Aviation Maintenance - Essay Example

Aviation Maintenance and the hazards with complacency Human Factors & safety problems in aviation 0 INTRODUCTION Accident statistics cite the flight crew as a primary contributor in over 80 percent of accidents of airplanes. The introduction of modern flight deck designs, which have automated many piloting tasks, has reduced or eliminated some types of flight crew errors, but other types of errors have been introduced. Several recent accidents and incidents have emphasized continuing difficulties in flight crew interaction with flight deck automation. Other indicators of potential safety problems, such as flight crew reports, training and operational difficulties, research studies, and surveys also point to vulnerabilities in this area. The human mind is infinitely more complex than any mechanical device on the face of the earth, and much of its functioning is still unpredictable. Around 80% of all accidents are caused by human error (www.faa.gov)1. In fact, dig dip into any accident, and the balance 20% can also in all probability be traced back to human as the root cause. Human factors encompass a wide range of knowledge, skills and attitudes including communications, situational awareness, problem solving, decision-making, and teamwork. What would, or should have otherwise been, a simple straightforward decision based on (presumably) clearly defined rules, very often has been colored by extraneous factors that are weighed on unfathomable weighing scales inside the human minds Aviation is basically a combination of four ingredients, viz. Man, Machine, Medium and Mission - the four Ms. Successful integration of all the four culminates in a safe flight. Safety in aviation is achieved by implementation of in stringent measures at various levels - be the production, training or operations. Great emphasis is given towards production of aircraft. Innumerable test sorties are flown on prototypes before clearing them for production. Once came into the service, maintenance schedules are laid down at various stages to ensure trouble free flying. Similarly the crew operating the aircraft undergoes rigorous training to hone their flying skills. Great emphasis is given towards training of ground crew too, which encompasses all crew not flying but directly or indirectly associated with flying operations. Various checks are instituted to monitor the health of aircraft and the knowledge of aircrews and ground crews. Despite so much concern and effort however, accidents do take place due to varied reasons and it has been found that the man behind the machine causes almost 80% of the accidents in aviation due to omissions or commissions. Why is it so' Why does the same specie, that gas designed and mastered the machine and understood its intricacies, cause an accident due to an error' How is the man weakest link among Four Ms' These are the questions that need to be answered in the interest of flight safety. 2.0 Human factors Human factors comprise of human capabilities, process control and automation, talent attainment, system examination and plan, information processing and display, operator workload, and task-induced pressure, environmental effects on performance, human-computer communication and accident prevention. Human factors are concerned with the cognitive and interpersonal skills mandatory to control the flight within a prearranged aviation system. Cognitive skills are the psychological processes required for gaining and maintaining situational awareness for solving problems and for making decisions. Interpersonal skills comprise of successful communications and excellent teamwork. Good interpersonal skills support the creation of synergy and the growth of successful cooperation. Both cognitive and interpersonal skills are improved by a good emotional environment amongst the crew, but they are also easily degraded by stress, so administration of the emotional climate and stress becomes an essential and significant building block of good human factors. Human factors play significant roles in more accidents than do mechanical failures. Accordingly, crew resource administration and other human factors-related guidance are emphasized in most flight training. Human factors often put stress on the pilot that contrast with those of technology. Pilots must mix experienced operation of an aircraft with subtle but powerful factors within themselves. (Frank& Harry 112) Safety in the flight operation depends on the mastery of the cognitive and interpersonal skills, which structure the foundation of high-quality human factors by the aircrew. Human factors is not merely a theoretical administration idea but somewhat is a regulation that embraces main beliefs and skills which, when attached with good scientific knowledge and proficiency, will permit the crew to construct the most excellent use of all accessible resources to understand best possible effectiveness in the conduct of operations