SITA, JDA and Intelex joins forces as FAA Safety mandate nears

Three industry leaders – SITA, JDA and Intelex – have joined forces to offer SITA AirportSafety Management an integrated safety management system (SMS) solution to meet the proposed Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Part 139 SMS rule due later this year. The FAA rule will affect more than 540 commercial airports in the United States.

This mandate is expected to come into force in mid- to late 2012. At that point, the airports it will impact will have between 18 – 24 months to design and implement a SMS and safety manual as defined by the mandate.

An SMS helps to streamline airport operations by using safety risk management (SRM) processes coupled with technology to integrate people and systems that today are organized independently by the Part 139 function. As the world’s leading IT provider for the air transport industry, SITA delivers an SMS solution that optimizes and integrates human, technical and organizational factors across functional and departmental boundaries to provide seamless and effective safety for airports.

The three organizations have different areas of expertise which, combined, offer airports the most comprehensive and cost effective solution to meet the SMS requirements. SITA is the leading global IT provider to the air transport industry, including airports. In North America, close to 50 airports serving more than 845 million passengers use SITA’s technology to run efficient operations. SITA also works extensively with US Government departments, including the Department of Homeland Security, US Customs and Border Protection, and the FAA.

JDA Aviation Technology Solutions is a leader in aviation safety, certification and compliance services. Collectively, JDA has over 1,000 years of FAA, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), and industry experience in providing aviation system safety services. It is a qualified FAA certification consultant and a MITRE licensed SMS training and implementation organization. Intelex Technologies supplies state-of-the-art SMS data collection and reporting applications to a variety of industries. Together these three experts provide airports the opportunity to be fully compliant as the new standards are set by the FAA this year.

SITA AirportSafety Management is an all-inclusive approach to SMS that builds on SITA’s decades of experience of airport system integration and its ability to manage complex airport implementations. It leverages JDA’s SMS design, implementation and compliance services and Intelex’s state-of-the-art SMS data collection and reporting application giving airports the technology and resources to deliver an effective SMS.

Ilya Gutlin, SITA Vice-President Airport Solutions, said: “SITA provides airports with a single point of contact to help manage the complex process of designing, implementing and supporting a compliant SMS. We understand airports and know that each, though similar, is different and therefore requires a unique SMS approach to meet its specific needs. With JDA and Intelex, we will provide our airport clients with a comprehensive solution to meet this rapidly approaching challenge and will allow airports to ensure compliance while saving time and money.”

Joe DelBalzo, CEO, JDA Aviation Technology Solutions, said: “The Transportation Research Board characterizes data collection and management as the backbone of any SMS. JDA’s expertise in aviation safety and airport operations, coupled with SITA’s global expertise in aviation technology, and Intelex industry-proven SMS application provide our clients with all of the critical talent and technology backbone to deliver a turnkey SMS solution.”

John Phyper, EVP of Sales, Marketing and Alliances at Intelex Technologies, said: “This is a great opportunity for the more than 500 airports to benefit from the experience of Intelex in designing and delivering environmental, health, safety and quality management systems to over 600 clients, representing more than 500,000 users. We have designed an SMS application specifically for airports that is very user-friendly and is aligned with ICAO and the FAA’s SMS design and implementation methodology. Along with JDA’s consultancy and SITA’s air transport expertise, airports can be confident of a comprehensive approach to their SMS implementation.”

SITA, with its partners, is in dialog with several airports in anticipation of the FAA ruling expected this year, and is assisting them to meet the approaching deadlines for compliance.