Aerodrome Safety Incident Investigation
A structured, learning oriented approach to improving safety
Despite robust preventive measures, safety incidents can still occur in aerodrome operations. When they do, an effective Safety Management System (SMS) requires incidents to be investigated in a structured, consistent and learning‑oriented manner to prevent recurrence and improve operational safety. Aerodrome operators are required to investigate safety occurrences under ICAO Annex 19 and EU Regulation 376/2014 to identify causes, manage safety risks, and implement corrective actions to prevent recurrence.
This course provides a practical understanding of internal safety incident investigations for professionals involved in aerodrome operations, safety management, compliance and oversight functions. Participants will learn to address the key questions relevant in practice: what happened, how the situation developed, and which operational, technical or organisational factors influenced the outcome. The emphasis is on proportionate investigations that are realistic and suitable for everyday operational environments.
The training places internal investigations within the applicable regulatory and SMS context, explains their purpose and role, and clearly distinguishes them from official accident investigations. It shows how investigation results support hazard identification, safety assurance and organisational learning, with a focus on practical expectations for investigation quality, reporting and follow‑up actions.
Using realistic aerodrome scenarios, participants develop practical skills in investigation planning, information and evidence gathering, interviewing, occurrence reconstruction and structured analysis at investigation level, supporting the development of clear, usable safety recommendations. Human Factors concepts are applied throughout to support a fair, non‑blaming understanding of actions under real operational conditions.
Training 5 or more people? Ask for an In-house course at your premises or online!
Course Details
Location:BerlinLanguage:English
Date:01.06. - 03.06.2026
Duration:3 days
Provider:airsight GmbH
Course Fee
For courses in Berlin:
All customers will be charged 19% VAT. For more information please see our About Taxes page.
The final price will be shown on your invoice.
Please note: If you want to register several particpants from your company but need a single invoice for each, please register each of them seperately.
Course Content
Purpose and regulatory context
- Role of internal safety investigations within the aerodrome SMS
- Boundaries between internal and official accident investigations
- Expectations for reporting, investigation quality and follow‑up actions
- Learning‑oriented investigations based on Just Culture principles
Investigation setup and management
- Organisation and planning of internal investigations
- Roles, responsibilities and initial actions
Information and evidence gathering
- Collection and use of operational, technical and organisational information
- Interviewing techniques and witness statements
Occurrence reconstruction and analysis
- Reconstructing what happened and how the event developed
- Identification of contributing factors
- Use of Human Factors as analytical input
Reporting and outputs
- Factual and analytical reporting
- Development of safety recommendations
- Investigation outputs as input for further analysis
Practical application
- Aerodrome specific case studies and exercises
Trainer
Dipl-Ing. Johann Reuß
Johann Reuß is a retired civil aviation accident and safety investigator with more than 37 years of professional experience. Throughout his career, he served in key roles such as Investigator in Charge (IIC), Accredited Representative (AccRep), and Adviser. For five years, he held the position of Director at the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU).
He has a long-standing and proven track record in aviation safety and accident investigation at national, European, and international levels. Johann is known for his ability to communicate effectively and to adapt quickly to different organisational structures. He is well-versed in the Standards and Recommended Practices of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as well as in European aviation regulations.
In addition to his investigative work, Johann has extensive experience as an instructor, having trained safety personnel from aviation authorities, airports, airlines, and aircraft manufacturers in methods of investigating accidents, serious incidents, and occurrences in civil aviation.
Today, his focus lies also in the proactive field of aviation safety. His work includes the assessment and documentation of operational risks and the practical implementation of Safety Management Systems (SMS). He also supports the preparation and structuring of safety-related data for regulatory databases such as ECCAIRS and ADREP.
Another focus is the topic of human factors. Building on his experience from investigations into why people make mistakes and how organisational aspects influence this, Johann also considers the reverse approach: Increasing flight safety through human performance and resilience.
Caroline Schlemmer, M.Sc.
Caroline Schlemmer is a consultant in airsight’s “Airport Safety & Operations” department. She works on safety assessments, SMS implementation and projects related to the development of airport Concepts of Operations (CONOPS). Further, Caroline is an instructor for the Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation training course.
She completed her master’s degree at the Technical University of Berlin (TU Berlin) in 2016, after conducting her thesis at the University of Washington, Seattle. Afterwards she started working as a lecturer and research assistant at the Chair of Flight Mechanics, Flight Control and Aeroelasticity of TU Berlin. Her master’s thesis on modelling and simulating longitudinal control surfaces of a flexible aircraft formed the way for her further research on aeroservoelasticity. She presented her research results on national and international conferences and in the corresponding papers. As a university lecturer for flight mechanics, she gained comprehensive experience in teaching and sharing her knowledge in German and English.