while concurrently maximizing the safety of the flight. Thus the following practices will reduce troubles in the flight operations:- Gain insight into the impact of human performance on aircraft maintenance Understand how organizational factors are critical to safe aircraft maintenance Identify what factors can affect human performance, and how to identify and control them Learn how to establish a Human Factors and Error Management programme Discover the role of disciplinary policies in creating an environment to investigate errors 3.0 Psychological Aspect It is estimated that 80% of aviation accidents are caused due to human error (www.faa.gov). Exclusive investigations are carried out to find the cause of the accidents. It is usually assumed that the crew had the capacity to execute their allotted task, and if they did not do so, they are held accountable for the accident and punished if they are alive. Seldom is any thought given on the reason behind the error. Man, though a highly intelligent animal, suffers from psychological issues of varied nature, which have a bearing on aviation. They are Attitude, Motivation and Stress. 4.0 Human Errors & Effect of Stress in Aviation According to Hebbar, excessive emotional stress in an aircrew leads to one or more of the following. (Hebbar 55): Judgment error. Lack of concentration Tunnel vision Fixation Poor CRM Fatigue Fatigue is a significant reason in aviation accidents, and successful fatigue administration requires understanding the connection between functioning conditions and fatigue regression of fatigue. Increase upon operational conditions indicated that the number of takeoffs and landings during the day were interrelated to fatigue development. Fatigue administration should be founded upon the demands of functioning conditions, not merely the simplistic evaluation of hours of work. (www.gulliver.trb.org) The most common effect of excessive stress in an aircrew during flying is fixation and tunnel vision and most accidents have taken place due to these two factors. These also cause reduction of verbal communication, which has a direct bearing on CRM. In the case of ground crew too, emotional stress plays an important role in safe handling and maintenance of aircraft. Highly trained and efficient ground crew has committed many mistakes, which have resulted in many an incident and few accidents. Inadvertent operation of engine bay fire extinguishers, failing to remove blanks from equipments post inspection, maneuvering support vehicles into aircraft etc., are a few examples committed by the ground crew. The list is no doubt innumerable. Pilot errors are recognized as a contributing factor in as many as 80% of aviation crashes. Overall, 23% of pilot errors were attributable to inattentiveness, 20% to flawed decisions, 18% to mishandled aircraft kinetics, and 18% to mishandled wind/runway conditions (www.cat.inist.fr). Present flight cockpits are complex environments requiring pilots to scrutinize a large number of computerized displays and alarm systems. Aviation accidents caused by maintenance factors differ in severity, but can cost countless sums in lives and equipment lost in aircraft accidents. The factors of confining workspace, inadequate design, inadequate lighting / light, inadequate compliance / elasticity and attention / memory error amplified odds of being connected with a higher severity mishap. Effective communication with advanced automation technology is becoming increasingly important because these systems are no longer passive tools but, rather, agent-like devices that operate at a high level of autonomy and authority (Billings, 1996). Advanced automation can initiate actions without immediately preceding or directly related operator input (i.e., autonomy), and it is capable of modulating or overriding user input (i.e., authority). These properties of modern technology impose high attention and knowledge demands on operators, who need to maintain awareness of the automation's status, behavior, intentions, and limitations in order to efficiently coordinate their activities with the system. Air traffic control (ATC) system errors rarely occur in today's system. Nevertheless, more than 90% of all the system errors that do occur stem from human mistakes in attention, judgment, and communications by controllers and their supervisors (Jorna 1991). Current levels of air traffic are already pressing the capacity of today's system. Future traffic is predicted to increase significantly, but economic and other factors place severe limits on the number of airports and runways that can be built. Resultant traffic congestion and controller work load, despite automation efforts, could increase the error rate and degrade the system's tolerance for errors. Several ATC-related aircraft accidents happen due to the controller's changing role and the manner in which the controller interacts with pilots, other controllers, and the work environment. 