Focus On Air Tour Safety
Helicopter Association International (HAI) wrapped up a two-day
Air Tour Safety Forum in Honolulu, HI last weekend. More than 120
invited attendees participated in the event, which included HAI
president Matt Zuccaro, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
representatives from all branches, staff from the National
Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), and air tour operators in the
State of Hawaii.
The conference brought together air tour operators and
regulators under the sponsorship of HAI. This initiative provided a
forum to review and enhance safety and operating environments for
air tours, and included an historical review of air tour operations
in Hawaii, as well as an analysis of recent air tour incidents.
HAI president Matt Zuccaro, joined by Jim Ballough, Director of
FAA Flight Standards, moderated the sessions and workshop,
supported by Jeff Guzzetti of the NTSB, Larry Wilkinson of the FAA,
Honolulu office, along with numerous presenters.
Zuccaro opened the forum with welcoming remarks and spoke about
industry safety efforts including the International Helicopter
Safety Team (IHST). One and a half days of presentations followed,
covering such important topics as safety overviews of Hawaii,
Alaska, and Grand Canyon air tour operations, the NTSB Hawaii Air
Tour report, Pilot and Maintenance Human Factors, enhanced weather
reporting technologies, Safety Management Systems, accident
investigations protocols, FAA Part 135 Operational Control, the
National Air Tour Safety Standards Final Rule, an ADS-B proposal
for Hawaii, and the Air Tour Management Program for National
Parks.
The presentations were followed by an open discussion workshop
involving all in attendance. The workshop focused on a closer
working relationship of all the parties involved, identification of
issues and concerns that need to be addressed, and plans that will
facilitate achieving solutions. As a result of the forum an
industry/regulatory working group will be established to review the
relative data, and formulate solutions to the issues and concerns
raised in the forum. The efforts of the working group will be
focused on the common goal of enhancing the safety and operational
environment in which air tours are conducted in the state of
Hawaii. Additional meetings are planned to continue the work
started at the forum.
"Based on the activities conducted at the forum, comments
received from all those in attendance, coupled with the resulting
initiatives that were developed, I can say with confidence the
forum was a definite success, and only the beginning to what I
envision will be a continuing effort towards achieving goals
mutually shared by the helicopter industry, FAA, and NTSB."