Confidential Human Factors Incident Reporting

Programme

The CHIRP Charitable Trust

Ian Dugmore – Chief Executive (Retired)

CHIRP

ARPAS UK

19 March 2019

Scope

• What is CHIRP and what is our role

in UK safety reporting?

• CHIRP’s support to safe RPAS

operations.

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CHIRP’s Role & Mission

• The role of the Trust is to manage an

independent, voluntary confidential reporting

programme for the aviation and maritime

industries

• CHIRP’s mission is to improve the safety of the

travelling public and that of individuals employed

within or associated with aviation and maritime

operations

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Aviation Programmes

Background, Funding & Regulatory Underpinning

• Commenced 1982

• Funded by the Civil Aviation Authority since 1997

• Civil Aviation Publication CAP 1180 – State Safety

Programme for the United Kingdom published in July

2014. Para 4.34 states: CHIRP is a voluntary reporting

scheme as required by ICAO Annex 13 para 8.3.

• EU Regulation No 376/2014 - Article 5 makes provision

for independent systems for collection and processing of

safety information that might not otherwise be captured.

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Reporters are encouraged to report directly through

company/CAA safety reporting systems.

Safety reports only: CHIRP has no remit to accept reports about

industrial relations, contractual issues etc.

Reporting Relationships - UK

Normal Operations

Incidents

Injury

Accidents

{CHIRP

Aircraft Accident

Investigations Branch {Fatal

Accidents

{CAA Mandatory

Occurrence Reports

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The CHIRP Charitable Trust

Trustees

Secretariat

Trustees• Head of Air Accidents Investigation Branch

• Head of Marine Accident Investigation Branch

• CAA Head of Safety Reporting

• Chief Executive Maritime Coastguard Agency

• Representatives from Maritime Sponsors

• Independent Aviation and Maritime Members

Secretariat (7):• Aviation

• Director Aviation

• Cabin Crew Programme Manager & Company

Secretary

• Deputy Director (Engineering) - part time

• Maritime

• Director Maritime

• 3 part time Maritime Assistants CHIRP

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CHIRP Charitable Trust

Trustees

Secretariat

Air Transport Advisory Board

Cabin Crew Advisory Board

General Aviation Advisory Board

Maritime Advisory Board

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Air Transport Advisory Board

Aircraft Accident Investigation Branch Association of Licensed Aircraft Engineers

Agusta Westland Babcock

British Airline Pilots Association Bristows Helicopters

British Airways Engineering Business & General Aviation Association

CAA Chief Medical Officer CAA Airworthiness

CAA Flight Operations CAA Air Traffic Standards Investigations

easyJet Flight Operations Liaison Group

Guild of Air Traffic Control Officers Military Aviation Authority

National Air Traffic Services Ryanair

Thomas Cook Airlines UNITE Trade Union

Virgin Atlantic Airways UK Airprox Board

UK Flight Safety Committee

Independent pilot, ATCO and engineer Members

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Reporting Process

Reporters

CHIRP

Industry CAA

Follow-up &

FEEDBACK are

most important

CHIRP

Advisory

Boards

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FEEDBACK

• By letter to the reporter

• By FEEDBACK newsletter

– Air Transport FEEDBACK e-mailed to 33700 UK professional

pilots, ATCOs, FISOs and licenced engineers

– General Aviation FEEDBACK e-mailed to 20000 GA pilots

– 3000 hard copies of Cabin Crew FEEDBACK distributed via

operators and trade unions

– Additional copies reproduced and distributed by operators

• All editions of FEEDBACK available on tablet and

smartphone App

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Reporting Levels

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018

Flight Crew 82 71 61 63 77 164

Cabin Crew 244 245 235 242 1190 1144

ATCOs 10 8 10 10 6 10

Engineers 21 22 24 19 17 14

GA 51 46 23 44 42 37

Ground Handling &

Security- - - 12 9 13

Air Display - - - 5 2 2

Aviation Total 408 392 353 395 1343 1384

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Why are Human Factors Incidents not reported?

• Fear of punitive action by either the aviation regulatory authorities, employers, or both.

– Just Culture?

• Belief or experience that the only visible result of submitting an incident report was an investigation which sometimes brought about negative consequences, but never any positive response.

• Incident report seen as just more ‘red tape’

• The perception by individuals that publicly admitting they had made a mistake by submitting an incident report on their own performance made them look inferior to their peers.

("CAIR in Australia" - Alan L Stray, 1990)

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Scope

• What is CHIRP and what is our role

in UK safety reporting?

• CHIRP’s support to safe RPAS

operations.

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RPAS ReportingRPAS safety/hazard reporting processes should mirror those used in manned aviation as closely as possible to foster a cooperative ethos of ‘all on the same team’.

• Professional RPAS pilots– Reporters will be encouraged to use company or CAA reporting

processes as appropriate.

– For those unwilling to report openly, CHIRP will forward disidentified reports to the organisation best able to investigate/address the reported issue.

– Identities of reporter’s and operators protected.

• Amateur/Leisure RPAS pilots may have no background in, or knowledge of aviation, airmanship or reporting processes.– CHIRP’s role will be to guide and educate reporters to become

‘air-minded’.

– Reporters will be encouraged to think of themselves as part of the national aviation community in which the processes, permissions and responsibilities are coherent throughout.14

The Way Ahead

• Funding

• Timing

• Promoting the Programme – Reporting relies on awareness of CHIRP as a conduit. CHIRP

will require assistance in promoting the Programme to the reporting populations from:

• CAA

• RPAS Operators

• ARPAS UK

• Air Navigation Service Providers

– NATS Drone Assist

– FEEDBACK Newsletter

• E-mail distribution

• ARPAS & Operator assistance

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Summary

• CHIRP is a well-established facility for reporting safety

issues independent of the regulator, employers and unions

– A safety net for CAA Mandatory Occurrence Reporting and industry

reporting

• People will report errors and hazards if the conditions are

right and it is easy to do.

• CHIRP intends to use the same processes for RPAS

reporting as has been used successfully in manned

aviation for many years.

• Requires cooperation between operators and CHIRP

• Think of CHIRP as part of the national safety team and not

a competitor

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Questions?

www.chirp.co.uk @CHIRP_Aviation