Ground Support Blog

The first quarter financial results released by the airlines reflected what most of us already knew — the current financial situation of the airline industry is challenging. Despite the redundant barrage of negative news regarding finances, there is tentative optimism that things will improve and — given the cyclical nature of the industry — it’s a matter of when. The decisions being made today could have a great effect on the industry as a whole — both positive and negative. It remains to be seen what exactly will be left in the wake of the downturn.

With the financial hardship of the airlines begetting capacity slashes and employee furloughs, it begs the question of whether or not qualified personnel are being retained. This is an important consideration for all different areas of ground support operations, but I want to speak specifically about the purchasing of GSE.

The murmur throughout the industry is that the control has been turned over to the financial thinkers. The primary focus is on cost. While that is an understandable — and obviously necessary— focus, what implications does that have for GSE on the ramp? Are the people planning and making the purchasing decisions qualified to understand the particulars of the operations on the ramp? Is there enough technical staff at the airlines to lend expertise? Or are the purchasing decisions primarily made on financial considerations?

The answer could result in a lot of equipment that isn’t fit for the operation and costs more in the long term due to decision-making personnel with insufficient technical knowledge and resources. Those long-term costs could include increased turnaround time, additional maintenance of equipment, worker injury and the list goes on.

A lack of understanding and a lack of money is indeed a dangerous combination and could lead to decisions that will affect the industry even as it recovers. It’s important to be making sound choices now, rather than truly paying the price later.

Sometimes it takes a memorable shot played over and over on the evening news — in this case a baggage container (an LD3?) sticking out of a 747 engine — to get us thinking about basic ramp safety. To the average CNN or Fox viewer, it’s hard to imagine how this could happen. But to those of us in the business, the potential for aircraft damage on the ramp is constant. A moment’s inattention or distraction can spell serious damage. In worst case scenarios — that do happen — injury or death can result.

So it’s worth taking the time to review basic ramp safety. Good to talk among ourselves and to re-emphasize the basics with our employees and co-workers. I’ve learned the hard way — I’ve inadvertently damaged aircraft, injured myself and had more close calls than I want to remember. Over my years at the NTSB, we investigated several

1. If you’re not trained on equipment, don’t operate it until you are. Some guy giving you a quick OJT is usually not enough to operate safely.

2. Look at the big picture. It’s not enough to focus on what you’re doing; you have to look out for everyone and everything around you.

3. Tag broken equipment. Telling someone is just not enough to prevent its use.

4. Don’t rush. Yes, the pressure to avoid delays is constant but the cost of errors is worse. 

But I’m sure you all have your own ramp safety pointers. Please feel free to share them so we can learn from each other.