AAR was recognized as the first independent MRO for implementing a Safety Management System (SMS) in accordance with the requirements set forth in the SMS Voluntary Program by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA). AAR says the implementation of the SMS will allow the company to better serve its customers and the flying public by proactively identify safety issues and trends before they reach their full potential.
AAR utilized its APRISe software, a proprietary closed-loop system for quality and safety management, to facilitate the SMS process. In addition to SMS, APRISe includes everything from investigations to audit findings, customer feedback, injury reporting, import/export compliance and many other functions.
“As of today, the SMS program is fully implemented in our AAR MRO Rockford and AAR MRO Miami facilities. SMS will be implemented at our remaining MRO sites in 2021”, says Art Smith, AAR chief quality officer.
“AAR´s SMS implementation meets the expectations of the Flight Standards Service SMS Voluntary Program guidance for acknowledgement of a fully functional SMS,” says Tiffany LaTour, FAA SMS program office manager. “Thank you for your continued commitment to improve aviation safety in our National Airspace System and again, congratulations on your momentous achievement.”