scope:

The NAS is composed of documents, personnel, procedures, systems, facilities and services used to provide air traffic control and navigation services to our customers. This order applies to all components of the NAS owned and or operated by Terminal Services. SMS includes a monitoring function which validates and verifies the effectiveness of safety mitigations. The analysis, treatment, and the monitoring of hazards often require coordination among multiple organizations. SMS orders, guidance materials and implementation plans developed within Terminal Services define the processes and interactions among Service Units, Service Areas, Service Centers, Terminal Facilities and other organizations necessary to meet the requirements of this order. In addition, within the terminal environment there may be occasions where third party involvement in the SMS process will be provided by subject matter experts outside of ATO or the FAA.

The following are out of the scope of this order:

a. Hazards that are not directly related to the NAS.

b. Occupational Safety and Health Administration issues.

c. Information and Physical Security issues.

Purpose of This Order. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) assigns the highest priority to safety at all levels in the organization and continually strives to improve safety within the National Airspace System (NAS). One of the fundamental goals of the FAA is eliminating unacceptable risk from the NAS. As changes to the NAS increase in volume and complexity, maintaining the highest level of safety becomes of paramount importance.

The FAA is developing and implementing an integrated Safety Management System (SMS) within the Air Traffic Organization (ATO). The SMS integrates new safety elements into the current ATO safety processes, procedures, policies and programs. This order establishes the requirements, responsibilities and policy for SMS for all ATO Terminal Services employees with the primary goal of eliminating unacceptable risk from the NAS.