That's a good question because it gets right to the core of aviation safety, and the improvement and the lack of need for SMS. It's on many fronts that aviation gets safer. It gets safer in the designs of aircraft, and that is very often mainly a result of research but also of accidents. Accidents happen and the design of aircraft gets better. An accident happens and the maintenance gets better.
Maintenance systems are getting better. Aircraft are getting smarter. The training requirements for aviation professionals such as maintenance engineers and pilots are gradually getting better. When there's a weakness seen in the old system, pre-SMS, anywhere from design to landing the airplane, something was done to tighten up and make sure that didn't happen again.
Also, running parallel to that, the worldwide insurance rates have made it impossible, or very difficult, for companies that are not safe to carry on business. So the combination of incremental learning over the years and the insurance companies putting their rates up, in my years, has dramatically increased safety in aviation flying.
