Introduction to EASA Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) and Flight Operations Quality Assurance (FOQA) Programs

What is Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA)?

Even though Aviation is probably the safest form of mass transport, there remains an inherent obligation to reduce exposure and thereby drive down accident rates.

Operational Flight Data Monitoring, known more recently as Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA), is probably the most important safety tool available to aviation.

Essentially Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) is the exploitation of flight data to support an understanding of the various exposures, the knowledge of which, may successfully lead to the development of mitigations which can be employed to enhance flight safety.

According to Commission Regulation (EU) 965/2012, “Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) means the proactive and non-punitive use of digital flight data from routine operations to improve aviation safety”.

An EASA Flight Data Monitoring System (FDM) provides a set of tools for the operator to monitor operational safety. (FDM becomes the main data sources for monitoring the operational safety level.)

Using Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) as a tool within a Safety Management System (SMS)

With the advent of the concept of the (Safety) Management System, FDM is a natural data source for the Management System. According to Regulation (EC) 2018/1178 Annex IV, 8.a.4, ‘the operator must implement and maintain a management system to ensure compliance with these essential requirements for operations and aim for continuous improvement of this system’.

EASA uses the term ‘Management System’ which is considered to encompass the ICAO concept of ‘safety management system’.

The use of Flight data monitoring (FDM) within the airline's Safety Management System (SMS) may offer a powerful tool to enable the operator to improve and monitor its operational safety and raise awareness of safety issues within the company.

Managing Digital Data within a Flight Data Monitoring System

The amount of Digital Data available in modern aircraft facilitates FDM providing the opportunity for effective analysis which is essential to provide for the best decisions regarding both the performance of flight crew as well as the aircraft systems and processes.

When considered alongside a reporting system, FDM can become a vital and integral part of an effective and integrated Operators Management System.

An important element of this oversight is how the FDM data is used and analysed by the aircraft operator in order to define adequate measures for safety improvement and assurance.

Event data may be managed to facilitate the wider and longer-term trend analysis so that events & issues can be identified and corrective action taken.

Sofema Aviation Services www.sassofia.com offers classroom training in Flight Data Monitoring techniques/SofemaOnline www.sofemaonline.com offers an intensive online course covering all the fundamentals of an effective Flight Data Monitoring System. For details please email office@sassofia.com or online@sassofia.com