Rapid Response Continued from page 31 safety, risk management, human resources, and legal teams; as well as guidance from an outside law firm,” Smith explained. “The program fully complies with CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidelines, which we specifically tailored to our operations.” Included is a risk mitigation training component for all of Atlantic’s employees covering the common symptoms of COVID-19 as defined by the CDC. “We tell everyone not to come to work if they are sick or have any of these symptoms,” Smith explained. “In fact, we made it mandatory for all employees to take their temperatures prior to coming to work each day. If temperatures exceed 100.3, or they show any symptoms of COVID-19, they are told to stay home.” The program also stresses the specific healthy habits to follow, such as social distancing of at least six feet and washing hands frequently. All essential employees continue to report to work, while some corpo- rate level staffers are working from home. As a further risk mitigation step, Smith noted that the company ordered hundreds of thousands of three- ply masks for employees and customers at all facilities. Signage, urging everyone to maintain social distancing, as well as floor markings designating six feet of sepa- ration, have also been put in place throughout each location. At all Atlantic Aviation facilities, cleaning, with a spe- cific focus on high touch/contact areas, is now being per- formed hourly instead of daily, using CDC-recommended anti-microbial products. Those areas include entry and exit doors; all surfaces in lobbies and common areas likely to be touched; office equipment, such as pilot comput- ers, kiosk screens, and remote controls; and bathroom interiors and components. Hourly cleaning has also been extended to commonly-touched service vehicle compo- nents, such as steering wheels, door handles, and shifters. In conjunction with the intensive cleaning regime, the furnishings in public spaces, such as conference rooms and pilot lounges, have been rearranged to assure social distancing minimums. Atlantic has further enhanced social distancing by limiting the number of occupants in elevators and conference rooms. Other measures include a requirement that Atlantic Aviation employees wear gloves and masks when deliver- ing catering to an aircraft, a suspension of the use of 32 exercise rooms, and a limited number of passengers carried in shuttle vans. Magazines and unpackaged food items have also been removed from lobbies. In addition, front desk procedures have been changed to no-signa- ture-required and emailed receipts. All Atlantic Aviation FBOs and Flightcraft shop facilities are being actively audited to assure they are in compliance with the measures the company has taken to maintain a safe environment. Initial on-site audits commenced in late April 2020, and since then are being carried out monthly from the company’s headquarters via closed circuit TV. “If necessary, we will continue to do on-site audits of our locations if they are needed, as well as spot checks,” Smith said. At the same time, Atlantic Aviation has partnered with its vendors, including caterers and rental car suppliers— Hertz and Go Rentals—to assure compliance with the company’s anti-coronavirus guidelines. “We put together a written list of procedures, which we’ve distributed to our vendors, to help prevent the spread of the disease,” said Sue Sommers, Atlantic Aviation’s Vice President, Sales and Marketing. “The document emphasizes the need for deeper cleaning of any areas exposed to customer contact.” Sommers also pointed out that posted main-entrance notices at all locations advise customers and employees about state and local face-covering requirements. “We are doing everything we can to follow CDC guidance for employee and customer safety, and in most cases, people are cooperating,” she explained. “For instance, when customers enter our lobbies, they are encouraged not to congregate at the counter, but to stand back at least six feet and approach it only when it’s safe to do so.” However, Sommers stressed, despite the precautions, Atlantic will make no compromises with respect to its well-known high service levels. “Our culture has always been based on premium service and renowned safety levels. We made no changes to that strategy, and will continue with that culture,” she said. Looking ahead toward the post-pandemic era, some of the operational changes are likely to remain in place, such as more frequent cleanings and possibly social distanc- ing. However, she predicted that the requirement to wear masks and gloves is likely to ease up at some point. Aviation Business Journal | Summer 2020
