Airport Ramp Employees

Airport ramp workers being sucked into jet engines is on the rise. These deaths capture the safety risks found on airport ramps where several operations are being performed at any given point, from unloading baggage, to parked aircrafts being refueled, etc.

Fuel fumes, noise and tight deadlines unfortunately represent a perfect recipe for airport ramp employees to get injured.

To cut costs, airlines have been hiring third party subcontractors for ramp work; sadly many of these companies are not providing adequate training to their minimum wage paid employees.

The Government Accountability Office found that the safety program and measures for airport ramps are less than adequate. Airports and Airlines control the areas around the gates and accidents are investigated by OHSA or NTSB.  The FAA oversees taxiways and runways, making airport ramps accidents and the reasons for them, more likely to fall through the cracks.

To help address the above issues, the International Air Transport Association has published a Ground Operations Manual that encompasses the above noted airport ramp employee operations.  This new safety program has already reached 200 airports worldwide.  Ramp accidents are reported to be more than $10 billion a year according to industry data.

Chriss Swaney (22 Jul, 2023). Aviation Consultants Say Airport Ramp Employees remain Caught in Unsafe Work Jungle. Workers Compensation Newsletter. Retrieved August 10, 2023,  from https://www.workerscompensation.com/daily-headlines/aviation-consultants-say-airport-ramp-employees-remain-caught-in-unsafe-work-jungle/