Safety Management

International Collaboration

Introduction

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requires Safety Management Systems (SMS) for the management of safety risk in air operations, maintenance, air traffic services, aerodromes, flight training, and design and production of aircraft, engines, and propellers. Furthermore, ICAO has published safety management requirements for States by mandating that States establish a State Safety Program (SSP) in order to achieve acceptable safety performance in their civil aviation systems. As such, it is beneficial for Civil Aviation Authorities (CAAs) to harmonize their SMS and SSP requirements and implementation activities and collaborate on common topics of interest.

CAAs benefit from collaboration and sharing of lessons learned and best practices. Such collaboration helps authorities avoid duplication of efforts as well as enables them to better share information. Additionally, sharing methods and tools assists in developing robust and affordable SMSs. Aviation industry service providers also greatly benefit from SMS requirement harmonization among regulators, since many companies own multiple certificate types in multiple nations.

ICAO Annex 19 – Safety Management

SMS requirements for the various industry sectors have existed in ICAO Annexes 1, 6, 8, 11, and 14 beginning in 2001. SSP requirements for States have existed since 2010. Most ICAO requirements address individual functions or types of aviation services. This allows for the Annexes to address the unique needs of each target audience but does not address the integrated nature of the modern air transportation system. The increasing complexity and tighter coupling among various aviation sectors have called for an approach that provides for a higher degree of integration of safety management functions.

To address this concern, the ICAO 2010 High Level Safety Conference called for the development of a new Annex dedicated to safety management responsibilities and processes that would address the safety management responsibilities of States framed under the SSP. The ICAO Council concurred with this recommendation and directed the formation of the Safety Management Panel (SMP) to develop this Annex (Annex 19 Safety Management). The panel is made up of 83 Member States including the United States, eight Industry representatives, and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). Chris Pokorski from the FAA Office of Accident Investigation and Prevention (AVP) is the U.S.-nominated member of this panel. 

Annex 19 is the first new ICAO Annex in over thirty years and was developed in two phases. The first phase involved the transfer of existing safety management related content, modifications to improve the language for clarity, and modifications to ensure standardization and harmonization across the Annexes. The SMP delivered the first phase of Annex 19 in early in 2012. It was adopted by the ICAO Council on February 25, 2013 and became applicable in November 2013.

The SMP addressed many issues raised by panel members, ICAO Member States, the ICAO Air Navigation Council (ANC), and other groups during the second phase, resulting in Amendment 1 to Annex 19, effective in July 2016 and applicable in November 2019. In particular, the Amendment links the Eight Critical Elements of Safety Oversight System and the 11 elements of the SSP framework to create a unified State-level Safety Management framework. It also addresses safety data/information protection.

The SMP continued to develop the provisions of Annex 19 in order to assist States in systematically managing aviation safety risks and in supporting the continued evolution of a proactive strategy to improve safety performance. Amendment 2 to Annex 19 is expected to be effective in November 2025 and applicable in November 2026. Amendment 2 extends SMS applicability to Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) operators authorized to conduct international operations and approved maintenance organizations providing services to them. SMS applicability is also extended to certified heliports.

Other enhancements are intended to support States and service providers in the effective implementation of SSP and SMS, respectively, including the addition of links between SSP and SMS as well as their components. Additionally, the SMP will publish Version 5 of Doc 9859 Safety Management Manual to provide guidance to States on the implementation of Amendment 2 prior to its applicability date.

Safety Management International Collaboration Group

EASA, the FAA Office of Aviation Safety (AVS), ICAO, and Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA) held a meeting in February 2009 to discuss the potential for SMS and SSP cooperation. Meeting participants agreed that there was indeed value to collaborating on SMS and SSP topics of interest and established the Safety Management International Collaboration Group (SM ICG). The SM ICG agreed to meet semi-annually in addition to regular teleconferences and form project teams to develop products collaboratively.

The SM ICG was established for collaboration and harmonization purposes and does not have authority over any of the participating organizations; each organization participates voluntarily. However, representatives are to make every effort to reach a common understanding when making SM ICG decisions/recommendations or to provide dissenting opinions. Representatives are also expected to speak for their organization and share their organization's position, rather than personal opinions.

The SM ICG also interfaces with various stakeholders in the aviation system, including industry members and groups, the Commercial Aviation Safety Team (CAST), the European Commercial Aviation Safety Team (ECAST), other comparable organizations, and CAAs that have implemented or are implementing SMS and SSP. At each of their in-person meetings, the SM ICG hosts an Industry Day event to bring together industry representatives from the area where the meeting is being held to collaborate on safety management topics.

The SM ICG establishes short-term project teams to develop specific products. Product development focuses on creating a common understanding of safety management requirements; promoting alignment of safety management terminology; and providing implementation support, both for States (SSP) and service providers (SMS), in the form of guidance material, tools, promotional material, and training program guidance. All products are available on SKYbrary. To receive notification when new SM ICG content is published, contact smicg.share@gmail.com.

The current core membership of the SM ICG includes the Aviation Safety and Security Agency (AESA) of Spain, the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) of Brazil, the Bermuda Civil Aviation Authority (BCAA), the Civil Aviation Authority of the Netherlands (CAA NL), the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand (CAA NZ), the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), Civil Aviation Department of Hong Kong (CAD HK), the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) of Australia, the Direction Générale de l'Aviation Civile (DGAC) in France, the Ente Nazionale per l'Aviazione Civile (ENAC) in Italy, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the Dominican Republic Civil Aviation Institute (IDAC), the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom), the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), the Japan Civil Aviation Bureau (JCAB), the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Aviation Safety Organization, Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA), United Arab Emirates General Civil Aviation Authority (UAE GCAA), and the Civil Aviation Authority of United Kingdom (UK CAA). Additionally, ICAO is an observer to this group.

Additional International Collaboration and Outreach

The FAA welcomes the opportunity to initiate SMS discussions with interested CAAs. The purpose of these efforts is to harmonize SMS efforts, collaborate on topics of common interest, share lessons learned, and ensure the progression of SMS in a similar direction. Discussion topics could include: the SMS and SSP framework, organizational changes due to SMS implementation, cost and benefits of implementation, lessons learned, phased implementation, modifications to oversight programs due to SMS, rulemaking activities, industry buy-in, change management, international SMS interoperability issues, SMS collaboration, SMS tools, and training.

International Contact Information

SM International Collaboration, ICAO Annex 19 and Industry Outreach:

Paula Martinez
Director, Safety Management Division, AVP-300
(202) 267-7602
paula.martinez@faa.gov

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