1. Hus Bos Winter Lectures 2009
Airmanship
Chas Cowley CFI – 21 Feb 09

2. QUESTION: Where is this?
(what sort of place would have a road called ‘Airmanship Road’ ?

4. Recognise it yet?

5. ANSWER: …which is the home of: RAF College Cranwell
Central Flying School

6. What is AIRMANSHIP ?
Airmanship is skill and knowledge applied to aerial navigation, similar to seamanship in maritime navigation.
Airmanship covers a broad range of desirable behaviours and abilities in an aviator.
It is not simply a measure of skill or technique, but also a measure of a pilot’s awareness of the aircraft, the environment in which it operates, and of his own capabilities
Wikipedia

8. LMQ (‘Crew Resource Management’ trainers)
What is AIRMANSHIP ? …some other suggested definitions
AIRMANSHIP is:
The (technical and non technical) knowledge, skills and attitudes aircrew employ to operate an aircraft effectively, efficiently and safely.
LMQ (‘Crew Resource Management’ trainers)
(Author of ‘Airmanship’ – Carey Edwards is a director)

9. Airmanship is acquired through experience and knowledge
What is AIRMANSHIP ? …some other suggested definitions
Airmanship is the application of flying knowledge, skill and experience which fosters safe and efficient flying operations.
Airmanship is acquired through experience and knowledge
Transport Canada

10. What is AIRMANSHIP ? …some other suggested definitions
‘…true airmanship is the ‘total package’ requiring both physical and cognitive skills and an appropriate attitude. These three essential ingredients can be labelled as judgement, control and discipline. Airmen need a balance of these to excel at their job. ‘
Human Factors Department at Advanced Technology Centre
Good airmanship is that indefinable something, perhaps just a state of mind, that separates the superior airman/airwoman from the average.
It is not particularly a measure of skill or technique, nor is it just common sense.
Rather, it is a measure of a person's awareness of the aircraft and its flight environment and of her/his own capabilities and behavioural characteristics, combined with good judgement, wise decision making, attention to detail and a high sense of self-discipline.
Recreational Aviation Australia Inc

12. Airmanship = safe flying = avoiding getting into a high risk situation
What is AIRMANSHIP ? …some other suggested definitions
Airmanship = safe flying
= avoiding getting into a high risk situation
AND recovering OK when something bad does happen
Chas Cowley

13. Why do we need safer gliding?
BGA ‘Safer Gliding’ program
Why do we need safer gliding?
Fewer tragedies
Avoid over regulation
Retain insurance
Fewer repetitions of common accidents does not mean avoiding normal risks or taking the fun out of gliding 13

14. Numbers of accidents in 2008
fatal
injury
serious injury
minor Injury
crash
minor/no damage
all
2008 6 12 51 69
120
2007 4 9 16 53 73
126
2006 3 7 8 54 91
145
weighted average
2.7
4.4 11 39
108 14

15. Serious injury accidents in 2008
Undershoot, instructing
Field landing, unlandable terrain, mutual
Field landing, overshooting, cartwheel
Spin from final glide
Undershot, hit tree
Lost locally, landed through barbed wire 15

16. Pattern of crashes in 2008 no collision, fewer winch, fewer stall/spin
16 field landing; 19 field landing including the 3 in stall/spin
12 landing on home airfield; this is double the average rate
otherwise, a repeat of the average pattern 16

17. 2008 was the first year since 1985 with no fatal accidents17

18. 18

19. Winch accidents in 2008 no fatal or serious injury accidents 4 crashes
Two no-injury accidents/incidents could have been fatal
glider climbed to a stall after hitting the ground followed by back release of the cable
pilot slid up the seat and inadvertently pulled the stick back to cause a stall
So no grounds for complacency 19

20. Winch accidents 2006-2008 (the 3 years of the BGA safe winch launch campaign)

21. Winch accident summary 2006-8
one fatal accident, cartwheel
one serious injury accident, cartwheel
10 crashes
35 accidents and incidents 21

22. Winch fatal and serious injury accident rates from 1974-1998 and from 1999-2005 were identical22

23. 23

24. Winch fatal and serious injury accident rates from 2006-2008 were lower24

25. 25

26. Winch summary
2 fatal/serious injury accidents instead of the 7 expected at the rate for
no fatal/serious injury accidents from uncontrolled flight
10 crashes instead of 21
wing drop accidents continue
instructing accidents continue
lesser accidents continue 26

27. What does this data mean?
It suggests:
real progress in educating inexperienced pilots on how to winch launch safely
no success in persuading experienced pilots to release if they cannot keep the wings level
no success in reducing instructing accidents 27

28. Conclusions for 2008
zero fatal accidents is only significant if it repeats in 2009
except for winch launches, accidents in 2008 reflect the way we do things
fewer accidents requires changes in the way we do things 28

29. Tony Kern’s airmanship model

31. Situational Awareness
Judgement
Situational Awareness
Self
Team
Risk
Aircraft
Environment
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

32. Know the rules: Stick to them: Rules of the air Air Navigation Order
BGA Laws & Rules
Club Flying Order Book
Good practices
‘Common sense’
Stick to them:
Personal pride
Embarrassment
Peer pressure
‘Consequences’
Safety culture
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

33. Four levels of skill: Precision & continuous improvement
Efficiency
Effectiveness
Safety
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

