Alexandria, VA, March 11, 2009 — The Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF) is pleased to announce that Director of Safety Management Russell (Russ) Lawton will serve on a newly formed aviation rulemaking committee (ARC) tasked with developing Safety Management System (SMS) requirements for air carriers, repair stations and others.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) selected Lawton due to his expertise in the development and evaluation of air carrier safety programs. It is expected that the FAA will publish an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) seeking input on how best to craft a regulation to require certificate holders to implement SMS programs before mid-year.
The ARC will review comments received as it considers developing recommendations for an SMS NPRM and would then review comments to the NPRM prior to the issuance of any final rule. Unless further extended, the SMS ARC is chartered through February 2012.
“I am pleased to serve on the SMS ARC and represent the interests of the on-demand air charter industry,” Lawton stated. “As the FAA develops its SMS implementation strategy, it is critical that the size, structure and other unique aspects of air charter operators are considered.”
Lawton’s extensive experience most recently includes his leadership role in the development of the ACSF Industry Audit Standard and his ongoing participation in the FAA/Industry SMS Focus Group. The Focus Group includes various operators and safety experts who work with the FAA to further the adoption of SMS in the aviation industry.
The wide-spread adoption of SMS is a key mission for the Air Charter Safety Foundation. ACSF has created a free resource page at acsfdev.com/sms to help educate operators about SMS programs.
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