We are delighted have welcomed new Associate Consultants to the Baines Simmons team. With decades of experience between them covering every aspect of the aviation industry, they will be supporting us in offering a comprehensive and inspirational learning experience to our clients.
Tony McEune
Tony has 25 years experience in the aviation industry and is a highly experienced instructor and facilitator in the fields of Crew Resource Management/Human Factors, Aviation Safety and Security training. He also has extensive experience as a Safety and Security assessor.
Before joining Baines Simmons, after a career in a UK Police Force as a Police Sergeant, Tony had a 25 year career with British Airways as a Cabin Crew Member, of which 22 years were as a Senior Crew member.
Tony spent 23 years as a Aircrew Safety and Security trainer and facilitator for Flight and Cabin Crew as well as a trainer and facilitator in Crew Resource Management/Human Factors for Cabin Crew at the British Airways Flight and Cabin Crew training centre at Heathrow,.
In conjunction with his flying and training roles, Tony was a British Airways on-board Safety Evaluator responsible for assessing Cabin Crews’ pre flight, in flight and post flight compliance with CAA, EASA, DfT and company Safety and Security procedures.
Tony was selected to be part of the British Airways team responsible for the airlines transition, in 2014, from EU ops to EASA operating rules.
Neil Catton Wretham
Neil or Cat as he is more commonly known as, has over 30 years of experience in military, civil and recreational aviation and currently provides flying instruction, Human Factors, Risk and Error Management training. His interest in Air Safety was ignited after surviving a military helicopter crash in 1987. Initially becoming a survival instructor for post-crash management then later focusing on the left-hand side of the Bow Tie as an instructor and Air Safety Officer focusing on prevention.
Prior to joining Baines Simmons as an Associate in 2021, Cat enjoyed a career in the Royal Air Force, as an Air Loadmaster on helicopters and has gained deployed operational experience in multiple theatres including Northern Ireland, North West Europe, Scandinavia, the broader Middle East, Iraq, the Former Yugoslav Republics and Afghanistan. He has held both squadron and Force Air Safety Officer posts, supervising the day to day management of the ASMS and risk for the DDH. As the station Human Factors Supervisor, he coordinated, delivered and standardised HF continuation training. An accomplished flying instructor Cat attained CFS A2 category (QHCI) teaching on the Puma Operational Conversion Flight and regularly enjoys delivering CAA PPL(A) instruction at the flying club.
Phil King
Phil offers clients extensive knowledge, training, consultation and mentoring experiences in accident and incident investigation, following more than 40 years in the civil aviation sector, of which 18 years was spent as the Safety Manager for a large aircraft maintenance facility attached to an international airline operating more than 250 large wide-bodied aircraft based in the Middle East.
A licensed aircraft maintenance engineer, he worked on and trained technical persons with regard to a wide range of aircraft from small General Aviation machines to Airbus A380 and Boeing 777. A proficient incident investigator and worked alongside the forensics and metallurgy departments of various authorities from the UK, UAE and Australia. A prolific report writer, able to advise on technical report writing to ICAO Annex13 protocols and standards.
Phil has a considerable range of expertise, working within complex multi-cultural groups providing training and advice on all aspects of operational safety and its regulation, risk assessment, human performance improvement and investigative techniques. He has acted as the technical advisor to the accredited representative(s) for the state of occurrence and registration across international borders, in line with the latest ICAO standards and recommended practices.
Phil has offered associate consultant services solely to Baines Simmons since early 2021 and prior to that he spent 18 years in an extremely dynamic flight safety department, managing safety and risk assessment for the technical department and advised the Flight Operations department with regard the technical aspects of in-flight situations. Before that he spent 20 years designing and developing technical type-rated training programs, delivering them to a range of persons of varied technical background and managerial status, via translation services when required. He worked closely with senior managers and with decision makers at shop-floor level, to improve safety and awareness of risk.
During this time Phil’s achievements included the design and development of the human factors training program for aircraft maintenance staff at its 1998 inception and he continued to provide advice to the responsible training centre regarding human performance, using in-house factual events. He advised and assisted in the development of a digital reporting system to capture safety concerns and assisted in that system’s development to provide statistical clarity. His work and long-term liaison with the local aviation authority won him an award for his services to aviation safety.
David Flower
David is a strategic health leader with 30 years’ experience in high hazard, safety critical industries delivering innovative solutions to achieve business, safety and health objectives. Global experience within the oil and gas, energy and airline industries. Results focused with key accomplishments in the areas of leadership, fatigue management and crisis response.
David developed and implemented a Fatigue Management Policy and process for BP’s global upstream business. The supporting material comprised a template local policy document, risk assessment tool, and an on-line risk-based overtime authorisation process. Also he developed Group Guides on Fatigue Management providing recommendations for the establishment of fatigue risk management systems across all BP assets.
Managed scientific studies of sleep, alertness, and fatigue in offshore workers in the North Sea and gas-field workers in Oman.
He has a range of other achievements including:
International Association of Oil and Gas Producers and the International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association (IOGP/IPIECA) Fatigue Task Force Chair. Led the development of numerous guides, ultimately leading to publication of IOGP Report 626 Managing Fatigue in the Workplace comprising a comprehensive suite of practical guides https://www.iogp.org/managing-fatigue-in-the-workplace/
Led a task force comprising scientists and physicians from the Royal College of Physicians Edinburgh, Harvard University, Université Paris Descartes, Paris and Keil Centre, Australia to develop a fatigue guide for physicians at the request of the Royal College of Physicians, London.
Member of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) President’s Task Force on Fatigue and co-author of the Guidance Statement on ‘Fatigue Risk Management in the Workplace’ https://acoem.org/Guidance-and-Position-Statements/Guidance-and-Position-Statements/Fatigue-Risk-Management-in-the-Workplace.
Steering Group Member and participant in the Flight Safety Foundation/Boeing/Airbus Industrie Ultra Long-Range Workshops which provided a framework for airlines to work with their national regulators to introduce ultra long haul passenger services https://flightsafety.org/asw-article/in-it-for-the-ultra-long-haul/.
Working with British Airways’ Flight Operations, Cabin Services and Human Resources, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Université Paris Descartes and Airbus Industrie, developed an industry leading Alertness Management programme for flight and cabin crew. The programme included training of all crew members and the creation of fatigue management advice cards to assist the flight and cabin crew member to manage their sleep and light exposure to improve alertness.
For more information on the Baines Simmons team, visit our team page.