IFALPA Conference Statement on Positive Safety Culture

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – ISTANBUL, TÜRKIYE

The 80th Annual Conference of the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations (IFALPA) recognizes that pilots worldwide continue to face significant barriers to the open reporting and discussion of safety-related issues. In many operational environments, pilots experience punitive or disciplinary responses when reporting potential hazards, incidents, or operational issues. This reality undermines trust and discourages the flow of safety information which undermines the foundation of any SMS.

Experience across the global pilot community consistently shows that punitive response to safety reporting or honest error disclosure suppresses reporting. Without proactive and voluntary reporting of safety information, the opportunity to identify and address emerging risks is lost. The absence of this critical information allows latent hazards and system weaknesses to persist until they manifest as serious incidents or accidents. An uninhibited flow of safety information is essential to the prevention of accidents and to the continuous improvement of aviation safety.

The solution to this challenge is the development and consistent implementation of an effective Positive Safety Culture. This is a culture in which all aviation professionals feel responsible for safety, are encouraged to report safety-related information, and trust the system enough to actively participate in hazard identification, including the reporting of their own errors. This trust can only be created if there are robust and meaningful protections in place for aviation workers who report deficiencies under non-punitive reporting agreements.

A Positive Safety Culture promotes voluntary, non-punitive reporting and recognizes that human error is an inherent part of complex systems. Its purpose is not to excuse misconduct or intentional recklessness, but to ensure that honest mistakes, hazards, and system vulnerabilities are identified and addressed before they lead to harm.

Leadership commitment is central to this approach. All levels of stakeholders within aviation, operators, regulators, and service providers, must demonstrate that safety reporting is valued and used solely to improve safety performance.

The IFALPA Conference calls on the entire global aviation community, including States, regulators, operators, service providers, and international stakeholder organizations, to recognize the urgent need to practice Positive Safety Culture by actively supporting its development and implementation.

We call for meaningful collaboration among all stakeholders to remove barriers to safety reporting, to foster trust between frontline professionals and leadership, and to ensure that regulatory, social and organizational frameworks support, rather than undermine, Positive Safety Culture principles. A true Positive Safety Culture requires clear, unambiguous support and engagement at every level of the organization; from CEOs and Directors General of Civil Aviation, to decision makers at all levels, to frontline workers.

IFALPA advocates for an aviation environment in which all corners of the industry in all ICAO regions embrace a Positive Safety Culture approach that matches the intent of the ICAO SARPs and guidance. We call for renewed collaboration across the global aviation community to achieve this; with operators, regulators, professional associations, and international organizations working together, sharing data, best practices, and lessons learned.