NATA Safety 1st Casts Safety Net

Welcome to The Safety Net, NATA’s Safety 1^st program blog!  My name is Michael France and I am NATA’s Director of Safety and Training for the Safety 1^st program. This blog is a new and interactive way for you, the Safety 1^st participant or NATA member, to stay up-to-date with the program. Here, we will share thoughts on safety and training issues, helpful hints, and tips for using Safety 1^st training more effectively. You won’t just hear from me either, the rest of the Safety 1^st and NATA team as well as a few recognized safety and training experts from across our industry are on board as contributors. We are also always open to new contributors and ideas, so if you have something to say about safety or training, do not hesitate to drop me a note at safety1st@nata.aero.

It is a very exciting time for NATA’s Safety 1^st program. As many of you are well aware, we are hard at work updating our Professional Line Service Training program (PLST). We surveyed several hundred Safety 1^st trainees and training administrators with the goal of making an already great training program, even better! It is too early in the process to talk about specifics of the update, but be on the look-out in early 2014 for news on next version of the PLST.

Earlier this year we launched the Safety 1^st Supervisor Online program, an FAA-authorized training program that meets the fire safety training requirements of Part 139.321. The course has been a hit with NATA members – hundreds of students have already completed it.  This course not only meets the regulatory requirements for a part 139 aviation fuel training course in fire safety, it also helps build the communication and training skills of your supervisors.

In just a few weeks, NATA Safety 1^st will be holding two seminars in Indianapolis, Indiana; our Line Service Supervisor Training (LSST), and a brand new seminar, the Aviation Management Workshop –which is presented in conjunction with Aviation Management Consulting Group. The LSST is our most well known seminar.  It includes a wide range of instruction, which is beneficial for new and long-time ramp supervisors. The LSST, much like the supervisor online, is also an FAA-authorized part 139.321 course. However, with the LSST, your staff gets the opportunity to interact with industry experts in the areas of aviation fuel quality control, leadership and training. This year we have upgraded the LSST to include hands-on fire extinguisher training.

The new Aviation Management Workshop is designed to provide a practical foundation for improving your performance as a leader and manager and to help you be more effective every day. This dynamic and interactive workshop is for aspiring, new, and long-time aviation leaders and managers.

To close out this inaugural blog post, we want to make sure that everyone in our industry is aware of the upcoming OSHA deadline for providing your employees training on the 2012 changes to the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard. OSHA is requiring that covered employers (and if you are an aviation business, you are likely covered) must complete this training by December 1 of this year. NATA Safety 1^st has scheduled a free webinar for Thursday, September 12 (add the time and link for members to sign up) to provide the basics on what Hazard Communications compliance entails. With the HazCom standard being the second most frequently cited OSHA standard last year, we hope you will have the time to join us for this free webinar.

Thanks for reading!

Michael France

Visit or return to NATA site: www.nata.aero
Visit or return to Safety 1st site: www.nata.aero/plst