Captain Tim Glasspool, Head of Flight Operations for the European Business Unit at Bristow Helicopters Ltd, has been appointed co-chairman of the Step Change in Safety’s Helicopter Safety Steering Group (HSSG).

Step Change in Safety is a UK based partnership with the goal of making the UK the safest oil and gas exploration and production province in the world. The HSSG was formed in June 2010 as a proactive group identifying and addressing issues surrounding helicopter safety within the industry.

Commenting on his appointment on the HSSG, Glasspool said: “Over the years Bristow has developed a number of game-changing technologies to improve helicopter safety, which underpins the company’s commitment to safety for both its employees and clients. These technologies, which include the traffic collision avoidance system TCAS2, IHUMS, and Sky Connect, have been adopted by many leading aircraft manufacturers and competitors alike.

“We are looking forward to being able to work closely with key people in the oil and gas sector to ensure everything that can be done is being done to drive safety issues in the industry.”

Striving to improve helicopter safety, Glasspool is also a member of the Council of Management of the British Helicopter Association (BHA), as well as a member of the Safety Standards Consultative Committee (SSCC) at the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), representing the European Helicopter Association (EHA).

In addition to Bristow, HSSG consists of oil and gas operators and contractors, workforce safety representatives, regulators and trade unions. These include BP, Apache, UK CAA, HSE, CHC, Bond Offshore, Centrica, Maersk, KCA Deutag, Noble Drilling, OILC, BALPA, Perenco, Petrofac, TGWU, Subsea 7 and Technip.

With numerous bases around the world, Bristow Group provides aviation support to the global oil and gas industry. The company has 3,500 employees and boasts a varied fleet of around 400 aircraft.