Signal Charlie

About Signal Charlie
Signal Charlie – Dedicated to the continuous improvement of aerospace safety.

When trying to decide on a name for the site, I remembered my Naval Aviator days and the codewords transmitted from the helicopter carrier Air Boss, “Signal Charlie”, which meant that the flight deck was ready for landing ops. This was always a welcome message, especially after a long flight. What you didn’t want to hear was “Signal Delta”, which meant take up a holding pattern on the starboard side of the ship. You could always get a green deck, though, by telling the Air Boss that you had “pony” (mail) on board. Signal Charlie will be a site that advances the goal of smart flight operations in dynamic environments, and we hope this site generates a lot of “pony”.

The International Code of Signal flag for the letter C is spoken phonetically as Charlie, and this signal flag also means “Affirmative” per the code, Signal Charlie represents the proactive nature of a quality Safety Management System (SMS), the future of aviation safety. SMS components include an open reporting culture, risk management methodology, robust communications and knowledge exchange embedded within a continuous improvement process. In SMS, people nurture partnerships that optimize protection while simultaneously promoting production. A deeply rooted sense of trust and respect fuel these partnerships, and Signal Charlie is meant to be a vehicle for critical team communications.

Our site will be used to communicate information on an international flight deck, developing the same standardization that the International Code of Signals offers. Standardized procedures, knowledge exchange and Leadership are key components of any quality management system.

Please be patient as we add content to this site, and feel free to contact us with your observations and recommendations for continuous improvement.

Fly Smart
“Clark” and “Tokenchick”

About “Clark” Kent Lewis

Aerospace Safety Programs
Kent graduated with Honors from the U.S. Navy Postgraduate School’s Aviation Safety Officer course, and was the Director of Safety and Standardization at MCAS Yuma, the largest aviation training facility in the United States. He was previously the Safety Department Head at VT-27, the Navy’s busiest aviation training squadron. His safety programs have been recognized as the best in the Navy/Marine Corps and have a zero mishap rate.

Kent volunteers as a FAA Safety Team Lead Representative for the Richmond FSDO, has attended the ALPA Basic Safety School, Safety Two School, Advanced Accident Investigation course and is a member of the local MEC’s SMS Committee. His focus is Human Factors and System Safety , and he is a member of the International Society of Air Safety Investigators. He is also a Senior Associate with Human Factors Associates.

Flight Instruction
Kent was a flight instructor while in the U.S. Marine Corps, teaching Navy and Marine primary and intermediate students in the  T-34C, a high performance, fixed wing turboprop trainer. A graduate of the Naval Air Training Command Flight Instructor Training Course, he also flew helicopters and was a Terrain Flight, Search And Rescue and Night Vision Goggle Instructor. He is an FAA Certificated Flight Instructor, Instrument Instructor and Multi-engine Instructor in airplanes, and Commercial-Instrument rated in helicopters.

Education
Kent is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and graduated summa cum laude from Texas Woman’s University with a Masters degree in Library and Information Science .

“I am a history major. I believe that the past is prologue. The archives bear that out. Most major aircraft accidents are not acts of God. 
— James Hall, NTSB, 1996.

“I am a library and information science major. I believe that knowledge exchange is prologue. Mishaps are preventable if accurate information is exchanged in a timely and reliable manner. With knowledge exchange and leadership we utilize learning lessons to optimize system performance.”

Airline Transport Pilot
Kent is certified by the FAA as a multi-engine Airline Transport Pilot, and as a Commercial Pilot for single-engine airplanes and Helicopters. He has over 3 decades of flying experience for the U. S. Marine Corps, American Eagle Airlines, Houston Helicopter and Delta Air Lines.

Emergency Preparedness and Response
Kent is a graduate of the National Search And Rescue School’s Inland SAR Coordination course, and was the SAR Officer for MCAS Yuma, AZ. His SAR Coordinator responsibilities included Interagency coordination with over 50 Local, State, and Federal Response Agencies. He has over 20 years experience with the Incident Command System and authored the Incident Action Plan for MCAS Yuma, the Nation’s largest joint use airfield.

Academic Publications

Kent contributed 2 chapters to the academic textbook Implementing Safety Management Systems in Aviation (Stolzer. Ashgate. 2011). This groundbreaking text formed the foundation of the SMS PhD program at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University. Yes, that’s right, we helped write the book on SMS!

Thanks for visiting the site!

“Clark”

Contact info: Kent B. Lewis,. (850) 449-4841.  lewis.kent@gmail.com

About Audrey aka “Tokenchick”

Education

Audrey graduated with honors from Corpus Christi State University, receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Communications while majoring in Drama, In 2008 she graduated with Honors from Texas Woman’s University with her Masters in Drama with an emphasis on Costume Design. She is an expert in interpersonal, small group communications, the key component to efficient and safe teamwork. Whether you are in the cockpit, classroom or boardroom, if you can’t communicate, you can’t succeed.

Accomplishments

Audrey has also been designing, drafting and constructing costumes for over 40 years. She is also an accomplished actor, having appeared on stage, television and film productions.

Small Business Owner
Audrey is the sole proprietor of audreycarol.com

Contact info: audrey@audreycarol.com

About Spooky

Spooky is one of the smartest people we know, with a Masters of Science in Aerospace Engineering and incredibly talented. Spooky graciously volunteers time to mentor me on the intricacies of website design and things that involve tremendous amounts of calculus.

Contact info: spooky@ifitoldyouidhavetokillyou.com