Singapore: The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) launched the “Charter for a Strong and Positive Safety Culture in Singapore” at the annual Aviation Safety Forum which was held at the Pan Pacific Hotel on Monday (Mar 7).
The “Charter for a Strong and Positive Safety Culture in Singapore” is the first-ever Safety Charter for the Singapore aviation sector.
CAAS mentioned in a news release “Recognising various safety-related challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Charter expresses the shared commitment by leaders in the sector to jointly uphold safety standards and strengthen safety culture in their respective organisations as air travel recovers.”
“To date, 80 aviation organisations have signed the Charter. They include major airlines, aircraft manufacturers, maintenance, repair and overhaul, design and production, and training organisations, airport operator, ground handlers, industry associations and unions. More organisations are expected to do so in the coming months”, CAAS added.
Mr Han Kok Juan, Director-General of CAAS, said, “Aviation safety must be a non-negotiable and the top priority of the Singapore aviation sector as air travel recovers and we ramp up operations. The Safety Charter is a statement of shared commitment, by leaders of the Singapore aviation sector, to uphold the highest safety standards as we work together to rebuild and reclaim Singapore’s position as a global air hub this year.”
At the Aviation Safety Forum, the CAAS also presented the findings of the Aviation Safety Culture Survey. The Aviation Safety Culture Survey is Singapore’s first-ever industry-wide survey to understand the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on aviation safety culture and identify areas for improvement. The CAAS conducted the survey between 15 April and 25 June 2021. Over 1,300 personnel across seven aviation domains responded to the survey.
| Domain | Number of respondents |
| Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul | 543 |
| Airlines | 377 |
| Air Navigation Services | 150 |
| Training | 121 |
| Ground Services | 100 |
| Aerodrome | 44 |
| Design and Production | 12 |
The survey covered 71 questions across seven components: 1) individual’s commitment to safety; 2) organisation’s commitment to safety; 3) communication of safety information; 4) reporting of safety hazards and unsafe practices, and safety mistakes; 5) learning from safety reports; 6) voluntary reporting systems, and 7) adequacy of workplace resources.
The survey found that the safety culture amongst companies and workers remains strong, notwithstanding challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic:
99% agreed or strongly agreed that individual commitment to safety is high even amidst the COVID-19 crisis.
98% agreed or strongly agreed that the organisation’s commitment to safety is high even amidst the COVID-19 crisis.
95% agreed or strongly agreed that there is good communication of safety information.
94% agreed or strongly agreed that there is a positive culture of reporting safety hazards and unsafe practices.
89% agreed or strongly agreed that there is a willingness to report safety mistakes.
95% agreed or strongly agreed that there is a willingness to learn from safety reports and use voluntary reporting systems.
94% agreed or strongly agreed that workplace resources are adequate to support learning and working safely.
