March 2013 – EHEST published their latest Safety Leaflet “HE5 – Risk Management in Training for Helicopter Pilots and Instructors”. The document was developed in partnership with major stakeholders and provides tools and methods to improve risk management in training. Training for autorotation is used as a practical example to illustrate the process.
2 August 2012 - EHEST released a comprehensive Safety Management Toolkit developed with consideration to EU rules on Air Operations (Annex III, Part ORO Subpart GEN Section II Management System) which are expected be finalised later this year. The Toolkit was designed for Complex Operators and is particularly useful for those with limited experience of Safety Management Systems (SMS). It consists of a Safety Management Manual (SMM), an Emergency Response Plan (ERP) and a Safety Management Database User Guide.
The SMM is a sample manual designed to assist operators in creating their own manuals, which must be adapted to reflect individual needs, nature of operations and procedures. Since having a ERP will be required under future rules, the EHEST response plan in this Toolkit aims to help organisation to respond in the case of accidents, serious incidents or any event triggering a crisis.
Finally, the Safety Management Database User Guide provides example registers of typical helicopter hazards and risks in Commercial Air Transport (CAT) operations, a unique feature provided by the EHEST for safety management purposes.
Access the EHEST SMS webpage page
June 2012: Research into the human factors related to aircraft accidents and incidents has highlighted Decision Making as a crucial element. Pilots intend to fly safely, but they sometimes make errors. It has been observed that the majority of fatal crashes are attributable to decision errors rather than to perceptual or execution errors.
HE4_Single Pilot Decision Making v1
While we cannot eliminate human error, a thorough understanding of human factors principles can lead to appropriate strategies, means and practical tools to prevent most errors, better detect and manage them, and mitigate their adverse impact on aviation safety.
This leaflet is looking at:
This leaflet is part of a series of safety leaflets and publications aimed at sharing good practices. These leaflets are accompanied by web-based training materials, including videos, which are freely available on the Training and Safety Promotion section of the EHEST website
Jan 2012 - The helicopters ability to approach, manoeuvre, land and take-off from an off airfield Landing Site or unprepared Landing Site is one of the most important aspects of helicopters operations.
The various landing sites such as hotels, golf courses, sporting venues, etc can vary in their dimensions, approaches, hazards, elevation, and location, the same basic principles should be employed.
Landing sites that are remote from an airfield offer various challenges to the pilot and consequently have resulted in a significant number of accidents. Unlike at an airfield there is generally, little or no assistance in the assessment of wind, guidance on appropriate approach directions or information on other traffic. Hazards not normally experienced at an airfield such as wires, obstructions, uneven landing ground, trees, Foreign Object Damage, livestock and pedestrians are quite likely to be found and require a heightened degree of situational awareness by the pilot who needs to expect the unexpected!
The brochure HE3 was developped by the EHEST Team and covers the:
Airmanship is defined by EASA Part FCL as: “The consistent use of good judgement and well-developed knowledge, skills and attitudes to accomplish flight objectives.”. The EHEST review of helicopter accidents 2000 to 2005 revealed 140 general aviation helicopter accidents in Europe identifying the following (causal and contributing) factors:
The majority of these factors are related to airmanship.
Comprehensive knowledge, careful pre-flight preparations, frequent flying practice and avoidance of complacency are the best insurance against becoming an accident statistic.
the Team published a simple Helicopter ground operations signals leaflet that can be viewed and downloaded below.
HE2_Helicopter_Ground_Operations_Signals_v1
The EHSIT Training team propose an example of pre-flight planning checklist. Note that this is an example that needs to be adapted to your operation.
This leaflet is the first in a series of safety related leaflets and publications aiming at improving safety by sharing good practises. These leaflets will be accompanied by web based training materials including videos, which will be available freely to all pilots in order to enhance flight safety by addressing recognised training related issues.
Data from the EHSAT review confirm that a continuing significant number of helicopter accidents is due to pilot disorientation in the Degraded Visual Environment, Vortex Ring State, Loss of Tail Rotor Effectiveness and Static & Dynamic Rollover. Therefore, the aim of this leaflet is to improve the safety of helicopter operations by providing pilots with the relevant information for each of these topics in order to allow a basic understanding of the causes, the prevention and the recovery actions thereby enabling pilots to make better, more informed decisions. This Leaflet covers the following subjects:
English: HE1_Leaflet_safety_considerations_Training-UK (master version)
German: HE1_Leaflet_safety_considerations_Training-DE
Italian: HE1_Leaflet_safety_considerations_Training-IT
Spanish: HE1_Leaflet_safety_considerations_Training-ES
Chinese: HE1_Leaflet_safety_considerations_Training-ZH
Portuguese/Brazilian: HE1_Leaflet_safety_considerations_Training-PT
This document was prepared by the US International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST) and is designed to provide a summary of existing flight data monitoring guidance and to serve as a step-by-step guide to helicopter operators considering or currently implementing a Helicopter Flight Data Monitoring (HFDM) program in their organization. It is also intended to address some unique challenges specific to helicopter operations.
Additional HFDM guidance and resources are included in the Appendices section or as Attachments to this document.
The US JHSIT prepared this toolkit to help US based-organizations to understand the fundamentals of safety management system. It serves as a guide to implement and manage an SMS, tailored to all size organizations.
SMS Tool Kit – SMS Tool Kit-2nd Edition
This SMS document is an advanced, integrated method of implementing standards identified by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the FAA Flight Standards Service (AFS-900). The toolkit provides assistance for organizations to achieve improved safety performance using a “performance based approach.” It encourages organizations to choose the solution that best suits their needs and performance objectives. The toolkit helps the organization determine their level of compliance and to develop an action plan that includes the necessary components.
The introduction addresses the case for a Safety Management System (SMS) and describes what an SMS is.
Chapter 1: Identifies policies, procedures, and human responsibilities that organizations use to express and achieve their desired level of safety. Policies characterize the nature and performance of an organization, and procedures define how to execute policies. The section on human responsibilities identifies the duties, responsibilities, authority, goals and objectives that impact an SMS.
Chapter 2: Identifies the theories and philosophy behind creating an SMS program that emphasizes the use of 12 core elements in designing an effective SMS plan. These elements include the objectives and expectations which are core to a robust and functional SMS.
Chapter 3: Organized, systematic guidelines are provided that can be followed over time to implement an SMS. A checklist for the 12 elements will help to guide organizations in SMS preparation.
Chapter 4: Contains a variety of resources to assist in designing an SMS manual for organizations wishing to establish a Safety Management System. It includes a definition of terms, checklists and a CD containing examples of forms used in implementing and managing an SMS.
