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Canadian
Aviation Safety Council,
Before presenting this year's award, though, let's focus for a moment on aviation safety and what it means in real terms. The human factor in aviation safety. CASARA Ontario's efforts &emdash; and those of everyone else concerned with search and rescue &emdash; are to be highly commended. But ultimately, we would all rather prevent accidents than deal with them. For Transport Canada, safety is our top priority. Our role is to regulate and oversee the air transportation system to ensure that everyone who flies in Canadian airspace, whether in a commercial jetliner or a single-engine Cessna, can take off, travel and land under the safest possible conditions. We take this responsibility very seriously.But regulation can only go so far. In aviation safety, the human factor is crucial. That's why CASARA helps deliver Transport Canada's flight safety message to the aviation community. Although we can always make incremental improvements to safety through new technology and better equipment, we cannot ignore the role of the human being flying the aircraft. Further reductions in accidents will also come through improvements in the field of human behavior. We must never neglect this crucial component of any safety program. This is the final frontier in aviation safety &emdash; learning how to help the person in control make the right judgments and do the right thing at the right time. You know better than anyone how little margin for error flight crews and maintenance personnel have. It's not surprising that human factors play a role in some 50 to 80 per cent of all aviation accidents. That's why "Human Factors Intervention Strategies" was chosen as the theme of this year's safety seminar. We come to this task well prepared. Canada is a world leader in human-factor research, and we have been at the forefront of the international effort to deal with this important aspect of flight. Transport Canada pioneered the field of human-factor research during the late 1970s. Its accident prevention manual was adopted by ICAO as the industry standard. As technology advanced and our scientific capabilities developed, Transport Canada began looking more closely at human factors and how they contribute to accidents. The department was the driving force behind ICAO's publication of 10 digests on the subject &emdash; booklets that are now being used by ICAO's 186 member States. Much of the material used in these publications originated in Canada. In fact, at the first-ever international conference on the human factor last month, the groundbreaking work of Transport Canada's own Gordon DuPont received international recognition. Gordon is to be congratulated &emdash; he can be proud of his fine work. I'm told that the next big breakthroughs in safety will come through changing behavior &emdash; when aviation personnel begin to think even more proactively about accident-prevention. Transport Canada has assembled here today some of the leading experts in the field of human factors research and program development. Our goal is to help you identify potential hazards in your operations and to provide you with usable strategies for preventing human error, before it can cause an accident. Right now for example, we're working very hard &emdash; as are our colleagues in industry and in other governments and government departments &emdash; to make sure that the so-called "millennium bug" associated with the arrival of the year 2000 has been thoroughly eradicated from all computer systems even remotely related to aviation. I would be remiss if I did not emphasize this major challenge to aviation safety. I am sure you are all familiar with this "bug," or, as it is also known the "Y2K problem." But have you really thought about what it means in real terms? In many quarters there is an alarming lack of appreciation of how far-reaching the associated problems could be. I won't go so far as a speaker at a recent conference who told his audience that if they hadn't yet done their Y2K homework they shouldn't bother to stay for the afternoon sessions. But his comment does underscore the fact that those who think they are immune to the effects of the bug may well be its first victims. So, please do stay for the rest of the seminar. But resolve today that, on your return home, you will ensure that your company, your organization, has assessed its vulnerability. If you conclude that you are in good shape in this regard, then turn your thoughts to what you may have to do if others &emdash; your suppliers, your customers, your colleagues &emdash; fall prey to it, or if unforeseen problems strike you. I urge you to develop contingency plans to deal with whatever happens. Only then can you really consider yourself ready to enter the new millennium without risk of compromising the safety of our transportation system. Improving aviation safety is important work, and I want to thank you for your participation today and your continued vigilance.
I also want to thank CASARA members for their tremendous contribution to the people of Canada &emdash; the promotion of aviation safety and, in particular, their impressive contribution to Department of National Defense search and rescue operations. Your volunteer members are known for their commitment &emdash; a commitment that extends to long hours of training, fund-raising and flight-safety promotion, to say nothing of the often hazardous duty of search-and-rescue. The time you donate to search and rescue has saved many lives and millions of dollars in time and resources. We recognize that, and are grateful. Last, but certainly not least, I want to acknowledge those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to help others, a sacrifice that has been commemorated in the Canadian Military Memorial Park at Air Command Headquarters in Winnipeg. The memorial in place there bears the names of eight CASARA volunteers and three members of the Canadian Forces who perished in two separate incidents in the Rocky Mountains while engaged in search and rescue activities. They represent the highest possible example of devotion to duty in the service of others. In addition to their names, the monument in Winnipeg is inscribed with the "CASARA Prayer," which was written by Dan Port, a CASARA spotter, and a friend and team-mate of the crew from Kootenay Zone CASARA BC, who were lost in 1996. I'd like to read you the words of the prayer: "As we go aloft on search, we are constantly reminded of the value that is placed on each and every life. Unselfishly, we give so that others are able to return home to their loved ones. We put our minds and bodies to the test so their families can be hugged once again. Each time we serve, we are reminded of the risks and demands placed upon us. We show our love to all mankind. If we must pay the ultimate sacrifice while doing this job, then we must trust that God will take us in with him. We know that each time we place our 'Eyes in the Skies' there will be no glory, no bands, no personal gain. We do it because it needed doing." There is little I can add to this eloquent message, except to say that we all hope and pray that no one will be called upon to make that sacrifice again. Ladies and gentlemen, may we have a moment of silence for these brave flyers. Meanwhile, we will rededicate ourselves to aviation safety, so that search and rescue missions may become less and less frequent. |
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