Aviation inspector to airside safety manager
An aviation inspector already meets 33% of what the airside safety manager role asks for. The move turns on 10 required skills not yet in the profile.
64.8/ 100
1 How much of what an airside safety manager is expected to do is already part of an aviation inspector’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the airside safety manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An airside safety manager role treats 5 of its required skills as things an aviation inspector already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- apply airport standards and regulations
- common aviation safety regulations
- conduct regular aviation research
- investigate aircraft accidents
- work in an aviation team
What stands in the way is 10 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 5 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An airside safety manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an aviation inspector background worth leading with.
- already held conduct regular aviation research information skills
- already held investigate aircraft accidents information skills
- already held apply airport standards and regulations assisting and caring
- already held work in an aviation team communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held common aviation safety regulations business, administration and law
All 5 carried skills, including the 5 the airside safety manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 11 missing skills fall into 3 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn ensure annual safety inspections required
- still to learn implement the airside safety auditing system required
- still to learn address potential aerodrome hazards required
- still to learn comply with specifications of aerodrome manual required
- still to learn ensure adherence to aerodrome procedures required
- still to learn supervise airside performance required
- still to learn conduct airport safety inspections required
- still to learn identify airport safety hazards required
- still to learn undertake inspections required
- still to learn approve the design of aircraft parking areas required
- optional, not held negotiate health and safety issues with third parties optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an airside safety manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 approve the design of aircraft parking areas practise this
- 02 ensure annual safety inspections practise this
- 03 implement the airside safety auditing system practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 5 skills that carry over
- already held apply airport standards and regulations skill
- already held common aviation safety regulations knowledge
- already held conduct regular aviation research skill
- already held investigate aircraft accidents skill
- already held work in an aviation team skill
1 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held negotiate health and safety issues with third parties optional
25 held skills the airside safety manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role airport operating environment knowledge
- not needed by the target role airworthiness directives knowledge
- not needed by the target role apply technical communication skills skill
- not needed by the target role aviation standards and recommended practices knowledge
- not needed by the target role comply with legal regulations skill
- not needed by the target role conduct aviation auditing skill
- not needed by the target role conduct flight proficiency checks skill
- not needed by the target role conduct quality assurance inspections on fuel operations skill
- not needed by the target role enforce fuel storage regulations skill
- not needed by the target role evaluate implementation of safety procedures skill
- not needed by the target role have computer literacy skill
- not needed by the target role information confidentiality knowledge
- not needed by the target role inspect aircraft documentation skill
- not needed by the target role issue waivers skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with colleagues skill
- not needed by the target role liaise with managers skill
- not needed by the target role monitor airworthiness certifications skill
- not needed by the target role operate scientific measuring equipment skill
- not needed by the target role perform inspections required by international conventions skill
- not needed by the target role perform risk analysis skill
- not needed by the target role prepare audit activities skill
- not needed by the target role prepare aviation equipment and facilities for training purposes skill
- not needed by the target role prepare financial auditing reports skill
- not needed by the target role procedures associated with different air navigation areas knowledge
- not needed by the target role use technical documentation skill
Common questions about this move
Can an aviation inspector become an airside safety manager?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An aviation inspector already covers 33% of what an airside safety manager is expected to do: 5 skills carry over, 5 of which the airside safety manager role treats as required.
What skills does an aviation inspector need to become an airside safety manager?
10 required skills are missing, plus 1 optional ones. They fall into 3 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by assisting and caring. The single most important is approve the design of aircraft parking areas.
How hard is the move from aviation inspector to airside safety manager?
Its learning distance is 64.8 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.