Training and Assessment of Pilot Monitoring Skills

Online, April 9, 2013 (Newswire.com) - The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) safety risk analysis process has identified Loss of Control as one of its significant 7 safety risks. A loss of control task group was set up, comprising representatives from CAA, Airlines and other aviation organisations, with the remit to examine the range of causal factors leading to loss of control. There have been nine fatal accidents in the last 13 years, attributed to Loss of Control, resulting in the loss of 1128 lives. Monitoring lapses were identified as contributory factors in many fatal accidents and serious incidents and it was established that the training and assessment of monitoring skills needed to be investigated.

ESE Associates Ltd was contracted by the CAA to carry out a comprehensive study into the training and assessment of pilot monitoring skills. This led to the capture of pockets of good practices across the airlines and other safety related industries. These practices have been developed and consolidated into a guidance document Monitoring Matters.

Automation is prevalent in all safety critical transport systems which results in the need for the human operator, by necessity, to adopt a monitoring role to ensure that the system goals are being achieved. When the automation becomes complex it places high demands upon the human brain to build and maintain a mental model of the predicted system behaviour.

This article aims to capture the essence of the training and assessment practices and issues raised in the document that may be transferable to other safety critical domains. The material is abstracted from the Monitoring Matters guidance material. The article includes case studies and the video re-enactments which provide salutary lessons for safety.

Read the full article here: www.hfsafetycritical.com/pilot-monitoring-skills/