final feb cover - Indian Airforce

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the formation when we encountered bad weather enroute. I diverted and the formation landed at an abandoned runway despite R/T calls from other aircraft in the air in the vicinity at that time that they were proceeding to destination. The sortie to base was resumed on improvement in weather. A case of Press-on-itis corrected by crew resource management, wherein the inputs from the co-pilot and flight engineer on their comfort level, dictated a safer decision. So, what are the causal factors They are a ‘page lot’ and the aircrew must always be aware so that they can recognize the symptoms and take preventive measures:- P- Poor Crew Resource Management is a key factor towards Press-on-itis accidents. No one in the multi crew cabin puts his view point strongly and even the support services personnel leave it to the captain thinking ‘he knows best’. A- Almost there, and we can hack it feeling. G- Get the job done. A captain may try to prove to oneself, a junior and impressionable crew or a colleague in the peer group that ‘Ek bar commitment kar di to kar di’. E- Ego is certainly one of the major factors in Press-on-itis. How foolish would it appear to back track one’s own well considered decisions and the desire to demonstrate superior skills are one of the causal factors. L- Loss of Situational Awareness. This is something totally avoidable in a multi crew environment and even for single pilot aircraft alert support service personnel can chip in with correct professional advice but they don. O- Overconfidence leading to incorrect 24 Aerospace Safety F e b r u a r y 2 0 12 INDIAN AIR FORCE
Press-on-itis or Get-home-itis simply means the condition when a pilot undertakes a flight as per a fixed plan despite deteriorating conditions when common sense would have dictated a more safer alternative to divert or simply to carry out a precautionary landing. planning and consideration of what if scenarios will ultimately lead to faulty aeronautical decision making. T- Task saturation, especially when fatigued can lead to being trapped into the press-on -itis syndrome. Target fixation due too competitive an environment within the squadron can lead to overlooking of the golden rule of aviation that the first thing one must do is fly your machine safely. I know of many a crew on a check sortie who in the excessive effort to impress as regards TOTs have been lax on the other parameters be it height maintenance or laid down speed restrictions so that in the debrief they can say we were within +/- 5 seconds at the waypoints. The preventive methods which flow out of an understanding of the causal factors are ‘Why FACE B’:- W- Crew need to be taught to ask ‘Why’ ‘What if’ scenarios are <strong>cover</strong>ed during general and exercise briefings as emergencies during training and combat missions. But a look at a large number of accidents suggests that there is a need for the supervisors to ensure that such elements are adequately discussed and briefed even for seemingly routine sorties and ferry flights. F- Fuel planning for adverse weather and clear fuel markings on the map at critical waypoints to ensure correct Go/ No Go decisions will lead to avoiding press-on-itis scenarios. A- Crew need to be trained to select suitable and safer ‘Alternatives’. Risk assessment training must factor fatigue at the end of a long flight C- The service must have a demonstrated ‘Commitment’ to safety. No undue pressure must be put to undertake missions especially for VIP flights as it sends the conflicting message of different rules for different people. E- There must be adequate ‘Emphasis’ on observing laid down minima and adherence to SOPs. B- During ‘Briefings’ bring out Go/ No Go criteria. Be aware of your/ crew desire for presson-itis. During debrief analyze decision making during the sortie. Just because you made it does not mean that the decision making was flawless. Bring out the errors made and draw appropriate lessons. Press-on-itis is a dangerous mental state. Many accidents are caused or are suspected to have been caused by it. Awareness of unreasonable pressure to get to destination, either self generated or due company policy, would lead to steps to avoid the same. Good training that stresses awareness, setting of boundaries or tramlines, sound knowledge of SOPs, planning ahead for contingencies and disciplined adherence to minima are the key to avoiding press-on-itis. Have a safe flight and happy landings! -Wg Cdr Ashish Kapoor INDIAN AIR FORCE 2 0 1 2 F e b r u a r y Aerospace Safety 25
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final feb cover - Indian Airforce

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