CFI FOI Lesson 1

If you hope to succeed in reducing stress associated with crisis management on the flight deck, it is essential to begin by making a personal assessment of stress in all areas of your life.

The four fundamental risk elements incorporated into aeronautical decision making are the pilot, the aircraft, the environment, and the type of operation that comprises any given aviation situation.

Pilots have been known to fall into a number of classic behavioral traps. Pilots, particularly those with considerable experience, as a rule always try to complete a flight as planned, please passengers, meet schedules, and do what it takes to “get the job done.”

“I can do it” is an example of a macho attitude. It is characteristic of an individual who thinks (s)he is superior to others.

Situational awareness is defined as an accurate perception and understanding of all the factors and conditions within the four fundamental risk elements that affect safety before, during, and after the flight.

An example of the antiauthority (“Don’t tell me what to do!”) attitude would be an instructor allowing a learner to exceed maneuvering speed during a stall recovery. The specific antiauthority attitude expressed by the instructor is “The aircraft can handle a lot more than the maneuvering speed.”

The ADM process addresses all aspects of decision making on the flight deck and identifies several steps involved in good decision making. One of these steps is to identify personal attitudes hazardous to safe flight.

Hazardous attitudes, which contribute to poor pilot judgment, can be effectively counteracted by redirecting that hazardous attitude so that appropriate action can be taken. Recognition of hazardous thoughts is the first step in neutralizing them in the ADM process.

Risk management is that part of the ADM process which relies on situational awareness, problem recognition, and good judgment to reduce risks associated with each flight.