Team-Based Human Factors Challenges

  Hello! This week I will be discussing human factors and their effect on Crew Resource Management (CRM).

According to the Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (PHAK), human factors have been proven to be related to and be the cause of 80% of aviation accidents that occur (2016). With these statistics, it is no surprise why the aviation industry has shifted gears towards researching human factors and their effect on the decision-making process that pilots make.

Human factors can be defined as the physical and mental conditions that influence one to make the decisions they do (PHAK, 2016). The conditions can include one's emotions, attitudes, and knowledge. For example, a stressed-out pilot in the cockpit may be unable to focus clearly causing them to be more disconnected at the tasks at hand resulting in hazards arising. The addition of these human factors in the cockpit can be dangerous and in fact, has been proven to be. One infamous example of an accident occurring due to human error was the Tenerife airport disaster. In summary, an aircraft took off from a runway without adequate takeoff clearance and collided with an aircraft taxiing on the runway resulting in hundreds of fatalities (FAA, n.d.). Some of the main causes for this accident were the confusing communications between the aircraft and air traffic control, and one of the captain's urgency to depart from the airport as soon as possible (FAA, n.d.).

It is without a doubt that flying an aircraft is a difficult task. Within it lies multiple little tasks that must be completed efficiently for the flight to be completed in a safe manner. The main challenge that pilots face today that inhibits them from performing those tasks is human factors. The use of CRM utilization and training helps combat and relieve the presence of human factors. CRM was a concept that was integrated into programs starting in the 1970s and has exponentially grown from there (Munoz-Marron, 2018). The concept of CRM is to utilize all available tools such as the crew, air traffic control, flight service stations, onboard systems, pretty much anything you can think of that will help reduce human error and improve the safety of flight (Munoz-Marron, 2018). By utilizing CRM, the crew is able to use all available resources which reduces the workload on the pilot and essentially the human errors that can be induced.

 

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Munoz-Marron, D. (2018). Human factors in aviation: CRM (crew resource management). Psychologist Papers, 39(3), 191-199. http://www.papelesdelpsicologo.es/English/2870.pdf

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). (n.d.). Accident Overview: Boeing 747-206B and Boeing 747-121, KLM Flight 4805, PH-BUF, Pan American Flight 1736, N735PA. Lessons Learned from Civil Aviation Accidents. https://lessonslearned.faa.gov/ll_main.cfm?TabID=1&LLID=52&LLTypeID=0 

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). (2016). Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (PHAK). Retrieved https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aviation/phak/