ICAO’s USOAP audit in Finland

The second round of state safety audits is in progress and this year Finland's civil aviation system is being audited. The auditing team is visiting Finland 1-10 November 2010. Finland's civil aviation authority the Finnish Transport Safety Agency Trafi will be evaluated as well as the operations of aviation companies.

ICAO's comprehensive audit programme covers the safety related annexes 1-8, 10-16 and 18 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation. The upcoming audit will keep a great number of the staff in Trafi Aviation, as well as other aviation professionals in Finland, busy up to year 2011.

ICAO's audit is a thorough evaluation of the Finnish civil aviation legislation and the functionality of the national safety oversight. The aim is to enhance flight safety.

Audit phases

In preparation for the audit, Trafi first evaluates the aviation legislation itself. The national and community legislation is compared to ICAO standards and recommendations with the help of special compliance checklists. ICAO uses various tools to survey national legislative rules and procedures.

The auditors designated by ICAO will be in Finland from 1 to 10 November. The operations of the authority are audited in depth and some on-the-spot checks are made in aviation industry companies. The companies will be notified as soon as the audit team has chosen them.

After the audit the contracting state is requested to make corrective actions. After six months' time, ICAO reviews and comments the corrective action plan submitted by the state. After receiving the state's comments and making a follow-up audit, ICAO publishes the final safety oversight audit report.

More information

For more detailed information on the upcoming audit, please contact Finland's USOAP-coordinator Johan Skjäl, tel. 020 618 6115, johan.skjal(at)trafi.fi or inspector Anna Granfelt, tel. 020 618 6026, anna.granfelt(at)trafi.fi.

Abbreviations

ICAO = International Civil Aviation Organization
USOAP = Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme