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What to Do If You Find FOD: Pocket Card

A simple five-step response to any FOD find, when to stop work and call a supervisor, how to log the find, and badge-size cards to print and carry.
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8

Pages

8

Sections

5

Response Steps

1

FOD Find Log

What to Do If You Find FOD: Pocket Card cover

About the What to Do If You Find FOD: Pocket Card

Reviewed by Trent Powell, Founder, FODBag · Reviewed: November 10, 2026

Quick answer: When someone finds a foreign object on a ramp, in a hangar, on a production floor or inside a product, the first few minutes decide the outcome. What should you do if you find FOD? Stop, Secure, Remove, Report and Record. A clear, practiced response keeps the object from causing damage, makes sure it is reported, and gives the program the information it needs to fix the cause.

Who it is for: Everyone who works in or walks through FOD-sensitive areas: ramps, hangars, production floors and test areas.

Important: This guide is an educational resource. It does not reproduce, replace, or claim to contain the requirements of AS9146, NAS 412, FAA guidance, or any customer, contractual, or regulatory requirement. Organizations should obtain the authorized current editions of applicable standards and follow their approved procedures, maintenance data, and engineering instructions.
Aviation ground crew inspecting an aircraft for foreign object debris, emphasizing safety and operational efficiency

What’s Inside the Guide

Eight sections, from the five-step response to printable badge-size cards.

The Five-Step Response

STOP, SECURE, REMOVE, REPORT, RECORD: what to do at each step and why.

Decision Flow

Loose FOD on a floor, ramp or bench versus FOD in product, an aircraft or an opening.

When to Stop Work and Call a Supervisor

On or inside an aircraft, engine, product or opening, a possible part or tool fragment, a lost item, a FOD critical area or possible damage.

FOD Removal and Cleanup

Removal methods summarized from FAA AC 150/5210-24A, from hand pickup to sweepers and vacuum systems, with cautions.

How to Log a FOD Find

What to record so each find becomes useful program data.

FOD Find Log and Pocket Cards

A printable FOD find log and badge-size cards (3.375 x 2.125 in) to print, cut and carry.

Key Practices From the Guide

A short preview of what the guide covers in depth.

Stop where you found it
If the object is on or in product, an aircraft or an opening, stop work there so it is not moved further, closed in or ingested.
Secure before you decide
Keep the object from falling further in or blowing away, keep others clear, and do not run engines or move the aircraft or product.
Remove only what is loose and safe
If it is loose on a floor, ramp or bench and safe to do so, pick it up and place it in a FOD container or bag. Leave removal from product or an opening to the authorized person.
Call a supervisor when in doubt
Stop and call if you cannot reach it, it may be from a part or tool, you have lost an item, it is in a FOD critical area or near an engine, or damage may have occurred.
Use the right FOD removal method
Manual removal is the most efficient method for an isolated object. Sweeper bristles can detach and become FOD; metal bristles are not recommended. Check the pavement after sweeping.
Record every find
Note what it was, where and when, so the program can find and fix the cause.

How to Use This Guide

  • Use Sections 1 and 2 to learn the five-step response and decision flow.
  • Use Section 3 to know when to stop work and call a supervisor.
  • Use Sections 4 and 5 for FOD removal and cleanup methods and how to log a find.
  • Use the FOD find log and pocket cards in Sections 6 and 7 on the floor.

Before You Start

  1. Add supervisor and quality contacts to the card.
  2. Check where your facility procedure adds steps or names contacts.
  3. Place FOD containers and bags where finds are likely.
  4. Confirm which removal equipment is approved for your area.
  5. Print the badge-size cards on card stock at 100% scale.
  6. Decide where completed FOD find logs go.

Forms in the Toolkit

  • Five-Step Response Table (Section 1)
  • FOD Find Log (Section 6)
  • Printable Badge-Size Pocket Cards (Section 7)
  • When to Stop Work Checklist (Section 3)

By FODBag.com · Updated November 10, 2026

Reviewed by Trent Powell, Founder, FODBag · Reviewed: November 10, 2026

What to Do If You Find FOD: Playbook for Using the Pocket Card

Quick answer: Stop, secure the object, remove it, report it and record it. NASA MSFC-STD-3598 says to photograph FOD before removal if possible, report incidents to the FOD focal point, and recover every piece of a broken tool. A lost item that is not found within 1 hour of searching is reported as an incident.

This playbook shows how to use the pocket card in practice, with a checked monthly report example. It uses NASA MSFC-STD-3598 Rev. D, which was read for this page. The counts are invented and the steps are a FODBag suggestion. Your own procedures and your customer’s requirements decide what is reported and to whom.

Read this first. AS9146 and NAS 412 are paid aerospace standards. This page does not reproduce them and does not cite them by clause number. IAQG SCMH 3.4.2 Rev. D (June 19, 2023) is public guidance in support of AS9146. Use the current authorized edition of whatever standard your contract names; your approved procedures decide the controls.

