Do you have a Safety Culture?

Do you have a Safety Culture?

 

A Safety Culture is something that is striven for but rarely attained…”

The process is more important than the product.”

James Reason, “Managing the Risks of Organizational Accidents.”

Doing the right things, even when no one is watching.

“The safety culture of an organization is the product of the individual and groups values, attitudes, competencies and patterns of behavior that determine the commitment to, and the style of proficiency of, an organization’s health and safety program”  James Reason,

The safest organizations have more effectively committed themselves to controlling the risks that may arise from mechanical or organizational failures, environmental conditions and human error.

The organization collects and analyzes “the right kind of data” to keep it informed of the safety health of the organization – collects, analyzes and disseminates information on incidents and near-misses, as well as proactive safety checks.

James Reason.

How important is a Safety Culture for your organization?

Safety Culture is the set of continuing with values and attitudes concerning safety, shared by every member of every level of an organization. Safety culture is usually recognized as critical to the success of SMS.

Always Fly Safely !!!

Promoting Aviation Safety Prevent Accidents .

Promoting Aviation Safety Prevent Accidents!!!

 

 

New Federal Safety Alerts Aim to Improve General Aviation

 

On Friday the National Transportation Safety Board, an independent federal agency, announced that it had issued five new safety alerts that provide general aviation pilots with strategies for preventing accidents.

The alerts follow five others that were issued earlier in the year that focused on the most frequent types of general aviation accidents.

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The agency defined alerts as brief information sheets that pinpoint particular safety hazards and offer practical remedies to address the issues.

The new "Armed" for Safety: Emergency Locator Transmitters alert, for example, advises pilots to verify that devices are switched on and attached to aircraft to ensure that they will work when needed. They can save pilots' and passengers' lives by helping search and rescue personnel locate a downed aircraft after an accident and minimize risk to personnel during operations, but "these lifelines can be rendered inoperative" if switch positions are improperly set or if they becomes detached from the aircraft, the agency said.

The other four recent safety alerts are:

* Check Your Restraints

* Engine Power Loss Due to Carburetor Icing

* All Secure, All Clear (securing items in the aircraft cabin)

* Proper Use of Fiber or Nylon Self-Locking Nuts

Commercial aviation continues to have a strong safety record, the agency said, however each year it continues to investigate an average of 1,500 general aviation accidents in which about 475 pilots and passengers are killed and hundreds more are seriously injured in the United States.

"Knowing these accidents, which sometimes include entire families, can be prevented is why 'General Aviation Safety' is on our Most Wanted List of transportation safety improvements," Deborah A.P. Hersman. NTSB's chairman said in a statement. "At a time when many people are putting together their list of resolutions for the coming year, these five Safety Alerts remind pilots, mechanics and passengers of basic safety precautions to add to their checklists to ensure a safe flight for all on board."

In describing the problem, the agency wrote: "In many cases, pilots did not have the adequate knowledge, skills, or recurrent training to fly safely, particularly in questionable weather conditions. In addition, the more sophisticated "glass" cockpit displays present a new layer of complications for general aviation pilots. And not only are pilots dying due to human error and inadequate training, but also they are frequently transporting their families who suffer the same tragic fate."

Also, although the overall general aviation accident rate has remained relatively steady, the components have changed dramatically over the last 10 years, the agency said. Personal flying accident rates, for example, have increased 20 percent, while the fatal accident rate has increased 25 percent over the same 10-year period.

To learn more about the new safety alerts and 25 others issued since 2004, click here.

SOURCE:http://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyamohn/2013/12/29/new-federal-safety-alerts-aim-to-improve-general-aviation/

 

Stabilized Landings

Stabilized Landings

 

 

Happy New Year to all my readers and enjoy my Safety Blog! I wish you the best of health and happiness in 2014 and Fly Safely at all times.

So, today I want to share something very interesting some approach techniques on runway excursion prevention. I am very motivated person to promote to connection Aviation Safety through the world.

Stabilized Approach criteria have successfully elevated the in Cockpit Awareness of risky approaches.

Runway excursion can occur on Take Off or Landing, let’s analyze  these expressions:

·         Veer Off: Depart the side of the runway.

·         Overrun: Depart the end of the runway.

Most common types of Approach and Landings accidents : landing veer off , landing overrun , unstabilized  approach , control flight in to terrain ( CFIT ) , collision with terrain no CFIT ,and runway overshoot . These comprise the 78 % of the total approach and landing accidents.

So, rushed and  unstabilized approaches  are the largest contributory  factor in Controlled Flight In to terrain ( CFIT ), and other approach  landing accidents . Evaluation some operations briefing notes approach techniques, rushed approaches result  in inadequate time for the flight crew to appropriately  plan , prepare , and execute a safe approach .

Specific Factors involved in rushed and unstabilized approaches. Therefore, flying stabilized approaches complying with the stabilization criteria and approach to understand well the concept to stay away from incidents and accidents is the key, so, if the Pilot continued flying and unstabilized approach, maybe the pilot will encounter some targets that should be met for the approach and need to understand the following these four steps strategy immediately to escape and incident or accident, anticipate, detect, correct and decide.

These strategies will constitute a common sense objective and reference for the Pilot Flying and the Pilot not flying the airplane.

Monitoring, provide the time an ability and attention must require in this final and critical phase of flying so back up timely and precise any deviation callouts for effective correction on time, positive corrective actions should be taken before any deviation that develop in to a challenging or a hazardous situation in which the only safe action is immediately execute a GO AROUND.

All crews have to remember these three essential parameters to be stabilized for a safe approach:

Aircraft Track, Flight Path Angle, and Air Speed.

So, associated flight operations briefing notes communicate, that the following notes must review with this information to share:

ü  Decent and Approach Profile Management.

ü  Energy Management during the Approach.

ü  Being Prepared to a GO AROUND Immediately.

ü  Flying Constant Angle Non Precision Approaches.

ü  The Final Approach Speed.

ü  Factors Affecting Landing Distances.

Keep in mind failure to Go Around contributed to one – third of all landing excursion accidents.

Always attempt to make a Stabilized Landing ,it  is a landing conducted where your aircraft is completely controlled from a point 50 feet above the threshold to a full stop on the landing surface, without any unintended or adverse aircraft deviations from the planned and briefed maneuver .  

Fly a Stabilized Approach always, the risk of an approach and landing accident or incident is increased if you don’t identify the strategies to reduce the risk of runway excursion , Fly Safely all time !!!

 

 

Potential Flight Hazards

Potential Flight Hazards

 

The behavior of a flight crew is influenced by a variety of factors !!

 

A Safe Pilot Always constantly makes Good Judgment. So let’s review what’s Good Judgment to you as a Private or Commercial Pilot?

It is the ability to make an instant decision, which assures the safest possible prolongation of the flight.

But Good Judgment may frequently be a series of evaluations, made completed a period of minutes, hours, or even longer, that keeps you as a good and Safety Pilot out of danger.

Remember a Good Judgment guarantees the positive aspect of flying safe.

So, Judgment occasionally is not easily to defined, but one definition very clear is that Judgment is good, common sense, as applied to the making of decisions, particularly correct decisions, and sense relates to an intense awareness, consciousness, and understanding of all the factors which are complex in making a correct decision, this expression sense in Aviation Safety is generally applied to a person’s ability to act effectively and positively in any particular situation.

Accident Cause Factors

 

 

 

 

 

The factors in all Sectors of the Aviation Safety Triangle.

 

The 10 most frequent cause factors for general aviation accidents that involve the pilot-in-command are:

                                         

1. Inadequate preflight preparation and/or planning.

2. Failure to obtain and/or maintain flying speed.

3. Failure to maintain direction control.

4. Improper level off.

5. Failure to see and avoid objects or obstructions.

6. Mismanagement of fuel.

7. Improper inflight decisions or planning.

8. Misjudgment of distance and speed.

9. Selection of unsuitable terrain.

10. Improper operation of flight controls.

This list remains relatively stable and points out the need for continued refresher training to establish a higher level of flight proficiency for all pilots. A part of the FAA's continuing effort to promote increased aviation safety is the Aviation Safety Program. For information on Aviation Safety Program activities contact your nearest Flight Standards District Office.

 

Source: AIM / FAA

 

Safety is No Accident! Fly Safely !!!

 

 

How to Avoid a Runway Overrun?

How to Avoid a Runway Overrun?