34. Currency: ….flying is NOT like riding a bike
Just because it’s legal doesn’t mean it’s safe
(3 landings in the last 90 days???)
Assessing proficiency? Be conservative – ‘trust no one’
Patterns of physical skill loss – fastest in areas of finesse
Mental proficiency – lost faster than physical skills
‘Chair flying’ – a good idea to rehearse – sitting and thinking…
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

35. Tony Kern’s airmanship model
I Illness
M Medication
S Stress
A Alcohol
F Fatigue
E Eating
Under / over CONFIDENCE
Personality type
Press-on-itis
Macho
Complacency
Deference
Stress
Self
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

36. eg: Type conversion Tony Kern’s airmanship model The FLIGHT MANUAL
Knobs and levers
Systems: – GPS / Flight computers / Varios
Weight & Balance
Ventilator / demisting
Flaps
Wheel
Complex types…checklists
eg: Type conversion
Self
Aircraft
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

37. CRM….Crew Resource Management
Teamwork
Decision making … ‘risky shift’… ‘groupthink’
Communication
Error management …Intervention
Leadership / followership
‘Sterile cockpit’ in critical phases (US Air Force use this)
Self
Team
Aircraft
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

38. Tony Kern’s airmanship model
Airfield
Weather
Traffic
Terrain
Airspace
Club / BGA
CAA / EASA
Foreign countries
Self
Team
Aircraft
Environment
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

39. Tony Kern’s airmanship model
Self
Team
Risk
Aircraft
Environment
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

40. ? Risk RISK = Potential Consequence x Probability
of a HAZARD of an incident ?

41. Consequence (eg No. of deaths)
EXAMPLE of the risk calculation
ALARP = risk ‘As Low As Reasonably Practicable’ - Lord Justice Asquith 1949
UK Health & Safety Exec - Risk management: ALARP Suite of Guidance
1 in a thousand
Intolerable
Probability
1 in a million
ALARP
‘Tolerable’
1 in 100 million 1 10
100
Consequence (eg No. of deaths)

42. ….and the ‘Swiss Cheese’ theory of incidents
Hazard/
Risk
Barriers
or Controls
Undesirable
outcome
Risk Management
….and the ‘Swiss Cheese’ theory of incidents

43. DAL 39
10 Dec 1998; 10:32

45. RUNWAY 24

47. OPERATIONAL CONDITIONS
On the day of the incident, low visibility and a low cloudbase made visual control from the tower impossible.
Radar had to be used to direct air and ground traffic
A few minutes earlier, Air Traffic Control had changed runway use configuration from two landing runways (19R and 01R) and one departure runway (09) to the so-called outbound mode with one landing runway (19R) and two departure runways (09 and 24)

49. The DAL 39 event scenario Pilots see 747 and abort take-off
Poor ergonomics of radar screens and runway stopbar controls
Pilots see 747 and abort take-off
Routine violation of tow procedures
Complex airport structure
Tower combining training and operations during difficult periods
Controller gives clearance without assurance of tow position

50. PROBABLE CAUSE The following causal factors were identified:
Low visibility weather conditions which prevented Air Traffic Control to visually identify vehicles on the ground
Inadequate information during the radio communications between tow (yellow van) and Tower
Misinterpretation of position and movement of the tow
Take-off clearance without positive confirmation that the runway was unobstructed
Insufficient teamwork and supervision.

51. KEY LEARNINGS
The incident was triggered by a momentary loss of ‘Situation Awareness’
But there were several underlying ‘latent failures’ which colluded: - unclear tow procedures - poor communication between controllers - poor ergonomics of ground radar displays - poor ergonomics of runway access barrier controls - poor shift change procedure - insufficient supervision during training - pressure to deliver operational performance
Lack of MINDFULNESS (airmanship…?)

52. Linate airport, Milan, Italy, 8 Oct 2001 118 dead

53. Tenerife airport, Canary Islands, 27 March 1977 560 dead

54. ? Risk RISK = Potential Consequence x Probability
of a HAZARD of an incident ?

55. Managing Risk identify hazards assess the risks
maintain good barriers:
- to reduce the probability of things going wrong
- and also to cope in case they do

56. Situational Awareness
Self
Team
Risk
Aircraft
Environment
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

57. Situational Awareness
What’s happening around you ?
What does it mean to me ?
What’s going to happen ?
What ?
So what ?
Now what ?

58. Situational Awareness
Five ways to improve it
Define roles
Manage distractions
Reduce workload
Avoid complacency
Test assumptions
Intervene
(…actually it’s six…)

59. Situational Awareness
Judgement
Situational Awareness
Self
Team
Risk
Aircraft
Environment
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

60. Judgement Decision-making: Assess the situation Determine options
Rule-based decisions (STANDARD PROCEDURES)
Knowledge-based decisions
Aviate….Navigate…..Communicate
‘Threat & Error Management’ - a recent and very current technique that is used in airlines, the RAF etc…

61. Situational Awareness
Judgement
Situational Awareness
Self
Team
Risk
Aircraft
Environment
Proficiency
Skill
Discipline
Tony Kern’s airmanship model

62. Threat and Error Management
‘Defensive driving’ for pilots
Asks
- what are the likely hazards ?
- What are likely errors I could make?
…based on analysis / history
Plan accordingly

63. Airmanship
Have fun – and stay safe!

64. Airmanship - Tony Kern video
Postscript: links to a few sites I found interesting:
Airmanship - Tony Kern video
PPrune
avweb airmanship
The Inner Art of Airmanship