The highest priority for NATS is safety. Our safety objective is to maintain and, where practicable, improve standards to achieve the highest levels of safety performance. To this end the whole structure and culture of the company is focused on safety.
Managing Safety
NATS applies a systematic safety management system to all of its operational activities. NATS was one of the world’s first air traffic management providers to implement a safety management system. This formal approach is founded on documented safety policies, safety principles and safety procedures. The system forms the basis for risk assessment, safety assurance, safety control and safety monitoring.
Through the SMS, safety is given the highest priority by rigorous reviews of the safety implications of every activity within the ATM operation. The SMS maintains explicit safety standards which comply with national and international obligations.
Delivering a Safe Service
Our service is delivered by highly trained controllers supported by sophisticated technical systems. Controllers undertake an extensive four year training programme from initial entry to becoming fully operational. They are then subject to a continuous process of assessment of operational competence with annual reviews and re-validation by the safety regulator.
Rigorous External Regulation
NATS is subject to tough safety regulation from the Civil Aviation Authority which is a leader in the field of regulating air traffic services. The model of independent safety regulation is increasingly being adopted world-wide in the Air Traffic Management industry.
Independent Safety Advice
The Safety Review Committee (SRC) is a top-level Board committee supported by independent experts from safety related fields that assists NATS in setting new ‘best in class’ safety standards. The role of the SRC is to monitor and review the effectiveness of the safety arrangements in place in the company and provide advice on improvement where necessary .
The Committee is authorised to seek any information it requires from any employee of the company in order to perform its duties.
Monitoring Safety Performance
NATS has a comprehensive safety incident reporting and investigation process. This provides vital information that is used to identify areas for safety improvement. NATS is committed to maintaining a ‘just’ culture to encourage the free and honest reporting of safety incidents and concerns.
Safety Strategy
NATS is committed to delivering exceptional safety performance, and to leading and delivering safety innovation beyond our direct responsibility. Over the past few years, we have revolutionised our thinking on safety and have a much deeper understanding of the causes, both internal and external to NATS, that lead to safety incidents. Consequently, to reflect this, NATS has published a new Strategic Plan for Safety 2007. Its purpose is to lay out how our organisation will continue to improve the safety of the air traffic management system over the next ten years. It details how NATS intends to deliver against the safety policy by setting 4 strategic safety objectives, identifying 14 key priorities and establishing long term strategies to address them. A key difference from previous versions is that for the first time we will be predicting the impact of planned safety improvement actions by illustrating risk reduction over time in our key risk areas.
Download: Strategic Plan for Safety 2007 (zip)
Download: Strategic Plan for Safety 2007 (pdf)
If you would like to provide feedback, please do not hesitate to contact us through safety.strategy@nats.co.uk