For airsight, she has participated in safety assessments related to non-compliant airfield requirements like non-compliant slopes. She also supported case studies assessing the feasibility of constructions sites in the vicinity of active runways. More recently, Caroline is involved in a jetblast study aiming to ensure accurate data through on-site measurements and the definition of mitigation measures in the post-processing phase.
Target Group
- Aerodrome safety managers
- Aerodrome quality and compliance managers
- Aerodrome safety deputies / safety team members
- Aerodrome operations managers and duty officers
- Civil Aviation Authorities staff
- Air Traffic Control staff
- Ground handling staff
Course Location
Participants are responsible for making their own travel arrangements. The accommodation and travel costs are at the charge of the participants. Please note that airsight does not perform any travel and hotel bookings for the participants. Rooms can however be booked directly by the participants by contacting the hotel. We would like to point out that from January 2025 a City Tax of 7.5% will be imposed on overnight stays for business and professional purposes in Berlin.
The course fee includes the registration, training material and examination. For non-virtual courses, coffee breaks and business lunch are also included.
Organisational Details
The course hours are scheduled as follows:
first training day: 10:00 am - 5:00 pm
mid-training days: 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
last training day: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
Coffee breaks and business lunch are included in the course fee. At the end of the course, all participants will receive an airsight certificate based on EASA training regulations, which is highly recognised throughout the aviation industry.
About airsight Training
airsight Training course quality
airsight operates an ISO 9001 certified Quality Management System and pursues the objective to provide high quality services that fully meet the clients’ needs.
Course Details
Location:In-houseLanguage:German / English
Duration:3 days
Provider:airsight GmbH
Course Content
Purpose and regulatory context
- Role of internal safety investigations within the aerodrome SMS
- Boundaries between internal and official accident investigations
- Expectations for reporting, investigation quality and follow‑up actions
- Learning‑oriented investigations based on Just Culture principles
Investigation setup and management
- Organisation and planning of internal investigations
- Roles, responsibilities and initial actions
Information and evidence gathering
- Collection and use of operational, technical and organisational information
- Interviewing techniques and witness statements
Occurrence reconstruction and analysis
- Reconstructing what happened and how the event developed
- Identification of contributing factors
- Use of Human Factors as analytical input
Reporting and outputs
- Factual and analytical reporting
- Development of safety recommendations
- Investigation outputs as input for further analysis
Practical application
- Aerodrome specific case studies and exercises
Trainer
Dipl-Ing. Johann Reuß
Johann Reuß is a retired civil aviation accident and safety investigator with more than 37 years of professional experience. Throughout his career, he served in key roles such as Investigator in Charge (IIC), Accredited Representative (AccRep), and Adviser. For five years, he held the position of Director at the German Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU).
He has a long-standing and proven track record in aviation safety and accident investigation at national, European, and international levels. Johann is known for his ability to communicate effectively and to adapt quickly to different organisational structures. He is well-versed in the Standards and Recommended Practices of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as well as in European aviation regulations.
In addition to his investigative work, Johann has extensive experience as an instructor, having trained safety personnel from aviation authorities, airports, airlines, and aircraft manufacturers in methods of investigating accidents, serious incidents, and occurrences in civil aviation.
Today, his focus lies also in the proactive field of aviation safety. His work includes the assessment and documentation of operational risks and the practical implementation of Safety Management Systems (SMS). He also supports the preparation and structuring of safety-related data for regulatory databases such as ECCAIRS and ADREP.
Another focus is the topic of human factors. Building on his experience from investigations into why people make mistakes and how organisational aspects influence this, Johann also considers the reverse approach: Increasing flight safety through human performance and resilience.
Target Group
- Aerodrome safety managers
- Aerodrome quality and compliance managers
- Aerodrome safety deputies / safety team members
- Aerodrome operations managers and duty officers
- Civil Aviation Authorities staff
- Air Traffic Control staff
- Ground handling staff
Organisational Details
airsight offers this training course on request, worldwide. At the end of the course, all participants will receive an airsight certificate based on EASA training regulations, which is highly recognised throughout the aviation industry.
About airsight Training
airsight Training course quality
airsight operates an ISO 9001 certified Quality Management System and pursues the objective to provide high quality services that fully meet the clients’ needs.
