Regulations are intended to address safety considerations and conditions in these areas, and they provide a vital foundation for aviation safety. The problem is that while the regulations offer comprehensive treatment of individual issues, they are simply not designed to cover the nearly infinite number of possible hazards and combinations of hazards that can undermine safety. In this respect, the regulations alone are like bricks without mortar.
The safety management system approach provides the mortar needed to bind the individual bricks together and prevent accidents. SMS is the “application of special technical and managerial skills in a systematic, forward-looking manner to identify and control hazards throughout the life cycle of a project, program, or activity.” Put another way, SMS is a “compliance-plus” approach that builds on existing regulations and procedures to create a stronger safety structure. To the extent that activities associated with this approach become ingrained as individual and corporate habits, they help create a “safety culture” mentality in which shared values and beliefs about safety become part of an organization’s structures and control systems – “how we do business here.” An effective safety culture includes a commitment to safety, shared perceptions about safety, and good communication. This manual is intended to provide BAC with guidance on the development and implementation of our SMS, in accordance with the International Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs).