Safety

ACM Aviation employs a formal Safety Management System (SMS) based on the Aviation Safety Officers Support (ASOS) service provided by ARG/US that has been extensively modified to fit our operation. Procedures for the system are maintained in an SMS Manual by our dedicated Manager of Safety. This manual, and the system it details, exceeds any requirement by the FAA. Aspects of our safety management system include the following:

•    Simple procedures for reporting (with no reprisal) operational hazards and anomalies, and for tracking, analyzing, and recommending changes to policies and procedures to address them
•    Monthly Internal Evaluations (IEP) comparing ACM to industry best standards and practices
•    Evaluating and Managing potential risk
•    External Audits (Wyvern, ARG/US, and multiple charter brokers)
•    Regular electronic and paper notices to employees of important safety information
•    An Emergency Response Plan (ERP) tested by multiple annual drills

ACM Aviation’s Safety System combines stringent requirements in operations, maintenance, quality assurance, and safety management.

ACM has forged an alliance with the FAA for the “FAA SMS Pilot Project” where a select group of operators team up with the FAA National Resource Specialist and co-operatively develop, mature, and test the ACM SMS.  ACM benefits from the direct guidance and council from the FAA specialist and the FAA benefits from observing the operator in the development and maturing process.   When the FAA mandates SMS in the future they will use the feedback provided by ACM for legislation.

ACM operates according to a Safety and Security Program that was developed by the Transportation and Security Administration.  In June of 2009 ACM was audited by the TSA Inspector who has direct oversight of our operation together with a TSA Inspection Team from Washington, DC and they found complete compliance with our operation. 

In early 2009, ACM had a formal Wyvern audit of Flight Operations and Maintenance procedures in which both departments were found to meet their highest standards, confirming that after 27 years in operation, ACM has successfully applied new approaches to time-tested policies and procedures.

Crew recruitment is vital to providing safe, efficient, personalized service.  Thanks to ACM Aviation’s reputation in the industry, we are able to attract and retain very experienced and capable crewmembers for our clients. ACM employs only Captain-rated pilots. All aircraft are released with “Co-captains”, with one pilot serving as the designated pilot in command.  FAA regulations require only one recurrent training event per year. However, ACM requires all pilots to be trained and checked on 6 month intervals.  Additionally, ACM has implemented its own proprietary “ACM Pilot Training Emphasis Program” that identifies 9 specific areas of training that include extreme cold temperature operations, low visibility operations, cockpit resource management, European and Asian airport operations, and Alternate Airport Departure Procedures. ACM pilots on average have 9,000 hours of aircraft flight time and decades of experience.

All of this attention to procedures, training and maintenance underscore the highest regard our company and it’s employees have for the safety of each and every flight we manage.