 

The purpose of this post is to provide more information about how pilots can manage threats and errors during Approach and landing. So, on my research concerning and talking about Runway Overrun, data reveals that runway accidents are still the leading cause of accidents.   

 

Today, I want to share some strategies to prevent runway overruns, the failure of the crew to understand the need for more landing distance or to adjust the level of braking would be an error associated to a threat.

 

Either threat or hazard is any situation, event, or circumstance that may affect the Safety of Flight.

 

So, threats are not errors, but they increase the potential of errors, but what that mean to understand well the concept? Besides if you analyze the process of managing threats , when we study and read final reports regarding any situation that a Runway Overrun was the cause of a fatal or no fatal incident or accident , these threats may result in an accident , so they can be managed by the pilot to detect , avoid and trapped.  

 

So, analysis of landing incidents indicated that a landing overrun is more likely if:

ü  The approach was fast and landing attempted in excess of Vref ­­+ 15 Knots.

ü  The approach was high, exceeding the recommended threshold crossing height.

ü  The Aircraft floated or is held off the runway for a smooth touchdown.

ü  The touchdown point is long, often beyond the normal landing area.

ü  The runway surface is wet or contaminated.

ü  There is a tailwind.

 

A landing overrun  occurs when the airplane  landing distance  exceeds the distance available , so , the distance required to land and stop the aircraft and is effected by many factors in each of four phases, approach, flare , control , stopping . Any single factor or combination can create a threat that may result in an overrun.  

 

Pilots always remember, carefully review the expected landing performance during the approach briefing, the pre-planned data uses forecast and expectations made at the time of dispatch, also don’t forget, a good Safety Pilot identifies that attempts to land on a contaminated runway involve considerable risk and should be avoided whenever is possible.

 

My best recommendation, always manage all threats on every landing. It is human nature to make errors, but the most important is to identify situations that could lead to errors, try to avoid these situations and circumstances that promote errors, all the time don’t forget doing on time, identify an error, trap the error, take corrective action, and check effectiveness.

 

So, all pilots we learn from errors, from incidents and accidents, from our own, and from other crews.

 

Keep in your mind, errors management requires conscious thought to provide awareness and understanding, remember no two landings are the same, never, its ok to GO AROUND, maintaining all the time a good situational awareness.

 

Pilots, Plan, Monitor and Compare, know the risks.

 

Most overruns are accidents, fatalities, injury, and damage, think about and lower the risk factors before you have an accident.

 

More knowledge about runway overruns, lower risk, a better decision to any pilot.  

Keep in mind the 7 H:

·         How heavy is your aircraft.

·         How long is the runway at your destination airport?

·         How fast is your aircraft?

·         How wet is the runway at your destination airport?

·         Head or tailwind? On speed respect the Stabilized Approach Criteria (SOP)  

·         Height over the threshold.

·         How much braking to use after landing?

 

Avoiding always a runway overrun. Have a Safe Landing always.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 



Pilot – In Control / Avoiding Loss of Control Accidents

Pilot – In Control

Avoiding Loss of Control Accidents

 

Accident Prevention

Accidents can happen to anyone. So the most important to focus is to stay away and be well trained all the time, although during my individual research during this year 2013, analyzing some final reports devolvement data from the black boxes recovered from accidents in different parts off the world during the year collecting evidence, and also the excellent professional job done by the investigators in charge , in my personal opinion very professional without questioning nobody, reading several final reports  , there are some strongly points of interest to loss of control – inflight (LOC – I ) as the final cause , sadly loss of control accidents do occur on a much too frequent basis . So, particularly in General and Commercial Aviation.

Pilots always be prepared , try to reduce the threat of LOC – I resulting from mishandling the controls , keep at all-time your mental and physical skill , review and rehearse emergency procedures often , participate with your company and share with your coworkers safety programs , learn to recover LOC – I learned well.  

So, sometimes pilots induced to accidents, my only purpose of this post are to show how lacks of knowledge, inadequate concepts, confusion inside the cockpit and distractions have contributed to accidents. I want to share with all of you folks reading my safety blog, during my analyses and study of many General Aviation accidents reports, indicate that incidents and accidents can happen to anyone.

 

Accident prevention program is the key at all times; remember the pilot in command always has direct responsibility for the operation of his aircraft. So, a safe pilot consistently makes good judgment all the time.

Safety is Everybody’s Business !!!

Sterile Cockpit Perception

Sterile Cockpit Perception

 

In the last few months, I wrote something motivating concerning about Distractions in the Cockpit and Cockpit Discipline. So, distractions will always be part of a Cockpit environment, but how we as pilots can handle them, well this issue inspiring me again to focus and post something remarkable that can often mean the difference between a Safe Flight or an Incident or Accident, the Sterile Cockpit what that mean this word to you as a Safety Pilot .So it is important that there is a difference between having good judgment and making good decision.

The mental ability to perceive and differentiate alternatives permanently to have a good and safety flight all the time. Good judgment comes from the ability to perceive, become aware, observe, detect, and understand. Making the right decision is actually the end result of having good judgment and stay away of incidents and accidents.

What that Mean Sterile Cockpit ?



 

It's no secret. When a flight crew's attention is diverted from the task of flying, the chance of error increases. Over the years there have been dozens of air carrier accidents that occurred when the crew diverted attention from the task at hand and became occupied with items totally unrelated to flying. Consequently, important things were missed. Things like setting the flaps prior to takeoff, or extending the landing gear before landing. Things like monitoring altitude on an instrument approach, or using engine anti-ice for takeoff during a blinding snow storm.

In 1981 the FAA enacted FAR 121.542 and FAR 135.100 to help curb the number of these accidents. Commonly known as the "sterile cockpit rule," these regulations specifically prohibit crew member performance of non-essential duties or activities while the aircraft is involved in taxi, takeoff, landing, and all other flight operations conducted below 10,000 feet MSL, except cruise flight.

Sterile Cockpit Rules

FAR 121.542 / FAR 135.100--Flight Crew Member Duties

(a) No certificate holder shall require, nor may any flight crew member perform any duties during a critical phase of flight except those duties required for the safe operation of the aircraft. Duties such as company required calls made for non-safety related purposes as ordering galley supplies and confirming passenger connections, announcements made to passengers promoting the air carrier or pointing out sights of interest and filling out company payroll and related records are not required for the safe operation of the aircraft.

(b) No flight crew member may engage in, nor may any pilot in command permit, any activity during a critical phase of flight which could distract any flight crew member from the performance of his or her duties or which could interfere in any way with the proper conduct of those duties. Activities such as eating meals, engaging in non-essential conversations within the cockpit and non-essential communications between the cabin and cockpit crews, and reading publications not related to the proper conduct of the flight are not required for the safe operation of the aircraft.

(c) For the purposes of this section, critical phase of flight involves all ground operations involving taxi, takeoff and landing, and all other flight operations conducted below 10,000 feet, except cruise flight.

Note: Taxi is defined as "movement of an airplane under its own power on the surface of an airport."

I know any pilot when well-read this post will be more alert, and going to be more vigilant about any situational awareness inside your cockpit, so this especially critical at any activity during a critical phase of flight , take off , landing etc. Remember always fly safely all the time.

 

 

Technology and Training

Technology and Training

 

 

Are Airline Pilots forgetting how to Fly ???

I would like to share today something very interesting regarding Human Factors and Training that currently the new technology in aviation on my personal view, all pilots flying new airplanes with the modern equipment need to focus and look at the future of human factors training as well as some more advances in technology that is very important to improve the quality of training to avoid future incidents and accidents in general and commercial aviation, so we also take a close look at some of the underlying issues of Cockpit Design.

Particularly helpful as pilots we try to understand the rapidly changing nature of aircraft design with respect to automation in both commercial and general aviation airplanes.

So, increasing automation has a dramatic impact on the role of the pilot and can change the complete nature flying. As you start evaluating how automation affects you when we read the latest accidents in general and commercial aviation why those accidents happened and how we can avoided, is a question that any person working in this profession asked all the time.

Therefore, it is very important to have a good base of knowledge in this design principles to stay away from accidents and incidents, so I believe in my particular opinion that will be an increasing emphasis on human factors and topics this issue I sharing today with all the Aviation Community on my safety blog, technological training devices will become more prevalent, because they will incorporate powerful instructional ideas that make training more effective and efficient.

Another area, I want to emphasis in which computer technology is beginning to play a big role in improving our capabilities for flight training simulation, so most simulators today are based on computer technology, as are their visual display, however computers can provide added capabilities that will improve the efficiency and effectiveness of training .

Several Pilots have difficulty manually flying planes, concerning what I read on an article few days ago on a study commissioned by the FAA said the article, I want to share with all of you folks what the article defined, so Commercial Airline Pilots have become so dependent on automation that poor manual flying skills and failure to master the latest changes in cockpit technology pose the greatest hazards to passengers, an international panel of air-safety experts warns.

A soon-to-be-released study commissioned by the Federal Aviation Administration determined, among other things, that "pilots sometimes rely too much on automated systems and may be reluctant to intervene" or switch them off in unusual or risky circumstances, according to a draft reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

While over the decades automation played a big part in making flying today safer than ever in the U.S. and globally, the draft highlights some downsides. The study found that some pilots "lack sufficient or in-depth knowledge and skills" to properly control their plane's trajectory, partly because "current training methods, training devices and the time allotted for training" may be inadequate to fully master advanced automated systems.

Among the accidents and certain categories of incidents that were examined, roughly two-thirds of the pilots either had difficulty manually flying planes or made mistakes using flight computers.

Relying too heavily on computer-driven flight decks—and problems that result when crews fail to properly keep up with changes in levels of automation—now poses the biggest threats to airliner safety world-wide, the study concluded. The results can range from degraded manual-flying skills to poor decision-making to possible erosion of confidence among some aviators when automation abruptly malfunctions or disconnects during an emergency.

The report is the first of its kind to meld historic data from accidents and incidents with real-time observations of working pilots, according to people familiar with the details. Instead of just focusing on training and cockpit design, the study takes a broader approach to consider pilot interactions with air-traffic controllers and other operational issues.

The observers found that in most instances, pilots were able to detect and correct automation slip-ups before they could cascade into more serious errors. But when pilots "have to actually hand fly" aircraft, according to one section of the narrative describing interviews with trainers, "they are accustomed to watching things happen…instead of being proactive."

Pilots losing control of aircraft, because of poor situational awareness or inability to grasp what their instruments and automated systems are telling them, has been identified as the primary cause in a number of crashes globally in recent years. Pilot lapses and automation were implicated in the high-profile 2009 crash of an Air France AF.FR +0.24% Airbus A330 that stalled and went down in the Atlantic Ocean, killing all 228 aboard, just as they are suspected of causing last July's crash of an Asiana Airlines Inc. 020560.SE +0.31%  Boeing BA +0.65%  777 during a botched landing in San Francisco.

The 277-page report—written by a team of industry, labor, academic and government officials—details the hazards of excessive pilot dependence on increasingly automated and complex flight decks.

Scheduled for release by the FAA as early as this week, the findings already have prompted some agency action and are expected to be a catalyst for further moves to combat such fundamental safety gaps. The final version is basically unchanged from a September draft, according to people who have read both.

The FAA said it already has taken action on all 18 of the report's recommendations, through new rules, guidance material and research. The agency cited "advances in manual flying skills [and] improved pilot certification standards," adding that the report "validates those efforts" and the FAA would discuss the next steps on Thursday at a summit with industry leaders.

"It's an industry consensus document" that's based on data and "was so meticulously done," according to John Cox, a former airline pilot and crash investigator, who now runs an industry consulting firm. "Those are the elements that make it so powerful."

With the reliability of engines and flight controls continuing to improve, airline pilots spend the vast majority of their time programming and monitoring automated systems—typically relegating manual flying to barely a few minutes during takeoffs and right before touchdowns.

Overreliance on automation, however, has been recognized for years as an industry wide problem, with numerous earlier studies delving into the consequences.

But the latest effort stands out due to the wide-ranging collection of experts who participated. It also breaks new ground because the panel members sifted through large volumes of voluntary safety reports filed by pilots, along with additional data gathered by cockpit observers on more than 9,000 flights world-wide.

After seven years of deliberations and persistent industry arguments about which accidents and incidents ought to be considered, the document lays out some sweeping recommendations to prevent what critics have dubbed "automation addiction" in some cockpits.

The 34-member committee, for example, agreed that "pilots must be provided with opportunities to refine" manual flying skills, while receiving enhanced training in computer complexities and automation modes. In addition, the draft recommended training for rare but potentially catastrophic malfunctions "for which there is no specific procedure" or readily available checklist.

