World AirNews June 2018

NEWS DIGITAL
CORPORATE CRISIS AND
DISASTER MANAGEMENT
An African perspective
Mark Mansfield reports
NEWS DIGITAL
from page 6
is swiftly laid bare and on public display.
In addition to those directly involved, many others will
comment and add to the conjecture and speculation, starting
with the rescuers, and including the police, politicians and other
authorities.
To survive the crisis and protect its reputation, the affected
airline or company cannot retreat into a foxhole and ‘not communicate’
or hide behind the ICAO Annex 13 recommendation. In
order to protect its reputation, an airline has to be ready, not only
to properly manage the emergency, but also to adequately address
the enormous crisis communication challenges.
“Managing corporate crisis or the aftermath of a disaster involving
victims, families, employees and a company’s brand is an
overwhelming task in an environment where standards for a fast,
effective, transparent and compassionate response are higher
today than they have ever been”, said Elmarie Marais, Managing
Director of GoCrisis as she opened the work session. “Crisis do happen,
not a case of never, but when, people will forgive an accident
but will not forgive a response”, continued Marais.
Linden Birns emphasised the importance of a detailed crisis
communication plan; “If you want communications on board for
landing, they need to be on board for take off”. Birns went on to
comment that facts were not determined by popular opinion, as
could be the case when the wrong or false information was spread
on social media platforms but must rather come from a reliable
and credible source, hence the importance of a reputable Crisis
and Disaster communications company.
The session covered topics that ranged from airport and airline
emergency preparedness, a case study presented by Linden Birns
from BHK Crisis Communications around the challenges that are
faced when dealing with multiple countries, governments, organisations,
legal systems, cultures, and the ways of thinking and working
and how pressures of online news and social media compound
the challenger, to topics about cyber risk management. Q
NEWS
EMBRAER X
UNVEILS FIRST
eVTOL CONCEPT
seen at the work session were from left: addie Burt (first responder), marle rodgers (social
media agent), Jeanine Burt (Vp gloBal response), michelle Botha (manager Business deVelopment),
elmarie marais (md gocrisis), linden Birns (Bhk crisis management communications partner) and
hendrik crous (Vp operations africa)
I
N A world with real-time news media,
viral social media, instantaneous video
uploads and international connection,
news travels faster and further than ever
before, and this formed the backbone of
the recent work session held in Johannesburg
and hosted by GoCrisis in partnership
with BHK Crisis Communications around
crisis and disaster management.
Addressing invited guests from various
aviation companies and other stakeholders,
the aim of the work session was to highlight
the importance of a solid crisis and disaster
management structure, and to have a plan
of action when the proverbial paw-paw hits
the fan.
ICAO Annex 13 provides clear guidance as
to what can or rather cannot be communicated
after an accident or major incident
that is being formally investigated by an
official air accident investigation authority.
It stipulates that no-one, except the
authority leading the official investigation
may comment or speculate on the possible
or probable causes of the event.
This said, the persons affected, be they
victims or their relatives and friends, investors
and shareholders, business and alliance
partners and the travelling public are
all hungry for information. They all want
to know what happened and why, who is
affected and what the airline is doing to
alleviate the loss, pain and damage caused.
For the airline concerned, the key player
in such dire circumstances, and also for the
airport where a crisis of any kind can occur,
it is imperative to communicate. It must
demonstrate it is taking care of everyone
directly affected by the accident / incident,
recognising that the families are facing an
unimaginable time of distress or loss. So
as to re-assure all its stakeholders, it also
has to make it known that it is efficiently
handling the situation, it is doing the right
things and is in control.
Communicating and providing information
swiftly and efficiently is critical in
today’s social media age where so much
information instantaneously circulates
online. Those involved in the incident /accident,
as well as so many others who may be
concerned, tweet, post FaceBook entries,
and place videos of the unfolding event on
YouTube and similar channels.
Passengers provide information and
comment on what is happening. Relatives
display their anxiety and despair, and
anyone can watch the accident happening,
listen to the crew’s conversation with
ATC, and follow the movements of the
aircraft on dedicated tracking sites such as
FlightRadar24.
An internet search will reveal the full
history of the aircraft, any incidents it and
the type were involved in, the operator’s
safety record and much more. Everything
E
MBRAER X, an Embraer organisation dedicated to developing
disruptive businesses, has unveiled its first electrical
Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft concept.
The unveiling was made during Uber Elevate 2018, in Los Angeles,
California. Embraer X is engaged in several projects, including
the development of eVTOL concepts through a co-operation with
Uber and other companies to explore business opportunities within
the Uber Elevate ecosystem.
“We have excelled in our near-50-year journey by introducing
innovations into the aviation industry and delivering true value to
customers,” said Paulo Cesar de Souza e Silva, President and CEO
of Embraer. “We are relentless in our quest for constant growth
and through Embraer X we will drive disruptive innovation and
accelerate the creation of new businesses with the potential for exponential
growth. Urban mobility is ripe for transformation and we
are committed to having a major role in this key market.”
The eVTOL concept presented at Uber Elevate 2018 represents
an aircraft with a mission to serve passengers in an urban environment,
based on the key design drivers of safety, passenger experience,
affordability and a very low footprint for the community, in
terms of noise and emissions.
“We are developing solutions to bring on-demand air transportation
to urban areas to improve quality of life for millions of people.
Our collaboration with key stakeholders will accelerate the arrival
of this new ecosystem,” said Antonio Campello, President & CEO
of Embraer X. “This is one example of how Embraer X is committed
to exploring a range of disruptive products and services that could
revolutionize the business of air transportation.”
Embraer X’s first eVTOL concept is the outcome of extensive
interaction with potential urban air travellers about their desired
experience, combined with the expertise of Embraer’s teams and
the collaboration with various companies and institutions. Embraer
X will continue to engage with communities to expedite the development
of desired solutions for this new market.
Over the last five decades, Embraer has designed, developed
and certified close to 50 aircraft models, delivering over 8 000
aircraft to 100 countries. Embraer’s fleet has accumulated more
than 50-million flight hours. Leveraging Embraer’s experience and
longstanding relationships with aircraft certification authorities
around the globe, Embraer X will ensure that safety design drivers
meet and exceed the highest industry standards.
Embraer is a global company headquartered in Brazil with
businesses in commercial and executive aviation, defence and security.
The company designs, develops, manufactures and markets
aircraft and systems, providing customer support and services.
Since it was founded in 1969, Embraer has delivered more than
8 000 aircraft. About every 10 seconds an aircraft manufactured
by Embraer takes off somewhere in the world, transporting over
145-million passengers a year.
Embraer is claimed to be the leading manufacturer of commercial
jets up to 150 seats. The company maintains industrial units,
offices, service and parts distribution centres, among other activities,
across the Americas, Africa, Asia and Europe. Q
World Airnews | June Extra 2018
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World Airnews | June Extra 2018
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