John explains that he wants to do well in the course and, thus, would like to have a better understanding of SMS before the class begins in the fall. Bill is the Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) manager for the airline and is well acquainted with SMS, so the two meet at a local coffee house. After some pleasantries, Bill decides to start at the end with his explanation of SMS. He begins: