Accountable Executive
DA SMS Operations & Individual Responsibilities

Gold Aviation Services is a FAA Part 135 on-demand air charter operator based at KFLL, operating under South Florida FSDO-19. Our SMS is implemented under 14 CFR Part 5 — the FAA's mandatory SMS regulation for Part 135 certificate holders.

The SMS is structured around four key roles:

• Accountable Executive (AE) — ultimate accountability for the SMS. Has authority over resources required to implement and maintain the system. Signs the safety policy.
• Director of Safety (DOS) — day-to-day management of the SMS. Administers the reporting system, manages the CASS process, conducts audits, and maintains SMS records.
• Director of Maintenance (DOM) — ultimate regulatory authority for maintenance. Participates in the SAG and ensures maintenance-related hazards are addressed.
• Department Representatives — designated individuals from Flight Ops, Maintenance, and Management who participate in the Safety Action Group.

Safety Action Group (SAG): Meets regularly to review safety reports, assess risk, recommend corrective actions, and monitor open CASS items. The SAG is the operational heart of our Safety Assurance process.

Safety Board: Chaired by the Accountable Executive. Meets quarterly to review safety performance data, SPI trends, audit results, and SAG recommendations. Provides organizational direction on safety priorities and resource allocation.

The Gold Aviation voluntary safety reporting system is the primary mechanism for hazard identification. You can submit a report for any safety concern — near-miss, hazard observation, operational error, equipment issue, or unsafe condition — at any time.

How to submit: Reports are submitted through the Gold Safety SMS platform. The Director of Safety is your point of contact for all safety reports.

What to report:

• Any near-miss or unplanned event that could have resulted in injury, damage, or loss
• Any hazard you observe — in operations, maintenance, facilities, or process
• Errors you made or observed that could recur
• Organizational conditions (pressure, fatigue, communication failures) that are creating safety risk
• Anything that didn't feel right — even if nothing went wrong

What happens after you report:

1. The Director of Safety acknowledges your report
2. The report is classified by hazard type and risk level
3. If corrective action is required, a CASS is opened and assigned
4. The SAG reviews the report and monitors the corrective action to closure
5. You may be contacted for additional information — this is part of the process, not an investigation of you

The Flight Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT) is a pre-flight risk scoring tool that quantifies operational risk before each flight. It is completed by the Pilot in Command before every flight.

The FRAT evaluates risk factors across several categories including weather, crew experience, airport complexity, time of day, and flight time. Each factor is assigned a weighted score and the total determines the overall risk level.

• Low risk — proceed normally
• Medium risk — review mitigations, proceed with caution
• High risk — contact the Director of Safety. Do not depart until mitigations reduce risk to an acceptable level or the flight is cancelled

The FRAT is a proactive hazard identification tool — part of Gold Aviation Services' Safety Risk Management process. A High FRAT score is not a failure. It is the system working as intended.

Just culture begins with you. The Accountable Executive's commitment to non-punitive reporting is not a policy statement — it is a behavioral standard that every employee in the organization observes and responds to.

Your just culture responsibilities as Accountable Executive:

• Protect reporters — if you learn that an employee faced adverse consequences for a good-faith safety report, that must be corrected immediately and visibly. Any tolerance of retaliation against reporters destroys reporting culture.
• Model transparency — when safety concerns are raised at the Safety Board level, engage with them openly. Avoiding uncomfortable safety data sends the wrong message.
• Distinguish mistakes from misconduct — in any safety-related personnel matter, ensure the just culture framework is applied before any disciplinary action is considered.
• Resource the fix — when the Director of Safety brings you a resource request to address a safety issue, responding with adequate resources is the most direct demonstration of your safety commitment.

The Accountable Executive has specific, non-delegable obligations under 14 CFR Part 5. These are not administrative tasks — they are the regulatory foundation of Gold Aviation Services' SMS:

• Signed safety policy — the safety policy must bear your signature and be communicated to all personnel. It establishes the organization's safety objectives, accountability framework, and commitment to non-punitive reporting.
• Resource authority — you must have control over the financial and human resources necessary to implement and maintain the SMS. When the Director of Safety identifies a resource need to address a safety risk, the decision to provide or withhold those resources rests with you.
• Safety Board participation — chair the quarterly Safety Board. Review safety performance data, SPI trends, audit findings, and corrective action status. Provide organizational direction on safety priorities.
• SMS compliance deadline — Gold Aviation Services must achieve full 14 CFR Part 5 compliance by May 28, 2027. This is your regulatory deadline, not the Director of Safety's.
• Training completion — complete all assigned SMS training modules. The Accountable Executive's training record is part of the compliance evidence package.

Understanding what happens after a report is submitted helps reinforce why reporting matters — and what to expect if you are involved in a follow-up.

The Corrective Action Safety Sheet (CASS) is the tool Gold Aviation Services uses to document, track, and close corrective actions arising from safety reports, audit findings, and investigations. When a hazard is identified that requires action, a CASS is opened.

The CASS process:

1. Initiation — DOS opens a CASS, assigns a number, and documents the hazard and risk level
2. Investigation — root cause is identified. Contributing factors are documented.
3. Corrective action — a specific action is assigned to a responsible party with a due date
4. Implementation — the assigned party completes the corrective action
5. Verification — DOS verifies the action was completed and effective
6. Closure — CASS is closed with documentation. The SAG reviews and concurs.

You may be contacted by the DOS during the investigation phase for additional information. This is a normal part of the process — it is not an investigation of you personally, and it does not affect your just culture protections.