NBAA2013: Single-Pilot Safety Standdown Helps Prevent Accidents, Save Lives

August 6, 2013

Like any experienced pilot, Jeff Greenberg understands the ultimate value of aviation safety training and education is in the number of accidents prevented and lives saved.

“I can count, unfortunately, on more than one hand, the people I have known who are no longer here, who were killed in aircraft accidents,” said Greenberg, who runs an aviation leasing and commercial real estate business. “The way you keep that from happening is by staying sharp and staying on top of things. Safety seminars, like the Single-Pilot Safety Standdown, are a big step in that direction.”

Greenberg took to the Internet this month to encourage members of the aviation groups to which he belongs, including the Citation Jet Pilots Owner Pilot Association (CJP), to participate in this year’s Single-Pilot Safety Standdown, sponsored by Cessna. The all-day seminar will be held on Oct. 21, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Nevada, the day prior to the official opening of NBAA’s Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA2013).

NBAA’s Single-Pilot Safety Standdown draws upon the actual experiences of pilots, placing an emphasis on peer-to-peer information sharing and education. Safety-themed sessions will focus on issues specifically affecting single-pilot operations, including emerging technologies in cockpit information, decision-support systems to enhance operational safety, emerging benefits from operational data analysis and medical scenarios that uniquely effect single pilot operations.

“I’m kind of a junkie when it comes to this kind of thing,” Greenberg said. “I adjust my entire show schedule around the safety seminars and all the educational classes NBAA offers.” Greenberg earned his private pilot’s license in 1978 and holds numerous pilot certificates, including multi-engine, and commercial ratings, and he said he can’t recall missing an NBAA-sponsored Single-Pilot Safety Standdown.

In fact, he recently posted information about the event in the CJP online discussion forum, listing the date and times for the session and a description. “As soon as NBAA published the information, I put it up there,” he said.

Founded in 2009, CJP caters primarily to single-pilot owner/operators of Cessna’s Citation and other aircraft. The organization’s goal is to help members learn more about everything from mechanical issues and operations to safety.

For anyone planning to attend, Greenberg said the sessions always feature an impressive array of speakers.

“They provide good handouts, but a lot of it is just about taking an interest,” he said. “The more people we can get to do that, the better our safety record will be.”