USAIG Welcomes Air Charter Safety Foundation’s (ACSF) – Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) to its Performance Vector Safety Initiative
New York, New York, Oct. 10, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- USAIG, one of the world’s leading aviation-specific insurance providers, proudly welcomes the Air Charter Safety Foundation’s (ACSF) Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) to its Performance Vector safety initiative. Performance Vector delivers valuable, forward-looking safety support for USAIG-insured operators of turbine aircraft. Eligible policyholders can choose annually from a range of programs and services delivered by leading providers. The ACSF is a nonprofit aviation safety organization that leads and supports world-class safety performance in the charter, business and fractional ownership aviation segments.
“We are pleased to partner with USAIG on this important safety initiative, which has a proven track record of improving safety in those organizations that embrace the ASAP philosophy of using submitted reports for the sole purpose of improving safety,” said ACSF President Bryan Burns.
A key part of ACSF’s strategy is its administration of an Aviation Safety Action Program (ASAP) under an agreement with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Most flight departments offer employees a way to report safety hazards or concerns, but such programs can want for in-house capacity or expertise to process reports in a systemic way, and often lack means to share information for industry-wide benefit. The ASAP addresses those gaps by providing a robust process to collect, analyze and propose corrective action for reported safety hazards, incidents or concerns. De-identified data from ASAP reports is also archived into a growing database of safety information to support learning and continuous improvement across the industry. Participating organizations execute a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ACSF and the FAA, and their employees gain a straightforward way to make reports online.
“ACSF’s ASAP puts reliable follow-through and information sharing in place for employee safety reports, without the flight department having to do that for itself. That cuts administrative overhead for busy operators while at the same time represents a clear step toward fostering a positive safety culture. We are delighted to connect our policyholders with the ACSF ASAP,” said Paul Ratté, USAIG’s Director Aviation Safety Programs.
An event review committee with members from ACSF, FAA and ASAP-participating organizations reviews every report, identifies and communicates corrective actions as appropriate, and approves qualifying reports for archiving. This frees participating organizations from those functions and ensures a standardized, unbiased and timely process. To foster an open and non-punitive context, the FAA applies favorable consideration for reports where violation of the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs) may be implied, but no malicious intent is indicated.
In keeping with the ASAP MOU and the FAA’s new compliance philosophy, no FAA administrative or enforcement action is used for reports accepted into ASAP. ACSF is approved by the FAA as an ASAP program manager for Part 91 flight departments, Part 135 charter operators and 91K program managers in all FAA Regions in the lower 48 states. The requirements to become an ACSF ASAP participant are:
- Be an ACSF member (annual organizational membership dues apply)
- Pay an annual ASAP administrative fee
- Execute an ASAP Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between own organization, ACSF and FAA
With the addition of the ACSF ASAP to USAIG’s Performance Vector program, eligible policyholders can now apply their annual safety benefit toward enrolling or annually renewing their ASAP participation. Fees for ACSF membership and ASAP participation are predicated on the operator’s fleet and workforce size, respectively. For policyholders with 25 or fewer employees and/or fleets up to six total aircraft, selection of the USAIG Performance Vector ACSF ASAP option results in USAIG covering both the annual ACSF membership dues and the annual ASAP administrative fee. Policyholder organizations larger than that can still utilize this offer, but must self-address their ACSF membership, and USAIG will cover the annual ASAP administrative fee.
For additional information about the USAIG Performance Vector program and for details concerning benefits of an ACSF organizational membership, click here or contact Paul Ratté, USAIG Director of Aviation Safety Programs at: [email protected].
Learn More at the NBAA Convention
Visit USAIG at the NBAA convention in Las Vegas from October 10-12, booth #C11032. USAIG’s team of aviation insurance and safety experts will be on hand to answer questions and talk about this new initiative.
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About USAIG
United States Aircraft Insurance Group (USAIG) provides a full spectrum of coverage options for owners, operators, manufacturers and maintainers of corporate, private and commercial aircraft. In 1928, our founders – World War I pilots and businessmen David Beebe and Reed Chambers – saw the need for an insurance company that truly understood aviation. We remain a world aviation insurance leader delivering innovative, custom-tailored insurance products and services, including Performance Vector safety programs and Performance Vector PLUS good experience returns. Additionally, USAIG has established Performance Vector Unmanned specifically for UAS policyholders by providing the added benefit of safety services at no cost to the insured. United States Aviation Underwriters, Inc. manages USAIG, maintaining the industry’s largest network of underwriting and field claims offices. USAU’s wholly owned subsidiary, Toronto-based Canadian Aviation Insurance Managers manages the Canadian Aircraft Insurance Group insurance pool. USAIG is a subsidiary of General Re Corporation, a Berkshire Hathaway company. Follow us on Twitter @USAIG_CAIG, Facebook & LinkedIn. usaig.com
About Air Charter Safety Foundation (ACSF)
The ACSF is a non-profit membership organization with common safety goals. The ACSF’s vision is to enable on-demand charter providers and fractional program managers the ability to achieve the highest levels of safety in the aviation industry through: 1) Promotion and facilitation of risk management programs; 2) Advocacy for industry adoption of one common audit standard; 3) Dissemination of safety information; and 4) Creation of additional programs that advance the goals of the Foundation. Please visit their website at acsf.aero.