The panel also called on manufacturers to develop cockpit designs that are "more understandable from the flight crew’s perspective" and specifically guard against technology failures resulting from integration of various onboard systems.

Kathy Abbott, a senior FAA scientist and one of the committee's three co-chairs, declined to comment. In the past, she has said excessive reliance on computer aids means pilots "sometimes are not prepared to deal with non-routine situations," especially when the message from airline management and trainers "is that automated systems can do the job better" than humans.

David Mc Kenney, another co-chair and head of training programs and human-factors issues for the Air Line Pilots Association, the largest U.S. pilots union, said on Sunday that FAA rules prohibited him from commenting. But in the summer of 2012, he gave a mini-preview of some of the report's conclusions. Mr. Mc Kenney told an ALPA conference in Washington that instead of teaching pilots to punch in numbers and "simply how to interface with the automated systems," airlines should train aviators to effectively manage flight paths using more-realistic scenarios and the element of surprise.

The FAA is considering releasing the study's findings in conjunction with agency chief Michael Huerta's scheduled meeting this week with industry leaders to discuss voluntary safety initiatives.

The agency earlier this month completed a major rewrite of pilot-training rules mirroring some of the report's recommendations, including new requirements for teaching more-effective ways to monitor other pilots and flight instruments.

The expert panel was charged with updating an influential 1996 FAA study that examined the benefits and drawbacks of automation involving earlier, less-computerized generations of aircraft. Now, other groups and organizations are expected to conduct follow-up research based on the long-awaited findings.

According to the draft, "the definition of 'normal' pilot skills has changed over time" and "has actually increased to being a manager of systems." Concerned about the hazards of cockpit "information overload," the draft noted that several manufacturers told the panel that “today’s technology allows for too much information to be presented to the pilot." Source: The Wall Street Journal By ANDY PASZTOR Nov. 17, 2013.

This article give me the idea of building instructional benefits into traditional training technologies has a good future in the Aviation Industry , in this remarkable  article I sharing. I want to give you a sense of the human factors issues surrounding design.

So, I know there are many definition of automation, the most understandable one is stay alert all the time inside your cockpit, automation has many advantages in the cockpit.

Constantly recognize that humans can be expected to make errors in every operation too.

I hope to provide you with some brief insights into the directions Aviation is heading today , and also I confidence your interest in human performance , particularly your own , always increasing your awareness of human strengths and will make you a Safer Pilot all the time .

Remember Fly Safely!!!

 

 

How’s the Weather??

AVIATION WEATHER

 

Weather is continuous in the State of the Atmosphere, all flying takes place in the atmosphere, so flying and weather are inseparable. I sincerely believe all pilots and flight operations personnel will enjoy this post and also at the same time increase your flying safety. What you should know about weather?

I want to share this notice for your safety and the safety of those with you.

My best advice to all of you who read my safety blog, always learn to recognize the bad weather and make a good decision before is too late if you don’t understand why many times you have to make decisions involving thunderstorms and flying . So this information also describes how you can use as a good tool for flying safely all the time. Weather is an important piece of any flight. 

Always Remember Fly Safely !!!

FAA Safety Team | Safer Skies Through Education

How’s the Weather?? Notice Number: NOTC5091 Weather is an important aspect of any flight.      Pilots must know and understand all weather associated with their flight, both as a preflight action and as the flight progresses.     Fortunately, there are many new sources of aviation weather to help pilots.  Providers are now making weather data available in the cockpit and on many smart devices.  These include government and private weather providers and most have explanations of how their products work on their associated websites. The FAA cannot recommend what weather provider a pilot should use but does stress that pilots must validate that whatever weather provider they choose bases its weather data on official government weather data.       Once the weather data is collected, pilots need a strategy to integrate the weather information into their planning and go-no-go decision making before and during flight.     To improve these weather related skills, all pilots are invited to take the FAASTeam’s new online course - “Aviation Weather Data – A Targeted Approach”.  The course can be found on FAASafety.gov (ALC-322) at the following link:  https://www.faasafety.gov/gslac/ALC/course_catalog.aspx    Want to learn more?    General Aviation Pilot’s Guide to Preflight Weather Planning, Weather Self-Briefings, and Weather Decision Making  http://www.faa.gov/pilots/safety/media/ga_weather_decision_making.pdf