At Blackcomb Aviation, we choose to invest in safety. As part of this investment, we continuously call upon leadership and management to mentor a meaningful safety culture. We insist, through clearly defined policy, that every member of our team is a participant in our safety culture and accountable for their actions.

Our safety cornerstone was laid, and is sustained, by the unanimous consent and quarterly endorsement of our Board. Building on this foundation through an investment in a dedicated safety and quality management division, we are able to shepherd a culture of safety and empower our highly motivated people. We constantly measure and adjust our programs and systems to keep them vigilant and vibrant, and we are relentless in our pursuit of safety excellence.

For each one of us at Blackcomb Aviation, our colleagues, clients and partners, safety is an intrinsic element connecting every aspect of our business.

Proactively, and in advance of regulation, we made a commitment to safety management through the implementation of a non-punitive, voluntary safety reporting system. Today, several years later, this program has evolved into clearly defined policy, endorsed by our Accountable Executive and President. This program is managed solely by a Safety and Quality Manager, Gary Grass, whose Air Force Safety Management credentials date back to 1986. Mr. Grass provides leadership to the program through a passion for excellence in safety leadership that is backed by two decades of experience.

At Blackcomb, Safety and Quality are conspicuously separated from Operations and Maintenance in order to eliminate any possible conflict of interest. Recognizing the need to distance production and operations’ cycles from safety and quality is an integral aspect of critical decision making within the organization at all levels. Taking this one step further, Blackcomb’s Safety Manager hosts, and holds, veto power in all risk assessment processes.

Blackcomb’s SMS and QA programs have been rigorously audited by third parties such as Wyvern, Barrick Gold, R. Dixon Speas, BC Hydro, Transport Canada, and most recently, ARG/US Gold.

In 2006, following extensive research of current SMS products, Blackcomb Aviation undertook the unique step of designing, developing and creating a comprehensive SMS Portal, a holistic, web-based, secure SMS relational database and Knowledge Management System. Online since December 7, 2009, Blackcomb’s SMS Portal enables worldwide, ‘real time’ access to each member of our team, our partners, and our clients who can input, track, manage, and substantiate data driven change to maintain the continued safe conduct of all company operations. In creating this database, expertise at the theoretical level, inclusive of human factors, database design, and aviation subject matter expertise, was engaged to ensure system, program and functional integrity of this unique and powerful tool.

Blackcomb Aviation recognizes that safety relies solely upon the actions and personal accountabilities of people. We maintain and ensure that our people are committed to excellence in their roles on behalf of our company through the creation of clearly written policy, the provision of extensive training, and through continuous evaluation. Our people know what is expected of them. Our objective is to help them succeed above and beyond both our expectations, and their own.

Blackcomb’s past performance and ongoing initiative in SMS leadership is recognized by our customers as our single most valuable asset. It is the underpinning of everything we do from the aircraft we purchase to the people we hire. Safety is an investment we choose to make and will continue to make. It defines our leadership role in the aviation industry and differentiates our business from that of our competitors. Safety speaks to who we are as professionals and as a company.

For further information on Blackcomb Aviation’s SMS and QA programs, contact:

Chris Mueller
Manager, SMS & QA
cmueller@blackcombaviation.com
1-877-273-5311
604-273-5311