Flexjet, a leading luxury private aviation company, formally submitted its declaration of compliance to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that it meets the new mandatory rule for 14CFR Part 5 Safety Management System (SMS). As an industry leader in aviation safety standards, Flexjet's strong commitment to creating, adopting and improving upon current safety standards puts it in the top 1% of private jet providers in compliance with the FAA's SMS program. Flexjet also promotes and practices transparency and sharing data that propels industry safety measures forward, beyond mandatory guidelines.
This declaration follows Flexjet's initial active conformance with the FAA's SMS Voluntary Program (SMSVP) in October 2021. Since then, the company has been in the process of significantly enhancing its existing SMS to incorporate requirements from other global aviation regulators. As a result, Flexjet meets and exceeds many of the FAA's requirements as part of the CFR Part 5 SMS and does so well ahead of the May 2027 deadline for this mandate.
"We pride ourselves in our nonstop pursuit of best-in-class safety practices, ensuring our aircraft Owners have the utmost peace of mind when in a Flexjet aircraft," said Charles Starkowsky, Chief Safety Officer at Flexjet. "It takes an organization-wide culture of safety to be able to proactively build out a Safety Management System like this so far ahead of the FAA's deadline, and Flexjet is a prime example for the industry to follow."
Though not an FAA requirement, Flexjet has, throughout its 30-year history, actively participated in a formal, top-down, bottom-up, organization-wide approach to managing safety risk and assuring the effectiveness of safety risk controls. This includes systematic procedures, practices and policies for safety risk management. This advanced SMS provides an additional layer of protection for our aircraft Owners, pilots, crews and ground personnel.
Flexjet's declaration of compliance adds to a lengthy list of safety certifications and awards that were secured thanks to a comprehensive framework of processes, policies and proprietary data built by top safety experts to ensure the highest degree of safety standards in the industry. These additional recognitions include a platinum safety rating from ARGUS, an Industry Audit Standard (IAS) certification, an IS-BAO Stage 2 compliance certification and 25 years winning the FAA Diamond Award of Excellence for Aviation Maintenance Technician Training.
Flexjet's comprehensive Corporate Safety Management System is built on four important components: