go/no-go

How to say no

By Dave English

Saying YES is easy, saying NO is hard. Outstanding article by James Albright in Business & Commercial Aviation on not pleasing the boss. There is an old saying among business aviation pilots: “You don’t pay me to say ‘Yes,’ you pay me to say ‘No.’” Saying “Yes” is easy; it is what the passengers want to hear. It takes real courage to look at the person who controls your fate and say “No.” Five case studies and then some useful ideas. When the boss is pushing, it explains tools we can use to push back:   Transfer ownership. Delay and redirect. Prioritize. Play … Continue reading How to say no

Flight controls free and correct?

By Dave English

You have a religion that says if I want to live, I’m going to run the checklist. Robert Hulse Last week the NTSB released lots of details on a fatal accident that will keep lawyers and human factors academics busy for years. It involves rich high-profile (newspaper publisher) passengers, an iconic Gulfstream IV jet, the failure of a basic airplane safety system and the repeated failure of basic airmanship. Maybe the best account of this two-factor crash is the online piece Deadly Failure On The Runway by McCoy and Purcell of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Fascinating reading. (The NTSB press release … Continue reading Flight controls free and correct?