Evidence of meeting #5 for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 43rd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was transport.

A video is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

MPs speaking

Also speaking

Kathleen Fox  Chair, Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board
Sylvain Alarie  Professional Engineer, As an Individual
Gilles Primeau  Professional Engineer, As an Individual
Natacha Van Themsche  Director, Air Investigations, Canadian Transportation Accident Investigation and Safety Board
Jim Quick  President and Chief Executive Officer, Aerospace Industries Association of Canada
Jodi Diamant  Chief Engineer, Airworthiness & Certification, Pratt & Whitney Canada, As an Individual
David Curtis  President and Chief Executive Officer, Viking Air Limited, Longview Aviation Capital Corp.
Steven Bruce  Director, Design and Certification, Viking Air Limited, Longview Aviation Capital Corp.
Michael Deer  Airworthiness Specialist, Bell Textron Canada Limited
David Joseph Watson  Manager, Airworthiness and Air Safety, De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited, Longview Aviation Capital Corp.

5:25 p.m.

NDP

Taylor Bachrach NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC

Thank you.

Mr. Deer, you spoke extensively about delegation and the role of trust. In the case involving Boeing and the FAA, Boeing was under extreme financial pressure and under pressure by its competitors to get this product to market. I'm wondering if you can comment, from within a company that bears that delegated responsibility, on how you avoid the financial goals and objectives of the corporation conflicting with the goal of delivering a safe product to market.

5:25 p.m.

Airworthiness Specialist, Bell Textron Canada Limited

Michael Deer

I'll talk specifically about the Canadian delegation system.

Within the Canadian delegation system, there is a requirement essentially that there be no commercial pressures induced on the people with the delegated authority, so the highest level in our company, the head of our DAO, needs to sign a commitment stating that the delegates are free to operate on their own cognizance without commercial pressures.

5:25 p.m.

NDP

Taylor Bachrach NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC

This is a question for Mr. Quick.

Mr. Quick, you spoke extensively about competitiveness and the importance of the changes you've recommended to make our industry more competitive globally. I think the committee's prime concern in discussing the issue before us is safety, and I'm wondering if you could comment on the contribution that the recommendations your organization has put forward would make toward the safety of our industry and the safety of air travel in Canada in general.

5:30 p.m.

President and Chief Executive Officer, Aerospace Industries Association of Canada

Jim Quick

Both Transport Canada and the Canadian industry always put safety first.

The recommendations we have made fit very well with making sure that safety remains first and foremost in all we do. As I mentioned in a previous answer, the innovation that we develop is very disruptive, and it happens at a very quick pace. One of the things we need to ensure is that, from a safety perspective as we are developing that technology, Transport Canada and TCCA are able to keep pace with us.

The recommendation we have made is basically to change your structure and support it properly, and that way we can guarantee safety.

5:30 p.m.

NDP

Taylor Bachrach NDP Skeena—Bulkley Valley, BC

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

5:30 p.m.

Liberal

The Chair Liberal Vance Badawey

Thank you, Mr. Bachrach.

Members of the panel, thank you as well: Mr. Watson, Mr. Bruce, Mr. Curtis, Mr. Quick, Ms. Diamant and Mr. Deer. Thank you for your time today.

As well, members of the committee, I want to thank you not only for the great questions today and the great answers we received from both panels, but also for taking the time to recognize the 157 men, women and children who were lost in the Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 tragedy. I encourage you, as we leave here today, to keep those folks in mind and, of course, their families as well.

With that, I adjourn.