Aviation has a long history of innovation that brings safety improvement and wider enhancements. New technology provides many opportunities, but in some cases it can introduce potential new safety issues that require mitigation.
As more new entrants such as air taxi, eVTOL and space planes enter the market, our already congested airspace will become more saturated.
The SIRM discussed the impact of new technology on the aviation system, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence (AI).
It was recognized AI presents a significant opportunity with the potential to provide enhancements to many areas of aviation including safety analysis, air traffic management and aircraft design to name but a few.
However, the group also raised various challenges and concerns. Who is accountable for the AI? How do we ensure security is robust? How do we teach and train AI? The importance of certification was highlighted, including trustworthiness.
Regulation is emerging to follow the introduction of artificial intelligence, but it is already lagging behind since AI is progressing rapidly and the traditional rulemaking process has a long lead time. Greater agility is required in regulation.
In exploring AI, SIRM members discussed that organizations may wish to first utilize it within low-risk applications, such as baggage tracking, before moving into areas with the potential to impact safety. It was considered that monitoring has an important role to play.
The industry has to consider and address ‘perceived safety’ from the consumer perspective which requires community engagement, social acceptance and the building of trust.
The SIRM highlighted the importance of the protection of information. Ensuring safety data remains confidential is a critical fundamental to establishing an open reporting culture. More widely, the introduction of new technology may bring with it cyber security threats which should be identified and mitigated as part of an information security management system.
