Airport Safety Management Systems

What Is a Safety Management System?

A safety management system is a documented way to manage safety across the whole operation. Under CAR 107.03, every SMS includes a safety policy, goals and a way to measure them, a process to identify hazards and manage the risks, training so staff are competent, internal reporting of hazards, incidents and accidents with corrective action, a document that sets out all SMS processes, a quality assurance program, and periodic reviews or audits of the system.

Does My Airport Need One?

Certified airports. Yes. An applicant for, or holder of, an airport certificate must establish and maintain an SMS, and Division V of Part III has applied to every airport certificate since January 1, 2009. If you are applying for a certificate, the SMS is part of what you put in place.

Registered aerodromes and mine airstrips. The regulations do not require an SMS at an aerodrome that is not certified. You can still adopt one as good practice, scaled to the site. Transport Canada's guide for smaller organizations, AC 107-002, is written both for organizations that must have an SMS and for those that choose to adopt one. If your airstrip may need a certificate later, the work is already done.

What Must an Airport SMS Include?

Division V of Part III of the CARs sets out what an airport SMS must include, among others:

• A safety management plan: a safety policy approved by the accountable executive and communicated to all employees, the roles and responsibilities of people with SMS duties, performance goals and a way to measure them, an internal reporting policy that states when immunity from disciplinary action is granted, and a process to review the SMS.
• Procedures to report hazards, incidents and accidents to the right manager, and to collect data on them.
• Procedures to share that information with the aircraft operators and the air traffic services provider at the airport.
• Procedures to analyse the data and audit findings, and to take corrective action.
• Training requirements for the person managing the SMS and for staff with SMS duties.
• Progress reports to the accountable executive, and procedures to involve employees in the SMS.
• A quality assurance program, with an initial audit, an audit of the whole program every three years and checklists of all activities controlled by the airport operations manual, or AOM.
• The certificate holder appoints a person to manage the SMS, and the system stays under the control of the accountable executive. The AOM describes the SMS components.

What Does Cirrus Do?

We review your airport and your documents against CAR 107.03 and Division V of Part III. Then we build the SMS or rework the one you have, piece by piece, with your team.

SMS Services

• New SMS program. We build the SMS for a new certificate, or for an airport whose system no longer fits: policy, roles, goals, reporting, risk management and audits, sized to your airport.
• Gap analysis. We compare your current SMS with the regulations and list what is missing, out of date or no longer matches the way the airport runs. The results become your plan.
• Documentation. We write the SMS manual or the SMS sections of your AOM, with the forms, logs and records your team uses.
• Hazard identification and risk management. We set up the process to find hazards, rate the risk, choose controls and follow up, with a risk matrix your team can apply on the ground.
• Safety reporting and investigations. We set up the reporting system, the reporting policy that states when immunity from discipline applies, the steps to investigate causes and the way to track corrective actions.
• Quality assurance and independent audits. We set up the quality assurance program, the audit schedule and the checklists. We also carry out the audits as independent auditors, people who do not perform the activities being audited, and help you follow up on findings.
• SMS tasks you assign to us. When your airport assigns SMS tasks to Cirrus, we take them on and report to the person managing your SMS. The assignment and its scope are described in your AOM, and the accountable executive stays responsible.
• SMS training. We train the person managing the SMS and the staff with SMS duties, so each person knows their role.
• Support for the accountable executive. We brief the accountable executive on their responsibilities and prepare the progress reports and reviews they need to make decisions.

Who Does the Work?

Our SMS experts, who know what Transport Canada looks for in an airport SMS and how reporting works on a busy day. Cirrus also trains the people who will run it.

How Does an SMS Project Work?

1. Document review. We read your AOM, your current SMS documents, recent reports and audit findings, and any Transport Canada findings.
2. Site visit. We walk the airside and talk with the people who report hazards and do the work, to see how the system runs day to day.
3. Draft. We deliver the gap analysis and a draft program: policy, procedures, forms, risk matrix, audit plan, training plan and any AOM changes.
4. You adopt and implement. The accountable executive approves the safety policy, you appoint the person managing the SMS, staff are trained and the processes go into use. AOM changes follow your amendment process with Transport Canada.
5. Keep it current. We carry out scheduled independent audits, take on the SMS tasks you assign to us, and help with reviews, updates after a change at the airport and refresher training.