Louis Halley, Head of the Department of Civil Aviation & Shipping and Maritime said that the State Safety Programme course is derived from the ICAO Safety Management Manual (Doc 9859) which is mandatory for a state. It is the basis for the development for Safety Management System (SMS), which is also mandatory to Civil Aviation Service Providers.
The instructors from ICAO were Technical Officer in Air Traffic Management Mr. Drazen Gardilcic and a Senior Operations Inspector seconded by the ACSA-COCESNA RSOO, Capt. Rodrigo Brenes, who held the safety program implementation course from the 15th to the 18th of October 2012.
The topics covered included basic aviation safety concepts, fundamentals of safety management, hazard identification and risk management, ICAO safety management related provisions, and the development and implementation of the St. Maarten safety program.
The course allowed participants to obtain theoretical knowledge and practical experience on the planning and implementation of the State Safety Programme.
Halley said that the participants in the course—who all passed the final test—demonstrated their ability to apply their newly acquired knowledge in a practical setting.
This course was attended by seven top aviation professionals from the St. Maarten Civil Aviation Authority.
