Action-Oriented Pilot Training

Abstract

Pilot training aims to cultivate the knowledge and skills needed for proficient pilot performance. These include technical and nontechnical aspects. The technical aspects of performance are well defined and understood. The nontechnical aspects, however, are often defined in vague and subjective terms that make them difficult to reliably train and assess. Several frameworks have been developed to attempt to define the essential nontechnical aspects of pilot performance. These include the Joint Aviation Authority’s (JAA) Non-Technical Skills (NOTECHS), Crew Resource Management (CRM), Threat and Error Management (TEM), and to some degree, Competency-Based Training and Assessment (CBTA). To understand how airlines train and assess pilot performance, data were collected at four major U.S. Airlines and one major European Airline. A series of interviews were conducted in the form of discussion groups and one-on-one interviews with Pilots, Check Pilots, Flight Instructors and airline Training and Standards Managers. Observations of Line-Oriented Flight Training (LOFT) sessions and analyses of airline training materials were also conducted. The results suggest the core issues in training today lie with training and assessing nontechnical aspects of performance and integrating nontechnical with technical performance. While NOTECHS, CRM, TEM, and CBTA provide descriptions of nontechnical aspects of pilots’ work, they do not explicitly specify what the pilots need to do. The aim of this research is to make nontechnical performance explicit. In this paper, a pragmatic shift to action-oriented training is introduced. The action-oriented training framework was developed by applying modern cognitive theories to training and assessment.

Keywords: Crew Resource Management, Threat And Error Management, Competency, Nontechnical Skills, Cognition, Flight Training, Aviation Safety

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1007836