1 Situation Awareness for CFIs Donna Forsyth Wilt, Ph.D. Florida Institute of Technology Presented at CFI Workshop FAA Safety Center, Lakeland, FL May 12, 2001

2 Introduction Dual flight training accidents are almost always avoidable: – If they had only realized … – How could they not have known … – Why didn’t they check … – They should have seen it coming In retrospect, it is easy to say the CFI didn’t have the big picture, didn’t have situation awareness

3 “Fool! …Give me those controls! … You’re just dang lucky both barn doors were open!”

4 Overview Just what is situation awareness? How do you realize you’ve lost it? What can we do as CFIs to improve our own SA and also to teach our students to have good SA?

5 What is Situation Awareness? Situation Awareness is getting and retaining the big picture – Accurately perceiving the state of the equipment, aircraft, and environment – Accurately interpreting, understanding, and comprehending the situation – Accurately projecting the current situation into the near future

6 Good Outcomes need Good SA Loss of SA does not always cause accidents, … but the accidents that do result are almost always devastating. Mr Magoo syndrome Good decisions are based on accurate information and correct understanding of what is happening

7 Pilots with Good SA Know what is going on around them at all time Accurately interpret the instruments and understand what the aircraft is doing and what it will be doing in the near future Know where the aircraft is and where the aircraft will be in the near future

8 CFIs with Good SA Have the same good SA as a pilot PLUS Know what the student should be doing Know what the student is doing, Understand the effects of what the student is doing

9 Pilots without Good SA Only think they know what is going on Once pilots have an incorrect picture, – They force perceptions to fit into their understanding of reality – They make decisions based on a false reality

10 Examples of Recognizing the Loss of SA Examples of Recognizing the Loss of SA 1. What are your experiences as a pilot/CFI in losing situation awareness? 2. How was SA lost?

11 Recognizing the Lack of SA The lack of SA is insidious – Not obvious like a mechanical problem – There is no SA indicator in the cockpit – There are no audio alarms, no warning lights But there are warning signs! Recognize the warning signs that SA has been lost

12 3 Warning Signs for Loss of SA Ambiguity Fixation on a Task Gut Feeling

13 Ambiguity Inability to resolve discrepancies between 2 sources Best indicator of loss of SA Examples – CFI & student disagree on what ATC said – Landmarks don’t match up right – CDI needles moving in the wrong direction – Don’t hear expected calls – Traffic isn’t where ATC said it was

14 Fixation on a Task Pilots can easily fixate on a task CFIs frequently fixate on the teaching task – Forget to put the gear down or flaps up – Forget to switch tanks/ run out of fuel – Don’t watch for traffic – Miss radio calls

15 Gut Feeling The feeling that something isn't right Pilot’s experience is providing a warning Good indicator that something is wrong Easy to ignore because – no specific course of action – similar feelings in the past have not led to accidents

16 Examples of Recognizing the Loss of SA Examples of Recognizing the Loss of SA 1. What are your experiences as a pilot/CFI in losing situation awareness? 2. How was SA lost? 3. What were the warning signs?

17 Regaining SA Recognizing the loss of SA is the 1 st step to regaining it ‘Listen’ for the signs of lost SA If SA is lost: – Climb – Evaluate the situation – Regroup & determine a safe course of actions

18 To Regain SA Address & resolve ambiguities Recognize when fixation is occurring – Once CFIs realize they’re fixating, they can expand their attention to keep the big picture Acknowledge & identify the cause of the bad feeling in your gut

19 Effect of Experience & Training on SA Experience and Training have a significant effect on SA – The more tasks are handled automatically, the more attention resources are available to understand everything that’s happening Events are matched to prior experiences in memory to quickly make sense of information

20 Training to Improve SA When students become disoriented – This is a learning opportunity – Let them regain SA on their own Induce a loss of SA in student – Create a nav conflict or give ambiguous instructions Teach students to climb to a safe altitude and sort it out – Point out the indicators that SA is lost

21 Training to Improve SA Debrief the student on – How SA was lost – When they realized they had lost SA – When they regained it Discuss the clues that were evident during the time they didn’t have SA Discuss how to identify such a loss in the future

22 Examples of Recognizing the Loss of SA Examples of Recognizing the Loss of SA 1. What are your experiences as a pilot/CFI in losing situation awareness? 2. How was SA lost? 3. What warning signs were there? 4. How was SA regained?

23 Conclusion We train how to handle mechanical emergencies – But most accidents are pilot error often based on poor decisions with inadequate SA We should also train how to recognize the loss of situation awareness. CFIs also need have to recognize the loss of situation awareness while teaching

24 In Closing Don’t be a Mr. Magoo Remember the Warning Signs for loss of SA – Ambiguity, Fixation on Task, Gut Feeling When they occur: – Climb, Evaluate, Regroup

25 Credits Eric N. Wickfield, April 24-26, 2001 – “Losing Situational Awareness: Indications of that Loss and Avoiding the Controlled-flight- into-terrain Accident” – Flight Safety Foundation & NBAA 46 th annual Corporate Aviation Safety Seminar, Orlando, FL