Frequently
Asked Questions

Currently, 14 CFR Part 5 mandates SMS for Part 121 air carriers. Part 141 and Part 61 schools are not yet required — but the FAA strongly encourages voluntary adoption, and early adopters gain a significant competitive and safety advantage. The FAA's April 2024 final rule also expanded Part 5 to Part 91.147 air tour operators and Part 21 production certificate holders (aircraft manufacturers). We recommend getting ahead of it now.

Not at all. Every tool we offer — FRAT, W&B, safety reporting, ASAP, training records — can run as a fully internal program with zero FAA involvement. FAA enrollment of your ASAP program is always your choice, never a requirement. If you choose to pursue it, enrollment, the MOU, and all FAA coordination are completed directly between your school and your FSDO — we can offer general guidance on how the program works, but we don't act as your representative before the FAA.

14 CFR Part 5 is the FAA's regulatory standard for Safety Management Systems. It defines four required components: Safety Policy (§5.21–5.27), Safety Risk Management (§5.51–5.55), Safety Assurance (§5.71–5.75), and Safety Promotion (§5.91–5.97). Currently mandatory for Part 121 operators, its four-component structure is the widely recognized gold standard for aviation safety, and our platform reflects that structure.

Advisory Circular AC120-92 is the FAA's definitive guidance document on implementing Safety Management Systems. While Part 5 is the regulation, AC120-92 is the how-to — explaining the principles, practices, and expectations behind effective SMS implementation. The I'm Safe SMS platform is structured around both Part 5 and AC120-92, so the tools your school uses reflect what the FAA considers best practice.

Yes. During setup, the FRAT is configured to your school's specific risk profile — your fleet's characteristics, your student population's experience levels, your local airspace, and your specific go/no-go thresholds. A high-altitude mountain school has very different risk factors than a flat coastal operation. The platform is built to reflect your operation.

I'm Safe SMS is 100% web-based. No apps to install, no software to maintain. Your students, instructors, and management access the platform from any device — phone, tablet, or computer — through a secure web portal. Your entire school is on one platform, accessible anytime, from anywhere.

Each quarter, an anonymous safety survey goes out to every student, instructor, and staff member through the portal. They respond honestly — no names attached — over 30 days. Once the survey closes, our AI tool processes every response: finding patterns, recurring concerns, and emerging risks across your whole team. You receive a single, clean management report — top hazards, trends, and recommended mitigations — that you review and act on. It's hazard identification that actually scales with your school.

Yes. If you already have an SMS manual and safety policy, you upload your existing documentation to the portal and gain access to the full digital toolkit — FRAT, W&B, safety reporting, ASAP, training records, and quarterly surveys — without rebuilding anything. Your organization owns and manages all documentation on the platform.

Yes. Each school operates in a fully isolated environment — no data is shared between clients. All data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Safety reports and ASAP submissions are protected within your portal and only visible to authorized personnel at your school. We use enterprise-grade infrastructure with Row-Level Security enforced at the database level.

Look for SMS software that's purpose-built for flight training rather than scaled down from an airline tool, that works on a phone for students and instructors, and that's organized around the four components of 14 CFR Part 5. Practical must-haves: a configurable Flight Risk Assessment Tool (FRAT), anonymous safety and hazard reporting, safety surveys, document control with acknowledgment tracking, safety-performance indicators, and real setup and support — not just a login. Data should be isolated per school, and pricing should scale with your operation.

The best SMS for a flight school is the one your whole team will actually use — students, instructors, and management — and that maps cleanly to 14 CFR Part 5 and FAA AC 120-92. I'm Safe SMS is purpose-built for Part 61 and Part 141 flight schools: one web-based portal covering FRAT, safety and ASAP reporting, hazard tracking, surveys, required documents, and a safety-performance dashboard, with setup and ongoing support included. It's a platform provider, not a regulatory body — your school stays the final authority on compliance. Read our full guide to SMS for flight schools →

Pricing is a one-time setup fee followed by a per-aircraft subscription, billed monthly or annually — so your cost scales with your fleet size, not your headcount. No per-seat fees, no hidden costs. Exact pricing is provided in a written quote after a free intro call.

Most schools are fully operational on the platform within a few weeks. Timeline depends on fleet size and how quickly your team completes the setup steps. We walk you through everything — there's no complex implementation process.

We start with a short intro call to understand your operation — fleet, personnel, and what you currently have in place. From there, we configure the platform for your school and get your team set up. You'll have a dedicated point of contact throughout setup and ongoing support for the lifetime of your subscription.

Yes — cancel at any time by emailing [email protected]. Cancellation takes effect at the end of your current paid billing period (monthly or annual, depending on your plan), and you keep full access through that date. Fees already paid are non-refundable. No long-term contract — we're confident the system speaks for itself.

It's a short, no-commitment conversation where we walk you through the platform, answer your questions, and understand your school's basic setup — fleet size, type of operation, what you currently have in place. No sales pitch, no pressure. Just an honest look at whether I'm Safe SMS is a good fit for you.