The Department of Aviation Science pursues and promotes research with a variety of initiatives. One of these initiatives is the Safety Across High-Consequence Industries (SAHI) conference that the department has hosted since its inception in 2004. More information about the conference is available here.

Department faculty are also actively engaged in research projects. Two of these projects are funded by the Federal Aviation Administration: (1) A study of the Aviation Safety Action Programs in aviation maintenance organizations and (2) A study of the safety culture in the Technical Operations section of the Air Traffic Organization.

The Maintenance & Engineering ASAP Study
The primary purpose of an Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) is to identify and correct adverse safety events that would otherwise not be likely to come to the attention of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) or company management. As of May 6, 2003, there are twenty-eight airlines that operate ASAPs for pilots, but there are only six ASAP MOUs for aircraft maintenance mechanics. Of the six maintenance ASAPs, most are considered by all stake-holders to be highly effective. Because of the potential benefits to safety, a major interest of the FAA is to determine whether the failure of ASAPs to expand to multiple operators as rapidly for aircraft maintenance as it has for pilots is attributable to FAA’s ASAP policy, or to other factors beyond the control of the FAA.

Since the start of this study, the number of maintenance ASAP programs has increased to 18 and additional programs are under considerations.

The following reports from this study are available:

1. Preliminary analysis of ASAP programs in aviation maintenance [SAHI 2004 Paper.pdf]
2. Factors affecting the success or failure of ASAP programs in aviation maintenance [M-ASAP Year 2 Report.pdf]

For more information, please visit the M & E ASAP web-site.

The ATO-Tech Ops Safety Culture Study
This FAA funded project focuses on helping specific Technical Operations units or facilities improve their safety culture. Issues such as developing and sharing best practices, employee-management trust, goal sharing, error management/reporting, training, etc. will be examined. This project does not address personal injury/bodily harm issues that are under the purview of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. However, the effectiveness of mechanisms associated with reporting hazards and improving the work environment will be addressed. Emphasis is on transformation of the safety culture.

Safety Culture Report to FAA (November 30, 2005; PDF)

If you are interested in further information about either of these projects, please contact Dr. Manoj S. Patankar, Principal Investigator, at 314-977-8355 or Patankar@slu.edu.