Tunisia Leads the Way in Aviation Safety

Tunisia boasts a long, rich, and storied history. Today this North African country is leading the way in the pursuit of aviation excellence.

The Federation of Tunisian Line Pilots (FTPL), recently partnered with the International Federation of Airline Pilots Association (IFALPA) to host a course in Aviation Security and Security Management Systems (SeMS) conducted by the University of Southern California’s Aviation Safety and Security program. This course was the first of its kind for some of the students. SeMS, a subject that is at the forefront of aviation, applies the principles of system management to aviation security.

The Aviation Security Program Management course was held on January 23-26, 2017 in La Marsa, Tunisia. Attendees included pilots from Tunis Air, Air Algerie, Kenya Air and airlines from Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire.  Representatives from Air Traffic Control and airport administrators from the Tunis International Airport were also in attendance as was the Vice Chairman Security Committee representative from ALPA, Jeroen Kruse. Nidhal Chograni, the CEO & Founder of Air Tunisie, came to present certificates to students on the last day of class. Also there to celebrate the graduates were representatives from the CAA, US and British embassies.

The national host organization, FTPL, strives to maintain the highest level of aviation safety in Tunisia and is headed by its dedicated and passionate president, Karim Elloumi. Elloumi himself has completed all the required courses and has earned the Aviation Safety Program certificate from USC.

There is a movement to bring continuing education to the area and its aviation professionals. In 2015, FTPL hosted a course in Human Factors.  Some USC students have traveled great distances to partake in courses that count toward USC’s certificate program in Safety and Security.

Tunisia’s commendable endeavor to lead the way in aviation safety and security set the example for other organizations to step forward to promote the integration of SMS and SeMS.

If you are interested in hosting a class for your organization, please contact our Contract Course Coordinator, Holly Inaba, at: hinaba@usc.edu.

Published on February 13th, 2017

Last updated on June 20th, 2017