Wisk is undertaking an exciting mission to develop and operate autonomous aircraft commercially. We recognize that there are no shortcuts for keeping our customers and each other safe. Commitment to developing and implementing an SMS is the gold standard in the aviation industry. Voluntarily implementing an SMS further demonstrates Wisk’s deep commitment to safe, everyday flight for everyone.
At Wisk, safety is core to everything we do — from the design of our aircraft, to today’s operations, to planning for a future where safe, autonomous, electric flight is an everyday reality. Driven by our mission, our commitment to safety has been an integral part of our values since the very beginning.
As we continue to grow and expand our operations, and move toward entry into service, we want to ensure that safety remains our central focus. To achieve this, we leverage a Safety Management System (SMS) — or an organization-wide approach to managing safety risk and ensuring the effectiveness of safety risk controls.
Acceptance into the FAA Safety Management System Voluntary Program
We were recently accepted into the FAA’s Safety Management System Voluntary Program (SMSVP). While acceptance into the FAA’s SMSVP is typically reserved for certificate holders, the FAA has accepted Wisk’s application to voluntarily implement an SMS and will work with us as we further develop our SMS.
Generally, SMS implementation is applied to a single industry group, such as a manufacturer or an operator. However, based on Wisk’s plans to be both an OEM and operator, we will be one of the first to demonstrate how to apply an umbrella SMS to cover multiple aviation services.
One SMS for Wisk means that safety integration starts from the ground up. From the development of our 6th Generation air taxi to flight operations, we will leverage our SMS to create even safer products and solutions both now and in the future.
About Wisk’s SMS
Wisk’s SMS provides the framework and system to ensure a truly proactive safety approach, and is the foundation of our broader Enterprise Safety Program. In practical terms, the SMS provides the framework and system to accomplish our safety goals, while the enterprise safety program provides the practitioners and plan to ensure we are leveraging our SMS across the Company.
Specifically, the Wisk SMS covers safety at an enterprise level to meet the needs of the Wisk service which includes but is not limited to: Operations, Flight, Test, Engineering, Production, Vertiport Operations, Environmental Health and Safety, Passenger Services, and Airspace Management.
