Systems-theoretic process analysis of the Air Force Test Center Safety Management System
Name
962272791-MIT.pdf
Description
Full printable version
Size
10.53 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
e9a1207dcbe0c855d392a6b80d5189b0
Author(s)
Chung, Nicholas, S.M. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Advisor(s)
Nancy G. Leveson.
Date Issued
2014
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
The Air Force Test Center (AFTC) faces new challenges as it continues into the 21st century as the world's leader in developmental flight test. New technologies are becoming ever more sophisticated and less transparent, driving an increase in complexity for tests designed to evaluate them. This shift will place more demands on the AFTC Safety Management System to effectively analyze hazards and preempt the conditions that lead to accidents. In order to determine whether the AFTC Safety Management System is prepared to handle new safety challenges, this thesis applied Dr. Nancy Leveson's Systems-Theoretic Process Analysis (STPA) technique. The safety management system was analyzed and potential safety constraint violations due to systemic factors, unsafe component interactions, as well as component failures were investigated. The analysis identified the key features that make the system effective; gaps in the sub-processes, roles, responsibilities, and tools; and opportunities to improve the system. These findings will provide insights on how the AFTC Safety Management System can be improved with the aim of preventing accidents from occurring during flight test operations. Finally, this thesis demonstrated the effectiveness of the STPA technique at hazard analysis on an organizational process.
Description
Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, 2014.
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (page 211).
Subjects
Engineering Systems Division.
System Design and Management Program.
MIT Department
System Design and Management Program.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Engineering Systems Division
Terms of Use
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