> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.planeconnection.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# SPI Definitions

> Safety Performance Indicator categories, definitions, alert thresholds, and management review cycles.

Safety Performance Indicators (SPIs) are quantitative measures used to monitor and assess the effectiveness of an organization's Safety Management System. PlaneConnection tracks SPIs across five categories aligned with 14 CFR Part 5 section 5.71 requirements for safety performance monitoring and measurement.

## SPI Categories

| Category          | API Value           | Indicator Count | Description                                                            |
| ----------------- | ------------------- | :-------------: | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Flight Operations | `flight_ops`        |        6        | Metrics related to flight safety, deviations, and pilot performance.   |
| Maintenance       | `maintenance`       |        5        | Metrics related to aircraft reliability and maintenance effectiveness. |
| Ground Operations | `ground_ops`        |        4        | Metrics related to ground handling safety and ramp incidents.          |
| SMS Effectiveness | `sms_effectiveness` |        5        | Metrics measuring the health and activity of the SMS itself.           |
| Human Factors     | `human_factors`     |        5        | Metrics related to crew fatigue, training, and human error.            |

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Flight Operations">
    | Indicator               | Description                                                        | Unit                   | Typical Target | Typical Threshold |
    | ----------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | ---------------------- | :------------: | :---------------: |
    | Unstable approach rate  | Percentage of approaches not meeting stabilized approach criteria. | % of approaches        |      \< 3%     |        > 5%       |
    | Go-around rate          | Number of go-arounds per 1,000 approaches.                         | Per 1,000              |      \< 5      |        > 10       |
    | Altitude deviation rate | Exceedances of assigned altitude by more than 200 ft.              | Per 1,000 flight hours |      \< 1      |        > 3        |
    | Airspeed deviation rate | Exceedances of Vref +/- limits during approach.                    | Per 1,000 approaches   |      \< 2      |        > 5        |
    | TCAS/RA rate            | Traffic Resolution Advisories received.                            | Per 1,000 flight hours |     \< 0.5     |       > 1.0       |
    | Runway incursion rate   | Runway incursion events (all severity categories).                 | Per 10,000 operations  |        0       |        > 0        |
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Maintenance">
    | Indicator                     | Description                                                                     | Unit               | Typical Target | Typical Threshold |
    | ----------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------ | :------------: | :---------------: |
    | Dispatch reliability          | Percentage of scheduled departures not delayed or cancelled due to maintenance. | %                  |      > 98%     |       \< 95%      |
    | AOG rate                      | Aircraft-on-ground events per fleet aircraft per month.                         | Per aircraft/month |     \< 0.5     |       > 1.0       |
    | MEL deferral rate             | Percentage of flights dispatched with MEL deferrals active.                     | % of flights       |      \< 5%     |       > 10%       |
    | Repeat squawk rate            | Percentage of maintenance write-ups that recur within 30 days.                  | %                  |      \< 3%     |        > 5%       |
    | Unscheduled maintenance ratio | Ratio of unscheduled to total maintenance events.                               | Ratio              |     \< 0.20    |       > 0.35      |
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Ground Operations">
    | Indicator                | Description                                               | Unit                  | Typical Target | Typical Threshold |
    | ------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------- | :------------: | :---------------: |
    | Ground damage rate       | Aircraft ground damage events per 1,000 ground movements. | Per 1,000             |        0       |       > 0.5       |
    | Ramp incident rate       | Personnel injury or equipment damage events on the ramp.  | Per 10,000 operations |      \< 1      |        > 2        |
    | Fueling discrepancy rate | Fuel quantity discrepancies exceeding tolerance.          | % of fuelings         |      \< 1%     |        > 3%       |
    | FOD report rate          | Foreign Object Debris findings reported per month.        | Per month             |      \< 2      |        > 5        |
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="SMS Effectiveness">
    | Indicator                     | Description                                            | Unit            | Typical Target | Typical Threshold |
    | ----------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------ | --------------- | :------------: | :---------------: |
    | Safety report submission rate | Reports submitted per 1,000 flight hours.              | Per 1,000 hours |      > 10      |        \< 5       |
    | Report closure time           | Average days from report submission to closure.        | Days            |      \< 30     |        > 60       |
    | CPA on-time completion        | Percentage of CPAs completed by their due date.        | %               |      > 90%     |       \< 75%      |
    | Investigation completion rate | Percentage of investigations completed within 90 days. | %               |      > 85%     |       \< 70%      |
    | Safety meeting attendance     | Average attendance rate at required safety meetings.   | %               |      > 90%     |       \< 75%      |
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Human Factors">
    | Indicator                      | Description                                                  | Unit            | Typical Target | Typical Threshold |
    | ------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------ | --------------- | :------------: | :---------------: |
    | Duty time exceedance rate      | Instances where crew exceeded regulatory duty limits.        | Per quarter     |        0       |        > 0        |
    | Fatigue report rate            | Fatigue-related safety reports per 1,000 flight hours.       | Per 1,000 hours |      \< 1      |        > 2        |
    | Training currency rate         | Percentage of crew members current on all required training. | %               |      100%      |       \< 95%      |
    | Human-error-related event rate | Events attributed to human error as a contributing factor.   | Per 1,000 hours |      \< 2      |        > 4        |
    | Voluntary reporting ratio      | Ratio of voluntary reports to mandatory reports.             | Ratio           |      > 3:1     |       \< 1:1      |
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## Alert System

