Charter & Fractional
NATA Launching SMS Pilot for Charters, Repair Stations
The NATA project will gather data on practical ways to implement SMS for the Parts 135 and 145 communities.

The National Air Transportation Association is launching a Voluntary SMS Implementation Project (VSIP) to assess the application of safety management systems across the diverse Part 135 charter and Part 145 repair station communities. 

Expected to kick off shortly with an organizational meeting next week, the project comes as the FAA has stated plans to issue regulations next year that would mandate Part 135 and 145 operators to implement SMS. The agency is widely anticipated to use regulations already in place for Part 121 carriers (FAR Part 5) as a basis for the new regulations.