Says Safety Improvements 'Now Providing Benefits We Predicted'

Years of international cooperation in accident investigation are paying dividends, but more needs to be done, according to National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Mark V. Rosenker.

Speaking before the annual seminar of the International Society of Air Safety Investigators in Singapore Tuesday morning, Rosenker (right) noted many of the safety improvements that ISASI and other groups have promoted "are now providing the benefits we predicted." These would include professional crew training and elevated Standard Operating Procedures, adherence to stabilized approach criteria, improved reliability of aircraft power plants, and specific enhancements such as satellite navigation systems, moving map airport displays, and airborne and ground anti-collision systems.

"National borders have become transparent in many ways," Chairman Rosenker said, "in the manufacture of the airframe and various components, in crew makeup and training of personnel, in maintenance facilities and with air traffic service providers." And this cross-border infrastructure has fostered an industry that now carries two billion passengers a year.

"However," he continued, "we must be realistic. Aviation is a human endeavor; unfortunately air accidents and serious incidents will continue to occur."

Stressing that more needs to be done to reduce the worldwide accident rate, Rosenker endorsed the recent pronouncement of International Civil Aviation Organization Council President Roberto Kobeh Gonzalez that there is an urgent need to implement an achievable plan of action to enact vital safety recommendations around the world. ICAO has provided a road map showing the direction to go, but "it requires commitment to reach our destination."

Noting the title of the seminar, "Investigation Cooperation: From Investigation Site to ICAO," Rosenker urged participants to transfer vital information from an accident site anywhere in the world, with careful analysis along the way, to the offices and the staff of ICAO in Montreal.

"What we have to do now is to maintain... momentum for an ever-increasing level of aviation safety."

FMI: Read The Chairman's Complete Speech Here, www.isasi.org/