SPIs use a three-level alert system to flag performance trends requiring attention.

| Level    | Color  | Trigger                                                                                               | Escalation                                                                                         |
| -------- | ------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Watch    | Yellow | SPI value approaches threshold (within 20% of threshold value).                                       | Displayed on safety dashboard. Safety manager notified.                                            |
| Warning  | Orange | SPI value meets or exceeds the defined threshold.                                                     | Safety manager receives daily notification. Included in weekly safety report.                      |
| Critical | Red    | SPI value exceeds threshold by more than 50%, or a zero-tolerance indicator registers any occurrence. | Accountable executive notified immediately. Requires documented management review within 48 hours. |

### Zero-Tolerance Indicators

Certain SPIs have a target of zero. Any occurrence immediately triggers a Critical alert:

* Duty time exceedance rate
* Runway incursion rate (triggers Warning; repeated occurrences trigger Critical)

## Management Review Cycles

| Cycle     | Frequency          | Participants                            | Scope                                                                         |
| --------- | ------------------ | --------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Daily     | Every business day | Safety manager, dispatch                | Active alerts, Watch/Warning/Critical status changes                          |
| Weekly    | Weekly             | Safety manager, operations manager      | SPI trend summaries, new alerts, CPA status                                   |
| Monthly   | Monthly            | Safety committee                        | Full SPI dashboard review, trend analysis, corrective actions                 |
| Quarterly | Quarterly          | Accountable executive, safety committee | Aggregate performance, target adjustments, resource allocation                |
| Annual    | Annually           | Accountable executive, all management   | Year-over-year comparison, target recalibration, SMS effectiveness assessment |

## Trend Indicators

Each SPI displays a trend direction based on comparison with the previous measurement period.

| Trend     |      Symbol      | Definition                                                     |
| --------- | :--------------: | -------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Improving | Up arrow (green) | Current value is closer to target than the previous period.    |
| Stable    |    Dash (gray)   | Current value is within 5% of the previous period.             |
| Declining | Down arrow (red) | Current value is farther from target than the previous period. |

## Regulatory Alignment

| Part 5 Section | Requirement                                   | SPI Application                         |
| -------------- | --------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------- |
| 5.71           | Safety performance monitoring and measurement | SPI tracking across all five categories |
| 5.73           | Safety performance assessment                 | Alert system and management reviews     |
| 5.75           | Continuous improvement                        | Trend analysis and target recalibration |
| 5.97           | SMS records                                   | SPI history retained for 5 years        |

## Related

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Configure SPIs" href="/how-to/sms/configure-spis">
    SPI target, threshold, and alert rule configuration.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Monitor SPIs" href="/tutorials/monitor-spis">
    Tutorial walkthrough of the SPI dashboard and trend analysis.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Safety Performance" href="/explanation/safety-performance">
    How SPIs fit into the SMS safety assurance framework.
  </Card>

  <Card title="SmartScore Methodology" href="/reference/smartscore-methodology">
    Composite scoring system built on SPI data.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>