Frog, Toad and black swan checklists

Excellent article on checklist use – and when not to follow them. Quotes from Frog, Toad, and the black swan pilots of Qantas Flight 32. Written by a systems ergonomist/work psychologist with a real understanding of aviation issues. http://humanisticsystems.com/2015/10/01/toads-checklist/

Tired Cathay Pacific pilots

One of the hardest things to do as a pilot is to not go flying. To tell your boss, your passengers, or your brother-in-law that no, I’m not flying today. Because I’m tired. It’s macho to say “need a straw?” (So you can suck it up.) It pays more to fly more. And unless you are absolute worn-out, it’s a tricky second-guessing judgement call. So good luck to the Cathay Pacific pilots who are taking a stand on tiring schedules. Are you mentally tough enough to say no?

Flight controls free and correct?

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?

Incredible reply to pride in airmanship question

On the Facebook page of Inner Art Airmanship, a reply to my last post about pride in airmanship was posted that deserves a wider audience. The original AOPA Flight Training magazine article ‘The Art of Airmanship’ closed with this thought: In the end, airmanship really is about pride-pride in learning as much as you can about the history and pioneers of aviation, developing your knowledge and skills to the best of your ability, honing your command qualities, and fully accepting the duties and responsibilities that come with exercising the privileges of your certificate. There’s a lot of reasonable stuff there, … Continue reading Incredible reply to pride in airmanship question