What the opened source says

NASA MSFC-STD-3598 says that when a FOD incident contacts hardware or may pose a continuing risk, operations should immediately cease and an investigation be started, and that photographs should be taken of the FOD found, before removal if possible (NASA MSFC-STD-3598 Rev. D, 5.12.3.1 a and f). It says near-miss FOD is reported and investigated with the same urgency as actual incidents (NASA MSFC-STD-3598 Rev. D, 5.12.3.1 e). It lists lost tools, small parts or consumables not located within 1 hour of searching as incidents to report, and says items found in a control area other than during a FOD walk down may be recorded as “stumble on” FOD to help track sources (NASA MSFC-STD-3598 Rev. D, 5.12.3.2 d and f). When a tool breaks, all pieces are recovered and inspected (NASA MSFC-STD-3598 Rev. D, 5.8.2.2).

Using the card, step by step

  1. Stop work if the object touched hardware or could keep causing risk.
  2. Secure the area and do not move the object before taking a photo, if you can.
  3. Remove it into a FOD can or bag, never a pocket.
  4. Report to your supervisor or FOD contact right away.
  5. Record what, where, when and the likely source on the report.

Object found inside a product

Do not keep working. Tell your supervisor, protect the product, and follow your approved procedure for retrieval and inspection. Do not decide on your own that it is harmless.

Making the card stick

Laminate it, clip it to badges or tool bags, and review it at the start of shift meetings. Review the monthly reports to remove repeat sources.

Worked example: a month of FOD reports

This example is illustrative and not from a real site:

Item Value
“Stumble on” finds 7
Near-misses 3
Incidents (hardware affected) 2
Reports for the month 7 + 3 + 2 = 12
Incident share 2 ÷ 12 = 16.7%

Check: 7 + 3 + 2 = 12; 2 ÷ 12 = 16.7%. Because the seven stumble-on finds point to one dock door, the team fixes the source there before the next review.

What good looks like

  • Everyone knows the five steps without looking.
  • FOD is photographed before removal where possible.
  • Near-misses are reported like incidents.
  • Reports name a source and an action.
  • The card is reviewed at shift start.

Matching FODBag products and resources

Products to support the card: FOD cans; tool bags; FOD stickers; FOD signs; FOD field posters.

About FODBag. FODBag.com, a Powell Pack Products company in Mesa, Arizona, has made FOD bags, FOD tape, FOD stickers, FOD signs, FOD posters, FOD cans and FOD containers since 2016. FOD tape is 2 in × 108 ft and FOD signs start at $29.99. Questions? Call 602-874-1313, Monday–Friday, 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Arizona time.

Sources opened for this page

  1. NASA MSFC-STD-3598 Rev. D, Standard for Foreign Object Damage/Foreign Object Debris (FOD) Prevention (effective July 26, 2021) — Sections 5.8.2.2, 5.12.3.1 and 5.12.3.2. Opened and read for this page on November 10, 2026.

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  • 8-page pocket card guide (PDF)
  • Stop, Secure, Remove, Report, Record
  • FOD removal and cleanup methods
  • FOD find log and badge-size cards

Free for internal organizational use. Educational resource from FODBag.com, a Powell Pack Products company. Questions? Call 602-874-1313.

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Related Reading

Go deeper on the topics in the What to Do If You Find FOD: Pocket Card.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What should you do if you find FOD?

Stop what you are doing at that location, secure the object so it cannot fall further in or blow away, remove it if it is loose and safe to do so, report it to your supervisor or lead, and record what it was, where and when.

Should you remove FOD found inside an aircraft or product?

No. If the object is in product or an opening, leave removal to the authorized person. Removal inside product may need approved data, tools and inspection.

When should you stop work and call a supervisor?

When the object is on or inside an aircraft, engine, product or opening, you cannot reach it, it may be from a part or tool, you have lost an item, it is in a FOD critical area or near an engine, or damage may have occurred.

What are the methods of FOD removal?

FAA AC 150/5210-24A describes hand pickup for isolated objects, power sweepers, vacuum systems and other equipment. Sweeper bristles can detach and become FOD, and metal bristles are not recommended.

What is a FOD cleanup task?

Removing loose debris that is safe to pick up and placing it in a FOD container or bag, using only equipment approved for the area, then checking the surrounding area for related pieces.

Should you photograph FOD before removing it?

NASA MSFC-STD-3598 section 5.12.3.1 f says photographs should be taken of the FOD found, before removal if possible, to aid investigation. Never delay removal of a hazard to do so.

Do near-miss FOD events need to be reported?

Yes. MSFC-STD-3598 section 5.12.3.1 e says near-miss FOD incidents are reported, investigated and corrected with the same urgency as actual incidents.

When is a missing tool treated as a FOD incident?

In the NASA standard, a lost tool, small part or consumable not located within 1 hour of searching is reported as an incident (section 5.12.3.2 d). Your own procedure may set a different limit.