Safety culture is a learning culture

I recently wrote a Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) for this web-site about airframe icing, and included a short anecdote about my experiences with ice and frost on the wings of an aircraft. The story is recounted in summary below;

I remember flying a Beechcraft Baron as a charter pilot about 25 or 30 years ago, and had to overnight in Armidale in winter. Next morning, although the day was clear, the frost was like snow. The aircraft wings and other surfaces were coated in a heavy layer of frost. I found the only container which would hold water (a garbage bin) and proceeded wash down the wings and tailplane to remove the frost. It was so cold that the washing water froze on the wings almost as fast as the frost was removed. The customer was not happy because he wanted to get going, and it was only frost – what’s the problem?

Since writing the piece, I have started to think about any young charter pilot’s capability to handle ignorant (in both senses of the word) and demanding passengers. In my experience the pressure which can be exerted can be overt and obvious and other times it can be covert and subtle. I’ve had it from every quarter and realise in retrospect, that the pressure can be significant enough to influence safety. I have been thinking about how this risk can be treated.

A good general aviation Chief Pilot may provide induction training on things like, the provisions of the operations manual, aircraft familiarity, route and charter destination aerodromes, maybe some un-documented work practices, and even “keep your eyes of the receptionist sonny!” A real professional might talk about CRM and some human factors issues, but I wonder if the practical aspect of human “pressure” in all its forms is ever discussed.

More significantly, I wonder if the issue is ever raised by pilots who have recognised and resisted the pressure, and, having done so decided that it was an important lesson for others to learn. The culture of the organization needs to encourage and support lessons from within as well as other training.

Whilst acknowledging that it is easy to be an armchair expert and dream up all types of scenarios which relate to safety, I think it is important that any aviation organization of what ever discipline, creates and maintains a culture of continual learning about things which pertain to safety. It is also important that the lessons are contextual and relevant to the activity. In my early days, the training was done around the bar after a hard day’s flying and all types of issues were discussed; I cannot remember a lesson about pushy customers though!

This sort of ‘training’ does not need to be rocket science, but needs careful thought by the organization’s leaders to ensure that the culture includes a learning element, and that training in what ever form, hits the safety target. A safety culture is a learning culture.

Robert Collins | Monday, July 06, 2009 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Permalink