Aviation News Item: 09539

10th Jun 2010

Source: aviationtoday.com

During his keynote speech Tuesday at Rotor & Wing's Safety and Training Summit in Denver, FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt called for helicopter operators to continue striving for perfection while praising the efforts of the International Helicopter Safety Team (IHST). "In safety, good enough is never good enough. Greatness is our target here," Babbitt proclaimed, noting that while helicopter accidents have decreased in recent years, operators need to avoid becoming complacent in regards to accident prevention and recurrent training.

"The safety record of this industry is absolutely headed in the right direction," he said. "But when we're headed in the right direction, that phrase in and of itself is not good enough. We need to keep moving in that direction, and that takes renewed focus, time and time again." Babbitt continued: "Finding ways to improve pilot decision-making, better training, better access to helicopter simulators, adopting safety management practices and improving maintenance practices-all of these things put together add up to a safer operating environment."

Look for the full version of this story in the July 2010 print edition of Rotor & Wing. For video segments from Babbitt's keynote speech, click here.

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