CAM Safety Management Systems (SMS) 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A line pilot reports a recurring unstable approach trend at a specific airport. Under safety risk management, what is the first step after hazard identification?
- Analyze and assess the risk in terms of probability and severity (Correct answer)
- Publish a company-wide bulletin immediately
- Close the airport to company operations permanently
- File an insurance claim preemptively
Correct answer: Analyze and assess the risk in terms of probability and severity
After a hazard is identified, safety risk management requires analyzing its probability and severity before selecting controls.
Question 2: Which activity belongs to the safety assurance component of an SMS?
- Internal audits and continuous monitoring of safety performance (Correct answer)
- Drafting the initial safety policy statement
- Designing the new-hire safety orientation course
- Selecting the risk matrix color scheme
Correct answer: Internal audits and continuous monitoring of safety performance
Safety assurance verifies through audits, monitoring, and evaluation that risk controls remain effective.
Question 3: What distinguishes a Flight Operational Quality Assurance (FOQA) program within an SMS?
- It analyzes routinely recorded flight data to detect operational deviations (Correct answer)
- It relies solely on anonymous crew questionnaires
- It only reviews data after an accident occurs
- It replaces the need for pilot training records
Correct answer: It analyzes routinely recorded flight data to detect operational deviations
FOQA uses de-identified recorded flight data to proactively spot exceedances and trends in normal operations.
Question 4: A flight department discovers a hazard whose assessed risk falls in the intolerable (red) region of the risk matrix. What must occur?
- The operation must stop until controls reduce the risk to an acceptable level (Correct answer)
- The operation continues while paperwork is filed
- The hazard is logged for annual review
- Only the crew involved is notified
Correct answer: The operation must stop until controls reduce the risk to an acceptable level
Intolerable risks require stopping the activity until mitigation reduces the risk to at least a tolerable level.
Question 5: In SMS terminology, what is the difference between a hazard and a risk?
- A hazard is a condition that could cause harm; risk is the assessed probability and severity of that harm (Correct answer)
- They are interchangeable terms
- A risk is physical while a hazard is financial
- A hazard only exists after an accident
Correct answer: A hazard is a condition that could cause harm; risk is the assessed probability and severity of that harm
A hazard is a potential source of harm, while risk quantifies the likelihood and severity of that harm occurring.
Question 6: Which scenario best illustrates a latent condition as described in Reason's Swiss cheese model?
- An outdated maintenance manual procedure that lies dormant until a mechanic follows it (Correct answer)
- A pilot deliberately flying below minimums
- A bird strike on short final
- A sudden microburst at the destination
Correct answer: An outdated maintenance manual procedure that lies dormant until a mechanic follows it
Latent conditions are dormant organizational weaknesses, such as flawed procedures, that combine with active failures to cause accidents.
Question 7: Why should safety objectives in an SMS be written as SMART goals?
- Measurable, time-bound objectives allow performance to be tracked and assured (Correct answer)
- Regulators require a specific font and format
- It reduces the cost of insurance premiums automatically
- It eliminates the need for safety meetings
Correct answer: Measurable, time-bound objectives allow performance to be tracked and assured
SMART objectives make safety performance measurable so assurance activities can verify progress.
CAM Safety Management Systems (SMS) 3
A line pilot reports a recurring unstable approach trend at a specific airport.
Under safety risk management, what is the first step after hazard identification?