USA: +1 415 256 4347 
Sign in
Question
The paper should cover a manager’s perspective on one of the course topics or learning objectives. Be sure to integrate and reference the information you have learned in the materials presented in Module’s 5 through 8.
Answer
Name of Student:
Institutional Affiliation:
Managers’ responsibilities in Aviation Safety and Security
Contents
An Overview of the Current Aviation Safety and Security Situation. 2
Efforts Being Made to Identify Safety Trends to Prevent Accidents. 3
The Role of Department of Homeland Security. 3
Introduction
The aviation industry in the twenty-first century has made tremendous efforts to maintain safety. Although spectacularly high levels of safety have been achieved, this situation may soon change by way of safety deterioration owing to the growing complexity and rapid transformation in the aviation operational environment. To guard against such an eventuality, the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) has put in place several safety measures, such as those contained in Advisory Circular 120-192. Such changes come in the wake of September 11, 2001, which revolutionized the aviation industry by triggering sweeping changes such as the establishment of the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) and the establishment of security procedures in general aviation (Johnston & Nath, 2004). The aim of this paper is to provide an in-depth appraisal of aviation safety and security from a manager’s perspective.
An Overview of the Current Aviation Safety and Security Situation
The aviation industry has made remarkable achievements in terms of safety and security since September 11, 2001. However, the industry continues to change due to the entry of new operators, technological changes, and growing complexity of networks of diverse business organizations. These changes call for constant reorientation of relationships among government agencies responsible for promoting aviation safety. In response to these changes, a number of efforts have been made, including the move by the FAA to adopt a systems approach in security oversight and the establishment of the TSA (U.S. Department of Transportation, 2010). Despite these efforts, concerns have been raised regarding the lack of harmony as far as the operations of the current safety management system are concerned.
Efforts Being Made to Identify Safety Trends to Prevent Accidents
Stakeholders in the aviation industry have made significant efforts to improve safety although numerous challenges still continue to exist, one of being the lack of harmony in air transportation. One of the most significant efforts that the FAA made to bring harmony is by developing the Air Transportation Oversight System. Under this approach, efforts to improve the safety and security situation in the industry were made by focusing on six major system characteristics, namely responsibility, procedures, authority, controls, interfaces, and process measures. Under responsibility, focus is on accountability as far as issues relating to the quality process are concerned. In terms of authority, focus is on the process of directing, controlling, and changing processes as well as the making of key decisions. Controls encompass procedural steps, special procedures, as well supervisory practices aimed at facilitating the implementation of processes to achieve the desired outcomes. Within the oversight system, interfaces encompass lines of communication and authority vis-à-vis consistency of procedures while process measures address ways of providing feedback to various parties for actions to take place, outputs to be produced, and expected outcomes to be achieved.
The Role of Department of Homeland Security
The DHS (Department of Homeland Security) has also contributed to efforts to improve aviation security mainly by adopting a multi-layered system that is based on continued assessment of risks. Most of these efforts are being coordinated through the TSA, which employed over 50,000 transportation security officers, behavior detection officers, and transportation security inspectors to work in all U.S airports (U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 2009). This development marks a major improvement because, prior to 9/11, there were no elaborate security requirements for screening cargo and baggage at the federal level. It is good that today, TSA officials are screening all cargo and baggage for explosives. Other useful improvements being made in the area of aviation security include biometric identification, rigorous security check, maintenance of passenger name records, and expedited screening programs for frequent travelers.
Despite these efforts, the aviation industry still faces serious threats in terms of security and safety, mainly from abroad. This is because the TSA cannot carry out passenger screening in foreign airports. Currently, TSA’s efforts to remedy this situation involve the enforcement of stringent security standards on all airports that act as last points of departure to America. Implementing these measures is a challenging undertaking because TSA’s jurisdiction does not extend to foreign countries.
Moreover, airport assessments and air carrier inspections remains a work in progress for the TSA, meaning that significant safety concerns remain unaddressed. To address these concerns, the TSA has started conducting aviation security training at the international level, in which case focus is on various risk-based security and safety strategies, including vulnerability assessments, screening techniques, and airport security management. It may take some time before the benefits of this kind of training are realized. Until then, safety concerns will continue to be raised, safety systems may deteriorate, and the number of aviation accidents may begin increasing. An ideal way through which the TSA can remedy this situation is adopting a proactive approach in its implementation of the newly introduced safety management systems.
Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) Contribution to the Identification of Security and Safety Problems in the Aviation Industry
The government accountability office is also involved in the ongoing efforts to enhance safety in the aviation industry. One way in which GAO is making this contribution is by evaluating the ability by new aviation systems and technologies to satisfy the existing aviation safety standards. One area of focus that stands out in this regard involves the use of unmanned aircraft systems (U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2012). On several occasions, GAO has raised concerns about several obstacles that make unmanned aircraft a threat to safety (U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2012). Some of the reasons underpinning these concerns include the inability by unmanned aircraft systems to detect and avoid manned aircraft as well as airborne objects, vulnerabilities in the operations of these systems in terms of command and control, absence of technological standards, and lack of integration into the existing regulations governing the operations of manned aircraft within the national airspace (U.S. Government Accountability Office, 2012).
It is unfortunate that Congress is yet to consider the establishment of an agency within the FAA that addresses issues relating to unmanned aircraft systems. Nevertheless, the DHS has been partnering with various agencies in efforts to ensure that such new technological systems are integrated into America’s airspace without leading to interruptions that may jeopardize security and safety. Other issues that may need to be addressed, specifically by TSA, include non-military use of unmanned aircraft systems, the use of these systems to collect surveillance data, and rules governing the operations of model aircraft.
Conclusion
The aviation industry of the twenty-first century has become safer and more secure owing to the reduction in the number of aviation accidents. However, concerns are being raised regarding the sustainability of this trend owing to the complex networks, technological changes, and diverse business-related dynamics, all of which continue to affect the operations of this industry. Fortunately, the Transportation Security Administration, under the auspices of the Department of Homeland Security is making sweeping changes aimed at ensuring that existing governance structures are adapted to changes in the industry.
Nevertheless, as pointed out by the Government Accountability Office, the bodies responsible for enhancing safety and security in the aviation industry must take a more proactive approach in regulating the operations of new technologies such as unmanned aircraft systems and model aircraft in order not to jeopardize aviation safety and security. Lastly, managers of various agencies responsible for aviation safety as well as chief executives of aviation companies should adopt a more aggressive approach in promoting safety in the industry.
References
Johnston, V. & Nath, A. (2004). Introduction: Terrorism and Transportation Security. Review of Policy Research, 21(3), 255–261.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (2009). TSA’s Role in General Aviation Security. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General.
U.S. Department of Transportation. (2010). Advisory Circular AC No: 120-92A – Safety Management Systems for Aviation Service Providers. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Transportation.
U.S. Government Accountability Office (2012). Unmanned Aircraft Systems: Use in the National Airspace System and the Role of the Department of Homeland Security. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Accountability Office.
