Premium on Safety - Issue 40, 2021 - 11

SAFETY SPOTLIGHT
Aeronautical decision making and the 5P framework outline
five decision points where pilots should pose their Go/No-Go
or Go-No-Further questions. These points arise before leaving
the flight planning room, before leaving the ground, hourly or
halfway to the destination, before leaving cruising altitude, and
before leaving the initial approach fix. Without a doubt, these
decision points are critical junctures in every flight, but for any
pilot in command, asking Go/No-Go or Go-No-Further questions
is an ongoing conversation that involves others as the situation
demands.
If you find an unexpected fluid drip or puddle during preflight,
Go-No-Further until you discern its source and a maintenance
technician either fixes the problem or assures you it will not affect
the safe outcome of your flight. During the climb to cruise, is
the aircraft performing as expected for conditions and are the
temperatures, pressure, and other pertinent readings in the green?
And throughout the flight, is Mother Nature behaving as forecast?
If not, every Go/No-Go or Go-No-Further reply should come with
an alternate plan that ensures safety.
Ultimately, aviation safety is a state of mind that pilots can
exercise anywhere. Realizing that no pilot is exempt, they should
keep abreast of situations catching their peers by reading annual
accident summaries like the AOPA Air Safety Institute's Joseph T.
Nall Report. With this information, they can create decision chains
that become an integral part of their operational performance.
Anchor the chain to some point of change, say descending from
cruise toward the destination. Am I heading toward the right
airport? What is the wind? What runway can I expect? Is there a
crosswind? Is it within the aircraft parameters, and am I capable of
flying it? Am I lined up on the right runway?
Pose your final Go/No-Go or Go-No-Further question just before
short final, and if the answer is not Go, Go-No-Further and execute
your preset alternative to abort the landing attempt, go around,
and either try again or exercise the second part of your alternate,
divert to another airport with more favorable conditions.
After securing the airplane, reexamine the flight from preflight
planning to engine shutdown. What went right, what went wrong,
and how the pilot and involved participants did in their efforts to
mitigate the situation. Mentally catalog each teaching moment
for quick recall so you can avoid them when the same or similar
circumstances arise on a future flight.
-Scott Spangler fell in love with aviation at age 5, when he
found his father's WWII U.S. Navy Aircraft Identification
manuals. A pilot since 1976, he was the founding editor of
Flight Training magazine, and is currently a contributing editor
at JetWhine.com, Aviation for Women and Kitplanes.

Learn from Others'
Mistakes
The AOPA Air Safety Institute's (ASI) Accident Case Studies-
one of its hallmark video series-are designed to help pilots
understand and recognize insidious situations that, if not
dealt with appropriately, can escalate into a fatal accident.
Accident Case Studies explore why pilots ignore warning
signs of an impending disaster, do not break the accident
chain, and instead press on under adverse circumstances
until it is too late.
ASI's Accident Case Studies use FAA ATC radio
communication transcripts, NTSB documentation, and video
animation to recreate the dynamics of the situation and track
the accident chain of events.
Watch Accident Case Study: Rescue Gone Wrong, which
reminds us how a mission mindset can trap and take us
down the wrong path in our " go/no-go, go-no-further "
decision-making.
-Machteld Smith The AOPA Air Safety Institute is
dedicated to promoting safer flying practices for general
aviation pilots at all experience levels, influencing how
they think, and impacting how they fly.

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https://www.aopa.org/training-and-safety/air-safety-institute/accident-analysis/joseph-t-nall-report https://www.aopa.org/training-and-safety/air-safety-institute/accident-analysis/joseph-t-nall-report https://www.aopa.org/training-and-safety/online-learning/accident-case-studies http://www.JetWhine.com

Premium on Safety - Issue 40, 2021

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