5.0 Suggested Remedial Measures In depth studies needs to be undertaken to understand the psychological aspects involved in aircraft incidents/accidents. Some method to tackle the problems arising due to psychological aspects are enumerated below (Hebbar 80): 5.1 Behavior Reinforcement A superior who knows his job can modify attitude and motivation in favor of the establishment without aggravating the situation. Behavior reinforcement is of two types-positive and negative. Positive reinforcement is the intensification of preferred behavior by means of reward, whereas negative reinforcement is discouragement of undesired behavior by means of punitive actions. 5.2 Pilot Judgment Training (PJT) Pilot Judgment Training should be introduced in flying syllabus to perk up the reflexes of the pilots in extreme circumstances. The capsule should emphasize on procedures, perceptions and decision-making in a range of extremes of flight. Regular capsule courses may be introduced at different stages of the profession to strengthen the judgment process 5.3 Aviation Psychology indoctrination Supervisory staff needs to know more about the psychological aspect of human error accidents/incidents in order to prevent their recurrence. A capsule on aviation psychology needs to be introduced in all major courses for pilots and crew. This will enable them to handle their subordinates sensitively, and thereby get better output. 5.4 Improvements in Working Environment The working environment has a direct bearing on stress and motivation. A favorable atmosphere at work reduces stress, and increases motivation level of the crew. At ground level, the supervisory staff plays an important role in improving the working environment. They should cooperate with their subordinates frequently in an informal manner to encourage them to discuss their opinions and feelings frankly. Supervisors must involve the crew in the decision making process to make them feel part of the system. A good manager takes suggestions from the crew but decides the best course of action on his own. 5.5 Man Management Techniques A fresher course on effective man management must be made compulsory for all pilots and airport authority officers holding key positions. When aviation accidents do happen, the primary contributing factor is flight crew error. With every conceivable measure taken to ensure safety and minimize accidents, a fail-proof system of flight has yet to be developed (Department of Transportation: Federal Aviation Administration: Office of Aviation Research, 2004). (Civil Aviation Authority, 2006) 6.0 CONCLUSION Man designed the Machine and started flying them in the Medium unknown to him to accomplish the Mission set by himself. With passage of time, he mastered the art of making the machine and became aware of the medium. In the process, the machine overtook him and the man found himself trying to catch up, with the machine. In the bargain accidents/incidents started occurring due to the limitation of the human brain. All human error accidents are not the fault of the aircrew or ground crew alone. Sometimes external circumstances such as poorly designed cockpit, ambiguous regulations, communication, briefing etc. are the cause. Knowing why a crew made an error is helpful in designing preventive measures and formulating specialized training. But lessons learnt on the cause of human error are seldom implemented leaving the flank wide open for recurrence of similar accidents. Understanding the cause and implementing preventive measures will go a long way in avoiding human errors accidents and thereby strengthening the Man in the Man, Machine, Medium and Mission quartet. As rightly quoted by William James, Human beings, by changing the inner attitudes of their minds, can change the outer aspects of their lives.2 Reference List Billings, C.E. (1991). Human-centered aircraft automation: A concept and guidelines (NASA Tech. Memorandum 103885). Moffett Field, CA: NASA-Ames Research Center. Billings, C.E. (1996). Aviation automation: The search for a human-centered approach. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Civil Aviation Authority. (2006, June). Supproting Pilot Performance. Retrieved January 23, 2007, from CAA: http://www.caa.co.uk/default.aspx'categoryid=978&pagetype=90&pageid=6398 Frank H. Hawkins & Harry W.Human Factors in Flight. Ashgate Publishing; 2nd edition. January 1993. Graeber Curt. Human Factors. Boeing.com Retrieved on July 20, 2008 from [http://www.boeing.com/commercial/aeromagazine/aero_08/human_textonly.html] Hebbar RM. "Men Behind The Machine." Aviation Journal. Careers Publishing House. Delhi.2004.25-130 Human Factors and Aviation Safety. Retrieved on July 20, 2008 from http://www.wcupa.edu/_ACADEMICS/sch_cas.psy/Career_Paths/Aviation/subfield2.htm Jorna 1991, Flight to the Future: Human Factors in Air Traffic Control Wikipedia. Air Safety. Retrieved on July 20, 2008 from http://www.answers.com/topic/air-safety Read More