Proposed New Regulations on Aviation Safety Management

The Ministry of Construction proposes provisions on the principles for organizing and operating aviation safety oversight; the development of aviation safety oversight programs and guidance materials; the Vietnam Civil Aviation Safety Programme; requirements for the Safety Management System; the Aviation Safety Data, Operations and Emergency Response Center; provisions on exemptions; the development and maintenance of aviation safety culture; mandatory aviation safety occurrence reporting; and regulations on aviation safety inspectors. Specifically:

Principles for organizing and operating aviation safety oversight

Aviation safety oversight activities must comply with the laws of Viet Nam, international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam is a member, and the standards and guidance of ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization); ensuring independence, objectivity, publicity, transparency, systematic implementation, and continuity.

Oversight shall be carried out through approved programs and plans or conducted on an ad hoc and unannounced basis; priority shall be given to allocating oversight resources to sectors and entities with high risk levels that threaten aviation safety (risk-based oversight).

The aviation safety oversight process must comply with procedures and professional guidance materials issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of Viet Nam; ensuring consistency in assessment, conclusions, and the handling of safety issues.

Aviation safety oversight activities must be conducted by safety inspectors possessing sufficient competence and qualifications at a level equivalent to those being inspected and overseen.

Xây dựng chương trình và tài liệu hướng dẫn giám sát an toàn hàng không

Theo dự thảo, Nhà chức trách hàng không Việt Nam có trách nhiệm xây dựng, ban hành và tổ chức thực hiện Chương trình giám sát an toàn hàng không hàng năm đối với các lĩnh vực tàu bay, khai thác tàu bay, bảo đảm hoạt động bay, cảng hàng không, sân bay và các lĩnh vực khác theo quy định.

The aviation safety oversight program must meet the following requirements:

Specifically identify the subjects, scope, content, form, and frequency of periodic oversight for each specialized field.

Be developed on the basis of the results of safety risk profile assessments and the results of oversight conducted in previous periods.

Be consistent with the scale, scope of operations, and safety management capacity of the entities subject to inspection and oversight.

The aviation safety oversight program and the system of guidance documents on aviation safety oversight must be reviewed and evaluated annually or when necessary to ensure conformity with practical conditions, the scope of aviation safety assurance activities, the laws of Viet Nam, and the standards and guidance of ICAO.

Civil Aviation Safety Program of Viet Nam

The Civil Aviation Safety Program of Viet Nam includes legal provisions and safety standards as well as plans for organizing the implementation of specific measures to manage aviation safety risks in order to achieve safety objectives.

According to the draft, the Civil Aviation Safety Program of Viet Nam must include the following contents: aviation safety policies and objectives and resources for the implementation of state management of aviation safety; aviation safety risk management; aviation safety assurance; aviation safety promotion.

The Ministry of Construction promulgates the Civil Aviation Safety Program of Viet Nam.

Requirements for the Safety Management System

The Safety Management System stipulates policies, safety objectives, safety risk management, safety assurance, and safety promotion applicable to organizations and individuals participating in aviation activities in Viet Nam.

The Safety Management System of an aviation service provider is structured to include four specific components as follows:

1- Safety policy and objectives;

2- Safety risk management;

3- Safety assurance;

4- Safety promotion.

The draft clearly states that organizations and individuals are responsible for establishing a Safety Management System in accordance with regulations and in line with the scale of the enterprise and the level of complexity of the aviation services provided by the enterprise, including:

a) Aircraft operators;

b) Aerodrome operators;

c) Aircraft and aircraft equipment maintenance organizations;

d) Design and manufacturing organizations;

e) Training and professional training institutions for aviation personnel engaged in aircraft operations or using flight simulation training devices for flight training purposes;

g) Enterprises providing air navigation services;

h) Enterprises providing aviation services at aérodrome;

i) Other organizations as prescribed in Annex 19.

b) Aerodrome operators;

c) Aircraft and aircraft equipment maintenance organizations;

d) Design and manufacturing organizations;

e) Training and professional training institutions for aviation personnel engaged in aircraft operations or using flight simulation training devices for flight training purposes;

g) Enterprises providing air navigation services;

h) Enterprises providing aviation services at aerodromes;

i) Other organizations as prescribed in Annex 19.

The Safety Management Systems of the above-mentioned organizations must be approved by the Civil Aviation Authority of Viet Nam.

Aircraft operators conducting self-maintenance of aircraft and self-provision of ground services; aerodrome operators self-providing ground services and cargo services at airports may establish an integrated Safety Management System.

Readers are invited to review the full draft and provide comments here.